Island Life Magazine Ltd February/March 2011 | Page 84

country life

Island Life - February/March 2011

Changing Face of the Countryside -

Woodland Wonderland?
By Tony Ridd

I can just about remember the last of

know it is under constant threat from

Although representing just under a

the great Elm trees standing tall but

one direction or another and whether

fifth of all woodland in England the

dead in the seventies. As a kid, we

it’s landowners, farmers, politicians or

PFE accounts for nearly half of our

had one taken down in the garden,

biologists trying to save it, the way we

accessible woodland. Some people are

the stump being left at about 10ft,

view and use it is likely to change and

concerned that these new proposals

allowing me a nicely elevated tree

soon!

will lead to a loss of public benefit and

house, well, upturned table with a

Firstly, the Governments latest cost

environmental damage, while others

piece of rusty corrugated iron nailed

cutting/money raising proposal to

believe the land could be managed

roughly to the legs!. On occasions they

‘sell off’ our Forestry Commission

better by other landowners such as

still get referred to as ‘the tree of the

woodlands. True, Governments have

charities and the industry itself.

West Wight’. And it’s true to say that

been able to sell (and have been

nothing has replaced their statuesque

selling) off parts of our Public Forest

threatening to our woodlands is beyond

and imposing presence.

Estate (PFE) since 1981. In the eighties,

governments, and is, in fact, biological!

However, what is possibly more

The ghost of Dut ch Elm Disease, still

thousands of hectares were sold. But

Just as Dutch Elm Disease changed the

haunts us today with many hedgerows

today PFE’s (such as Parkhurst Forest,

face of our landscape, new diseases are

and small copses suffering the same

Coomley and Firestone Copses)

affecting trees across the water in the

fate. The problem is that we tend to

provide multiple economic, social and

South West of England, and as close

take our countryside and landscape

environmental public benefits, although

as Wiltshire! A fungus like pathogen

for granted; it’s always been there and

it does cost an estimated £15 million to

‘Phytophthora ramorum (PR), is found

will always be there. But this is not

do so, approximately thirty pence per

on plants and shrubs in Europe and on

strictly true. The countryside as we

year for each person in England.

trees in the USA, although thought to

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