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Ashdown Park & the Uffington White Horse
Oxfordshire
- Ashdown: 95 ha (235 acres) 2 ½ miles south of Ashbury, 3 ½ miles north of Lambourn, W of B4000 . [174:SU284823]
- White Horse Hill: 202 ha (499 acres) 6 miles west of Wantage, 2 miles south of Uffington, south of B4507. [174:SU293866]
Situated among the rolling Berkshire Downs, these properties are of great archaeological interest. Uffington White Horse, a famous landmark for miles around, dates from the late Bronze Age. A hill-fort of similar age crowns the hill, with burial mounds located between the two features. Below the hill lies the flat-topped mound of Dragon’s Hill, the supposed site where St George slew the dragon; and at the foot of the hill is the dramatic dry valley known as the ‘Manger’. The downland, both here and at Ashdown, is grazed by sheep as part of the management programme aimed at improving biological diversity.
The parkland around the charming 17th century Ashdown House is surrounded in turn by woodland and farmland, including the remains of a medieval deer park and a field of sarsen stones supporting rare lichens. Adjoining the woodland is Alfred’s Castle, a defended settlement with evidence of Iron Age and Roman occupation.
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The Ashridge Estate and Ivinghoe Beacon
Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire
- 1821 ha (4500 acres) 3 miles north of Berkhamsted, at Northchurch, between A41 and B489, both sides of B4506. [165:SP970131]
Stretching along the north-eastern edge of the Chiltern escarpment on the Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire border from Berkhamsted to Ivinghoe Beacon, this landscape includes commons, heath, woodland, farmland and downland. Ashridge Commons and Woods and Ivinghoe Hills have been designated Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) .
This property is rich in archaeological remains, Bronze Age barrows exist around Ivinghoe Beacon and an impressive Bronze Age hill-fort at the top of the Beacon. The landscape is characterised by a number of a surprising number of enclosures and settlement sites, with lynchets, sunken droveways and occasional dykes.
The highlights of the estate are woodlands on the chalk scarp and combe: wooded commons with giant old pollards, most notably at Frithsden Beeches; lawns and rides of the medieval Ashridge Park; and downland and scrub at Ivinghoe Beacon.
In the woods bluebell, sanicle and sweet woodruff grow among the beech and oak trees, with ash and hornbeam also present. Woodland birds include redstart, woodcock, wood warbler, lesser spotted woodpeckers, tawny owl, firecrest, sparrowhawk, tree pipit and hawfinch. Fallow and muntjac deer can be seen.
Ashridge Commons hold pockets of relict heathland, an unusual habitat in the north Chilterns, and huge beech pollards, which support a number of rare beetles and other specialist dead-wood invertebrates. The spectacular downland slopes at the northern end of the property are important for calcareous grassland flowers and insects, especially those associated with rough downland. The slopes hold one of the strongest colonies of the Duke of Burgundy fritillary butterfly in the country, as well as many other scarce downland insects and a range of downland flowers.
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Bembridge and Culver Downs
Isle of Wight
- 42 ha (104 acres) 2 miles east of Brading, off B3395 [196:SZ624860]
Located at the eastern end of the Isle of Wight, these downs (a Site of Special Scientific Interest and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) are dominated by the chalk ridge which runs across the island from east to west. The sheer cliffs are used by nesting birds and are of great geological interest.
The remainder of the property includes areas of chalk grassland on the slopes and ridges of Bembridge and Culver downs and areas of agricultural land. The flora is varied and the downs support both chalk and natural grassland communities although some areas of downland have been agriculturally improved. The high exposure factor ensures that many plants occur only in stunted form. However a wide range of chalk specialists is found such as yellow-wort, horseshoe vetch, squinancy-wort and lady’s bedstraw.
The insect fauna is restricted by the windswept conditions, but includes the chalkhill blue butterfly and various uncommon beetles. Scrub pockets provide a useful breeding habitat for several species of small bird. The coastal landslip known as Redclift is home to the rare Glanville fritillary and burrowing bee wolf.
