Conifer and mixed woodland

46% of Devon’s ancient woodlands are conifer plantations.

There are huge opportunities to manage them in ways that increase their wildlife value.

Goshawks nest in conifer woodlands and nightjars have been seen nesting in areas recently opened up through felling.

What we need to do and where

Cod wood, Adrian Colston

Snapshot

What wildlife-rich looks like 

A wide variety of native and conifer tree species managed to provide diversity of age and structure in the woodland. In broadleaved woodlands this includes a mosaic of habitats with areas of light and shade, lots of standing and fallen deadwood, ancient trees and open areas with new growth, leaf litter, open and sunny flower-rich areas and areas of dense scrub. Wetlands and streams form part of the mosaic. Edit wording with woody grp

Devon Focus Species

To discuss at woodland meeting  Nightjars.

Status

Irreplaceable habitats: Planted ancient woodland and veteran trees

1. About

Many of Devon’s mixed and conifer woodlands were planted after the First and Second World Wars to meet increased demand for timber.
 
Conifers such as sitka spruce, douglas fir, larch and western hemlock were commonly planted because they grow faster than native broadleaved species so are ideal for rapid timber production. Devon’s damp and mild climate is particularly suited to growing conifers and is where the Forestry Commission’s first conifer planting took place after the First World War.
 
Conifer and mixed woodlands make up 23% of Devon’s woodland cover, currently covering around 20,500 hectares. They were largely planted on heaths and moors where land was less suitable for agriculture. Therefore, Devon’s large conifer plantations are on Dartmoor, Exmoor and the Pebbled Heaths, in Haldon and on the scarp slopes and plateaus of east Devon and the Blackdown Hills. Remnants of heathland vegetation can often be found in the woodlands.
 
In some places, ancient woodlands were felled and replaced with conifer. These sites are known as plantations on ancient woodland (PAWS). They have ancient woodland soils and are a priority for nature restoration through sensitive management. PAWS make up 46% of the total ancient woodland in Devon, covering about 1.1% of land.
 
Add wildlife value of conifer / mixed woodlands through discussion in woodland meeting – goshawks, nightjars breeding in clearfell areas on Dartmoor / Haldon etc.  Wood whites at Cookworthy?    

Health check

To write through Consultation discussion

Area

The National Forest Inventory identifies nearly 17,000 ha of conifer woodland in Devon, plus around an additional 3,500ha of mixed woodland.  In total this makes up 23% of Devon’s woodland cover.

Forestry England (the public forest estate) owns and manages 5,591 ha of Devon’s conifer woodland.

It’s estimated there are 7,335 ha of PAWS in Devon, which is 46% of the county’s total ancient woodland, covering about 1.1% of land. 47% of Devon’s woodland is under management, 10.73% of which is PAWS.  

Designations

A number of significant woodland SSSIs are classed as mixed or conifer, including woodlands at Ausewell, Fingle, Bovey Valley, Haldon and Plym Valley on Dartmoor and Heddon and Great Wood on Exmoor.

Of the SSSI woodlands, around 67% are recognised as being in favourable condition and 31% as unfavourable or recovering.  Check  – all woodlands or conifers?

Key pressures and opportunities

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Timber

There is significant opportunity to grow high-quality timber in Devon. The income generated from conifers and mixed woodlands can do much to cross-subsidise landowners work on nature recovery.   

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Management

Careful management can restore native wildlife on PAWS. 

More recent plantations of conifer and mixed woodlands can be managed to maximise both timber value and natural diversity – a mark of good forestry. Sympathetic woodland management (such as continuous cover forestry) can create a mixed age, species and height structure that provides significant nature recovery as well as timber and carbon benefits.

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Pests and Diseases

Site-specific and landscape-scale control of deer and squirrels is essential as they can cause damage that significantly reduces which tree species can be chosen and how likely they are to establish successfully. Rigorous biosecurity is also essential as pests and diseases continue to increase in number and frequency. For example, Phytophora ramorum and Phytophora pluvialis are threatening the productivity of conifer woodlands in Devon.    

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Invasive species

Invasive species, such as laurel and rhododendron, are usually controlled in plantations. However, it’s vital that this control continues.

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Climate

Climate change is having a number of affect. Increased adverse weather events, such as droughts and storms, make it harder to manage woodlands and can prevent new woodlands from establishing. Climate change can also affect which species will thrive and which won’t. Therefore, people creating new woodlands are uncertain which species to choose.

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Carbon

The most effective way to use trees to manage carbon is to get them to grow quickly and then harvest the timber and use it to replace carbon-demanding materials (such as concrete) in construction. Growing under the Woodland Carbon Code also provides opportunities to generate income from new mixed woodlands.

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Recreation

Plantation woodlands and new mixed woodlands are relatively robust habitats suitable for a wide range of recreational uses. The very best, such as Haldon Forest Park, provide a mix of nature, landscape, recreation and timber.

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Funding

The Forestry Commission provides funding to support woodland management planning and grants to create new mixed woodlands.

2. What we need to do and where

Priority

Better (wildlife-rich) mixed and conifer woodlands that are connected to a network of habitats across Devon.

Restored PAWS that support the recovery of native wildlife.

See Find out more below for relevant national and local targets.

Actions for conifer and mixed woodland

For links to detailed guidance, funding and sources of advice please see Find out more below.

Manage and buffer existing conifer and mixed plantation woodlands to maximise their wildlife value, in particular to support ancient woodlands, Focus Species and achieve wider social benefits.

