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Pollen analysis and planted ancient woodland restoration strategies: a case study from the Wentwood, southeast Wales, UK

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Abstract

This paper considers the contribution of pollen analysis to conservation strategies aimed at restoring planted ancient woodland. Pollen and charcoal data are presented from organic deposits located adjacent to the Wentwood, a large planted ancient woodland in southeast Wales. Knowledge of the ecosystems preceding conifer planting can assist in restoring ancient woodlands by placing fragmented surviving ancient woodland habitats in a broader ecological, historical and cultural context. These habitats derive largely from secondary woodland that regenerated in the 3rd–5th centuries a.d. following large-scale clearance of Quercus-Corylus woodland during the Romano-British period. Woodland regeneration favoured Fraxinus and Betula. Wood pasture and common land dominated the Wentwood during the medieval period until the enclosures of the 17th century. Surviving ancient woodland habitats contain an important Fagus component that probably reflects an earlier phase of planting preceding conifer planting in the 1880s. It is recommended that restoration measures should not aim to recreate static landscapes or woodland that existed under natural conditions. Very few habitats within the Wentwood can be considered wholly natural because of the long history of human impact. In these circumstances, restoration should focus on restoring those elements of the cultural landscape that are of most benefit to a range of flora and fauna, whilst taking into account factors that present significant issues for future conservation management, such as the adverse effects from projected climate change.

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Acknowledgments

The research was commissioned by the Woodland Trust, with grant aid from Cadw, and the Forestry Commission. Access for sampling was kindly given by Mr and Mrs Thomas of Cas Troggy Farm. I am grateful to Rick Turner (Cadw), who first brought the site to my attention, and for helping to bring the project to realisation, and to Jon Winder (Woodland Trust Site Manager for the Wentwood) for assistance with the project. I thank Virgil Yendell for help with fieldwork. I am grateful to Richard Bradshaw, Martin Bell, John Allen, Petra Dark, an anonymous referee, and the editor, Michael O’Connell, for helpful comments on the draft text.

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  1. Department of Archaeology, School of Human and Environmental Sciences, University of Reading, Whiteknights, PO Box 217, Reading, RG6 6AB, UK

    Alex Douglas Brown

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Correspondence to Alex Douglas Brown.

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Communicated by M. O'Connell.

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Brown, A.D. Pollen analysis and planted ancient woodland restoration strategies: a case study from the Wentwood, southeast Wales, UK. Veget Hist Archaeobot 19, 79–90 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00334-009-0227-5

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