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Bradenham
Buckinghamshire
- 449.5 ha (1111 acres) 4 miles north west of High Wycombe, 4 ½ miles south of Princes Risborough, east A4010. [165:SU825970]
This large estate surrounding the manor and village of Bradenham in Buckinghamshire (the Trust owns many of the village houses), with farmland and woodland including Bradenham Woods, an extensive area of ancient beech wood which is considered among the best in the Chilterns, containing valuable evidence of medieval landscape and woodland management. Park Wood is another area of characteristic beech woodland on an ancient site, and Grimm’s Ditch running through the north east corner of the wood is of historical interest too.
Although beech has been the predominant species on this property for many years, the woodlands are now being managed to encourage other tree typical to the Chilterns, with oak, whitebeam, wild cherry and ash.
The woodland floor is covered in flowers such as dog’s mercury, primrose, sweet woodruff, wood anemone and bluebell. The ash-black slug, a scarce species of ancient forests, occurs.
There are some small but extremely valuable pockets of chalk grassland along the south-facing slope below the woodland edge. Some scarce plants grow here, including juniper and fragrant bee and fly orchids. There is a rich butterfly fauna, notably small blue and Duke of Burgundy.
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Bramshaw Commons
Hampshire
- 568 ha (1404 acres) between Bramshaw, Cadnam and Plaitford on north edge of New Forest, just south of A36, 10 miles west of Southampton [184 and 185:SU297178]
This extensive network of manorial wastes and commons within the New Forest includes Cadnam and Stocks Cross greens, and Bramshaw, Cadnam, Furzley, Half Moon, Penn and Plaitford commons. The New Forest, a Royal Forest established in the 11th century by William the Conqueror, evolved with its own charter for enclosure, cultivation, hunting, grazing and commoners’ rights. Of interest are two Bronze Age cairns on Plaitford Common and a twin-bowl barrow on Furzley Common.
The manorial wastes, usually heathland, provided the commoners with timber, fuel and other useful commodities. Today they represent the best surviving example of lowland heath and mire in Europe, still managed by common grazing of ponies, pigs, donkeys, cattle and sheep.
The Bramshaw heaths and mires have very rich flora and include large populations of penny royal and small fleabane; long-leaved sundew, marsh St John’s wort and bog asphodel occur in the mires. The dry heaths are particularly good for Dartford warbler and woodlark. The invertebrate fauna is extremely rich: the rare fairy shrimp occurs in a seasonal pool; there is an impressive list of solitary bees and wasps; there are some scarce deadwood beetles along the wood pasture fringes; and standard heathland butterflies such as grayling, green hairstreak and silver-studded blue occur. The commons also provide a habitat for the scarce blue-tailed damselfly, raft spider and grasshoppers.
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The Buscot and Coleshill Estates
Oxfordshire
- 3035 ha (7500 acres) Buscot: on A417 Faringdon to Lechlade road [163: SU26694]
- Coleshill: on B4019 Faringdon to Highworth road [163:SU237972]
These two large properties are situated in the fertile Thames Valley on the eastern edge of the Cotswolds. They include the attractive villages of Buscot and Coleshill with the surrounding woodland and farmland. The Cotswold stone cottages in Coleshill village, with the home farm buildings, are an integral part of a well-planned 19th century model farm.
Old pollarded trees line the River Thames at Buscot, and the River Cole, which runs through the Coleshill Estate, has recently been restored to its original course. Along both the Cole and the Thames there are fragments of old hay meadows, once very extensive in the Thames Valley, where there are some small reedbeds and marshes. Curlews and lapwings feed on the meadows, and kingfishers can be seen along the rivers.
On Badbury Hill, the highest point in the area, is an unexcavated Iron Age hill-fort.
Evidence of traditional woodland management can be detected in a number of woods, although many of the old coppice stools of oak and ash were replaced by conifers at the turn of the century. There are good hedgerows throughout the estate which support a wide range of wildlife.