Management actions to include: 

  • Manage pests and diseases.
  • Maximise timber production alongside other environmental benefits.
  • Manage and expand remnant features, priority habitats (such as remnant heathland) and species.
  • Adopt low-impact silvicultural systems including continuous cover forestry.
  • Ensure a range of stand structures that include diverse ages, species and vertical forms and permanent and temporary open space that allows for open, scrub and edge habitats.
  • No, or low levels, of invasive non-native species.
  • Keep deadwood and leaf litter in place.

Design all new conifer and mixed plantations to maximise their benefit to wildlife.

Design new mixed and conifer plantations to benefit wildlife in line with the United Kingdom Forestry Standard (UKFS) and Forestry Commission Woodland Creation Offer to maximise opportunities for public funding.

Consultation question – specific actions for restoration of PAWS cf other plantations?

Where appropriate, clear conifer plantations (non PAWS) to restore other wildlife habitats

  • Many conifer and mixed woodlands have been planted on wildlife-rich habitats such as heathlands. In some cases they can be managed as a woodland and heath mosaic. However, sometimes it will be preferable to restore large areas of heathland from conifer, especially where this will link areas of fragmented heathland.  
  • See Heaths, mires and rush pasture.
  • Consultation question – advice on wording to use here. Do we need to be more specific? Have organisations identified areas where heathland restoration would be most beneficial?  Can we list or map them?

Promote best practice

Promote sites where conifer and mixed woodlands have been successfully managed for wildlife, such as Haldon Forest Park, Fingle and Auswell woods

Other relevant actions

See Focus Species pages for more detailed actions and information. 

Discuss which species we should include here. 

Where to focus action

Actions are prioritised to the following High Opportunity Areas (in bold). See Mapping for the LNRS Viewer and information on how areas have been mapped.

Woodland management and restoration:

  • All existing conifer and mixed plantations, especially PAWS. 

Creation of nature-rich conifer and mixed plantations:

  • Woody buffer and expansion zones, especially those that will expand ancient semi-natural woodlands. The Forestry Commission’s Priority Habitat Network mapping for the English Woodland Creation Offer fund has been used to ensure consistency and alignment with funding streams.   Is this relevant to conifer?

Woodland management and creation:

  • Temperate Rainforest Restoration Zones
  • Mammals: Bechstein’s bat woodland zone
  • Birds: Pied flycatcher and wood warbler woods
  • Butterflies: Wood white, pearl-bordered fritillary, high brown fritillary, heath fritillary
  • Natural Flood Management

It’s important to ensure that woodland creation does not damage or destroy existing wildlife-rich habitats, including rough grasslands used as foraging areas for bats and birds. Some of these habitats are shown on the LNRS Viewer but many aren’t mapped and survey is always needed.

Woodland creation should be avoided in the following High Opportunity Areas:

  • Wildlife-rich grasslands
  • Lowland mires and heaths
  • Purple moor-grass and rush pasture 
  • Dartmoor valley mires
  • Coastal intertidal habitats
  • Dartmoor rare bird nesting areas
  • Dartmoor and Exmoor whinchat zones
  • Teign Gorge rock spiders, Plymouth spiders
  • Potential estuarine high tide roosts (see wintering estuary birds layer)

Advice should be obtained before creating woodland in the following High Opportunity Areas to ensure that it will not harm existing wildlife:

  • All High Opportunity Areas for wildlife-rich grasslands, heath, mire and rush pasture, upland bog, heath and mire
  • Coastal Wildbelt
  • Greater horseshoe and grey long-eared bat sustenance zones
  • Marsh fritillary and the narrow-bordered bee hawk-moth
  • South Devon arable plant zone

Consultation question:  is the list above clear and helpful?  How could it be better set out?  Is anything missing?

3. Inspiration

Case studies

There’s lots of great work going on across Devon for conifer and mixed woodlands. For example:

A number of organisations are managing mixed and conifer woodland for nature recovery.  The Woodland Trust and National Trust woodlands at Fingle Woods show how detailed techniques have been used to restore planted ancient woodlands.  

Excellent examples of how to manage mixed plantations and planted ancient woodlands include Perridge Estate and Clinton Devon Woodlands. Both demonstrate exemplary management based on a continuous cover approach.

Forestry England sites include  Haldon, Plym Valley and East Devon

Where to visit

Always follow the Countryside Code and stick to footpaths and sites that are managed for public access. 

Sites with public access include Woodland Trust and National Trust woodlands at Ausewell and Fingle.   Forestry England sites include Haldon, Plym Valley and the woods in East Devon near Honiton.

For information on these and other sites that are open to the public please see the Explore Devon website.  

4. Find out more

To add through Consultation

Targets

Nature Rich

Long Term.  Woodlands in active management for biodiversity, climate and sustainable forestry

Short Term.  70% of woodlands in active management by 2030

More, Larger and better connected

Long Term.  Expanded as part of 16.5% woodland cover by 2050

Short term.  Part of 3,000 ha’s of new woodland by 2030

At least 15% of plantations to be managed for wildlife (as per UK Forest Standard).

Useful links

Forest Research advice on management of native and ancient woodland is at FR Guidance

Forestry Commission guidance on woodland creation is at FC woodland creation guidance

Confor guidance on both management and creation is at Confor guidance

Woodland Trust Guidance on Woodland Restoration is at Woodland Trust Guidance

Woodland Trust Guidance on woodland creation is at Woodland Trust Creation Guide

Detailed advice and support on management can be found on Continuous Cover Forestry.

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