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Coombe Hill and Low Scrubs
Buckingham
- 86 ha (213 acres) 1 ½ miles west of Wendover, 3 ½ miles south east of Princes Risborough south of B4010 [165:SP849066]
This stretch of chalk downland, designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest, is the highest point in the Chilterns with views across the Vale of Aylesbury, the Berkshire Downs and the Cotswolds. On the summit stands a monument (not owned by the Trust) dedicated to the men who fell in the Boer War.
The Trust has introduced its own flock of sheep to control scrub invasion and to encourage the rich grass sward of the downland. The grassland on the steeper slopes contains many flowers typically found on chalk, with thyme, harebell, bird’s-foot trefoil, horseshoe vetch, rock rose, dropwart and wild strawberry, which are used by a variety of downland butterflies and insects. Shrubs include juniper, wild privet and whitebeam.
On the plateau is some important relict heathland, and in the wooded areas oak and beech predominate. Many of these woods have been planted over the last few centuries, but evidence of coppicing and ancient pollard suggests a longer history of wood pasture commons in the area.
To the east lies Low Scrubs, an area of wooded common once used for gathering firewood. Woodland plants include helleborine, yellow archangel, broad buckler fern and enchanter’s nightshade.
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Finchampstead Ridges and Simon’s Wood
Berkshire
- 24 ha (60 acres) ¾ miles west of Crowthorne station on B3348, 4 miles south of Wokingham. [175 and 186:SU808634]
Finchampstead Ridges lies on the south-facing scarp of the Blackwater Valley, with impressive views of the neighbouring counties of Hampshire and Surrey. The upper slopes are heather clad with pine clumps, while on the wetter lower slopes there are oak and holly. Simon’s Wood lies close to the Ridges on the gentler northern slope and is crossed by the Roman road from London to Silchester, known locally as the Devil’s Highway.
Both properties include fragments of the formerly extensive heaths of Hampshire and Berkshire presently being recreated through a policy of active management. The dry heath supports a wide range of invertebrates and lichens. Sphagnum moss, purple moor grass and marsh pennywort occur in the wetter areas with lesser wintergreen and broad-leaved helleborine in the more wooded parts of the area. Siskin and spotted fly catcher are common migrants and the increasing area of heath has prompted the return of the woodlark to Simon’s Wood.
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Hale Purlieu
Hampshire
- 207ha (512 acres) 3 miles north of Fordingbridge, off B3080 [184:SU200180]
Situated on the northern side of the New Forest, this former manorial waste is still grazed under the traditional commoners’ rights and is made up of dry and wet heath and mires.
Heathland plants include dwarf gorse, purple moor grass and bog asphodel, with two types of sundews, marsh St John’s wort, meadow thistle and two species of cotton grass occurring in wet heath. Birds such as Dartford warbler, nightjar, snipe, stonechat and curlew can be seen and many insects, including the red damselfly, inhabit the ponds and streams.
Millersford Plantation, leased the Forestry Commission, includes Corsican and Scots pines and there are some mixed woodlands of oak, holly, birch and beech. Great spotted woodpecker and woodcock can be seen.
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The Hughenden Estate
Buckinghamshire
- 270 ha (668 acres) 1½ miles north of High Wycombe, west of A4128 [165:SU8669555 and 855957]
Once owned by Benjamin Disraeli, Hughenden Manor is set on the rolling, east-facing slopes of the Hughenden Valley and contains many momentoes of the great statesman. Some of the trees in the park and the woodland are relics of his planting schemes. The surrounding landscape, including Tinkers, Woodcock, Flagmore and Hanging Woods, lies within the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and contains much of wildlife interest.
A number of the estate woods, such as Great and Little Tinkers Woods, are known to be on ancient woodland sites, and have a rich ground flora of primrose, bluebell and dog’s mercury. Birds include tawny owl, green, great and lesser spotted woodpeckers, treecreeper and nuthatch. A winterbourne stream runs along the valley bottom.
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Lardon Chase, the Holies and Lough Down Countryside
Berkshire
- 27 ha (67 acres) just north of Streatley, west of A417 [174:SU588809 and 588813]
This spur of downland lies to the west of Goring and Streatley, with good views overlooking the Thames Valley where the river divides the Chilterns from the North Wessex Downs. The slopes form one of the largest remaining areas of chalk grassland in the county and support a wide range of flowers and butterflies.
The area has a long history of ancient settlements and there are several Neolithic and Iron Age forts. It is crossed by the Ridgeway and other ancient routes used by the Romans.
The grassland is being managed by controlled grazing and by scrub clearance, to encourage the growth of chalk-loving plants such as autumn gentian, clustered bellflower, blue fleabane, vervain, common rock-rose, horseshoe vetch and a good population of orchids. There are some good chalk downland butterfly species, including chalkhill blue and grizzled and dingy skippers.
Mining bees, wasps and wolf spiders can be seen and a variety of birds nest and feed on the shrubs, with green woodpeckers visiting the grassland anthills.
The Holies is a grassy coomb, which before acquisition by the Trust was used for motorbike scrambling and turf stripping. Now the natural recolonisation of the bare land by chalk-loving plant species is being carefully nurtured and monitored.
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Ludshott Common and Waggoners’ Wells
Hampshire
- 285ha (705 acres) 11/2 miles west of Hindhead, south of B3002 {186:SU855350]
One of the largest remaining areas of lowland greensand heath in the western Weald and part of the East Hampshire Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Ludshott Common was first recorded in the Domesday Book. For centuries it was exploited by local commoners for peat, thatch, gorse and grazing, and since the 19th century it has been a valuable open space in the area.
Waggoners’ Wells consist of a series of man-made ponds fed by a stream, which were originally hammerponds serving an iron foundry known as Wakeners’ Wells, on the site. They are of great wildlife interest and contain a variety of fish.
Heather, bell heather, dwarf and European gorse, and the bristle-leaved bent characterise the heathland. The scrubby vegetation provides a habitat for linnet, stonechat, woodlark, nightjar, visiting great grey shrike and the scarce Dartford warbler; there are a great many spiders and butterflies.
Pockets of semi-natural sessile oak woodland occur along the valley sides, and the mature trees lining the ponds to the east harbour fascinating lichen communities with other plants characteristic of an ancient site. Nightingale, redpoll, woodcock, spotted flycatcher and tawny owl use the marginal scrub and kingfisher, coot and other wildfowl inhabit the ponds.
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Maidenhead Commons and Cock Marsh
Berkshire
- 341 ha (843 acres) north and west of Maidenhead [175:SU850800 to 890870]
Bought by local residents and given to the Trust in 1934, these properties include commonland and greens to the south of the River Thames. The sites include a variety of habitats, with woodland, scrub thickets, grassland, downland ponds, riverside, meadows and are ideal for walking.
Cock Marsh is one of the best lowland wetland sites owned by the Trust, and is of great importance for its flora and for breeding waders, although it is a habitat much at risk from drainage and the abstraction of water on the adjacent land. Some Bronze Age bowl barrows can be seen here.
Maidenhead Thicket, mentioned in historic documents dating back to the 17th century and the site of a prehistoric Celtic farm enclosure, contains an impressive display of wild flowers in spring.
The pond system and calcareous marsh are exceptionally rich, supporting a long list of rare and local plants including greater bladderwort, flowering rush, water violet, needle-spike rush and two very rare water peppers. There is an impressive aquatic invertebrate fauna including scarce dragonflies such as the variable damselfly and numerous specialist flies such as soldier flies. All three species of newt occur along with an assortment of wetland birds.
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Pulpit Wood
Buckinghamshire
- 26 ha (65 acres) ¼ mile north east of Princes Risborough, 2 ½ miles south west of Wendover, off A4010. [165:SU832048]
This is an important area of what could be referred to as ‘ancient secondary woodland’. It was once open farmland, but reverted to woodland long ago, and in recent centuries has been managed as beech woodland. Glades of earlier grassland survive on the slopes, with old juniper bushes. Rich chalk grassland with mixed scrub occurs at the western end of the property. Part of the wood is managed as a nature reserve by Buckinghamshire County Council. The earthworks of an Iron Age hill-fort can still be seen.
Ash and oak commonly occur among the beech trees, with wild privet, blackthorn, yew, guilder rose and the wayfaring tree forming a scrubby edge which is an important habitat for many birds. The woodland ground flora is dominated by dog’s mercury, other plants include snaffle, enchanter’s nightshade, wood sorrel and sweet worded.
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Runnymede
Surrey
- 74ha (183 acres) 11/2 miles above Runnymede Bridge on River Thames between Windsor and Staines, south of A308 [176:TQ007720]
These historic meads on the banks of the Thames are the site of the signing of the Magna Carta by King John in 1215. A network of footpaths links the Magna Carta memorial with the memorials to John F Kennedy and the Royal Air Force on neighbouring land.
A wide range of plants grow in rich swards of the meadows and pastures, such as pepper saxifrage, cowslip, common knapweed, great burnet, betony, sneezewort and devil’s bit scabious. There are mature oaks in the old boundary banks on Cooper’s Hill, some fine old hornbeams and huge wild cherry trees.
Langham’s Pond includes fen, wet grassland and open water habitats and is notable for the variety of invertebrates with many damselflies, dragonflies and water beetles. Brown-eared, pipistrelle and noctule bats can be seen feeding over the ponds in the evenings and the wetland habitats attract birds such as redshank, mallard, coot, lapwing, pied wagtail and sedge and reed warblers.
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St Catherine’s
Isle of Wight
- 109ha (270 acres) 2 miles west of Niton, off A3005 [196:SZ495755]
St Catherine’s Point, the most southerly point of the island, is surrounded by agricultural land, a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest. The strange, tumbled landscape extends from St Catherine’s to Bonchurch, and is the result of the blue lias clay slumping under the weight of the chalk and sandstone above.
A variety of unusual plants thrive on the point; of special note are milk vetch, tufted centaury, subterranean clover and hoary stock. There are also many rare lichens. The invertebrate fauna includes a number of rare beetles, weevils, bees, wasps and ants, and a renowned colony of glanville fritillary butterfly, an Isle of Wight specialist which is virtually restricted to National Trust land.
The ridge of St Catherine’s Down, a mile inland from the point, rises in a steep west-facing escarpment of greensand. From the summit there are spectacular views of the rest of the island.
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Selborne Hill
Hampshire
- 101ha (250 acres) 4 miles south of Alton, west of B3006 [186:SU735333]
Encompassing some fine examples of beech ‘hanger’ woodlands on the chalk escarpments of east Hampshire, designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest and within the East Hants Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, these fragments of ancient landscape around Selborne are of great ecological importance.
The well-drained soils, ideal for beech with some maple and ash, also support a distinct range of flowers such as woodruff, yellow archangel, wood spurge, wood anemone and bird’s nest orchid. Above the hangers, mixed woodlands of oak and ash grow on the plateau of Selborne Hill with wood sorrel, broad buckler fern and enchanter’s nightshade. The woods harbour rare invertebrates and molluscs including the ash black slug and five species of Ctenophora cranefly. The woodland glades provide feeding grounds for many butterflies.
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Stockbridge Down
Hampshire
- 65ha (165 acres) 12 miles east of Salisbury [185:SE379349]
This ancient chalk downland, designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a Site of Special Scientific Interest, has a long history of common grazing rights which are still maintained by the Trust, Lord of the Manor since 1946.
Distinctive plants of the chalk grassland include cowslip, thyme, harebell, horseshoe vetch, greater knapweed, yarrow and violet. There are many downland butterfly species including chalkhill blue, and some scarce moths. The scrub of hawthorn, blackthorn, dogwood, privet and juniper provides valuable nesting sites for birds such as blackcap, yellowhammer, nightingale and garden and willow warblers.
Of historical interest are some Bronze Age barrows and the very important Iron Age camp of Woolbury Ring at the north-east corner of the property.
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Ventnor
Isle of Wight
- 231ha (570 acres) on south east coast off A3055 or B3327 [196:SZ570782]
The southernmost chalk downs in the country, designated an Area of Outstanding Beauty and a Site of Special Scientific Interest, this property lies inland from the town of Ventnor. St Boniface Down, the first Trust acquisition on the island, commands impressive views across to the mainland and is notable as one of the richest chalk grasslands in Britain. On the acid soils on the top of Luccombe Down is one of only two remaining areas of heathland on the island.
The Trust is currently involved in heathland restoration using New Forest ponies for grazing. The downland is being managed by cattle-grazing, aided by feral goats and continuous clearing of the invasive scrub. The property is very important entomologically with an interesting colony of adonis blue butterfly.
Luccombe Down is the site of a Civil Aviation Authority radar station which was originally one of the first radar stations established to defend the English Channel. There are also eight Bronze Age burial mounds.
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West Wight: Headon Warren, the Needles and Tennyson Down
Isle of Wight
- 186ha (459 acres) south west of Totland, off B3322 [196:SZ310851]
The Needles headland, at the western extremity of the Isle of Wight, is part of the Heritage Coast west of Brightstone. Between the Needles and Tennyson Down (named after the Poet Laureate who lived at Farringford in the 1870s) is West High Down.
The ancient grassland has changed little over the centuries and forms one of the most important downland sites in Britain. There are may archaeological remains along the prehistoric ridgeway. The clifftop is dominated by heathland and the scrub of Headon Warren where the occasional Dartford warbler can be seen.
Some of the richest chalk grassland in Britain can be found on the West Wight ridge. On Tennyson Down there is an area of chalk heath where chalk plants co-exist with acid-loving species such as heather. Cormorant, shag, guillemot, fulmar and razorbill nest along the cliffs.
On the Needles headland is the Old Battery, a Palmerstonian fort built in the 1860s . The New Battery was built in 1891 and there is also a rocket-testing site build in 1960.
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Watlington Hill
Oxfordshire
- 45ha (112 acres) 1 mile south east of Watlington, east of B480 [175:SU702935]
Rising to 213 metres above the beechwoods of Watlington Park in the Chilterns, this hill consists of skeletal soil chalk downland, scrub and beech copses and has impressive views over the surrounding countryside.
Together with neighbouring Pyrton Hill , it is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest. It is an excellent site for invertebrates, with over 30 species of butterflies and numerous other chalk grassland insects, especially those associated with heavily rabbit-grazed short turf. Typical flowers include horseshoe and kidney vetches, rock rose, squinancywort, orchids and autumn and Chiltern gentians.
The beechwoods in Watlington Park are thought to be of ancient origin, although the trees have been felled and replanted several times. Woodland plants include common cow wheat and spurge laurel.
The marginal scrub of wayfaring tree, dogwood, whitebeam, privet and juniper provides a good habitat for scrub-nesting birds. The southern slopes are covered in yew woodland, a rare feature in the Chilterns.
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West Wycombe Hill
Buckinghamshire
- 22ha (55 acres) 2 miles west of High Wycombe, west of A40 [175:SU828947]
Commanding grand views of West Wycombe Park, the River Wye and the surrounding countryside, the hill is crowned with a great golden ball on the top of the church tower of St Lawrence, built for Sir Francis Dashwood, and infamous for its association with the 18th century Hell Fire Club which is said to have met in the church and in a cave dug out of the hill.
Next to the church is a huge hexagonal mausoleum (not owned by the Trust) and the remains of an Iron Age hill-fort. Nearby is the delightful village of West Wycombe which contains buildings of interest from medieval to Victorian times, many of which are owned by the Trust.
Chalk grassland, ancient woodland, scrub, old hazel coppice and mature trees planted as part of a grander landscape design of West Wycombe park, add to the significance of this historic landscape.
The grassland supports many wild flowers and herbs, with lady’s bedstraw, bird’s foot trefoil, common rock-rose, wild basil, stemless thistle and hairy violet. Yew, blackthorn, juniper, whitebeam and wayfaring tree scrub merges into oak, ash and beech woods contain evidence of traditional management in areas of old coppicing.
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