Hucking Estate - Hollingbourne
Long term intentions
The Woodland Trust's corporate objective to increase biodiversity will be achieved at this wood in a variety of ways.
- At the time of purchase approximately 78% of the existing woodland had been previously coppiced within the previous 20-30 years, with the remaining woodland managed as high forest. To achieve greater biodiversity, conversion of a proportion of the coppiced area to a high forest type by singling and storing is to be carried out during the next 10-15 years. This will reduce the proportion of actively coppiced areas to 30%, whilst increasing the area of high forest to 70%. Through selective thinning works a greater amount of deadwood will be left in the high forest areas and in the long term many more old growth trees will be present at Hucking. Old trees are particularly valuable in supporting a wide range of wildlife habitats.
-The traditional woodland management practice of coppicing will be continued in the existing mature woodland across 30% of its area, with rotations of 25-30 years between each felling. Due to this long established management practice, species associated with this cyclical felling method are very well established at Hucking, and it is important to continue this type of work. To offset this loss of actively coppiced areas, wide ride habitats have been created along what were existing rides within Smokes Wood. These will be maintained by twice yearly cutting of the central part of the ride, and flailing of the immediate ride edges once every other year. This will provide a network or corridors of permanent short rotation coppice through areas of high forest, with links to the permanent semi natural open grassland areas, so benefiting invertebrates and floral diversity living along them.
- The structural diversity of the mature woodland will be improved by regular selective thinnings to favour a rich variety of tree species competing in the canopy. In addition by thinning and opening up the canopy it is hoped that natural regeneration of tree species will occur so providing future generations of trees. Areas previously cleared of sycamore will be allowed to regenerate naturally, however planting may be considered if the regeneration is predominately sycamore and or birch. Sycamore is now endemic through the majority of the existing woodland, and although a proportion of sycamore will be acceptable within the canopy of the high forest, sycamore will be felled during thinning operations in favour of traditional native broadleaves growing there.
- Planting 75 ha of new woodland achieves another of the Woodland Trust's corporate objectives of creating new woodland. To maintain this new planting and to achieve greater biodiversity for these areas it will be thinned, cleaned, pruned as necessary to produce a high forest structure, complimenting the mature woodland adjacent to it. Two areas in the new planting blocks have been retained to allow natural regeneration to take place. Should sufficient regeneration not occur before 2008 then these areas will be planted with a similar native broadleaved mix as used in the new planting blocks. Once established and beyond the need for the trees shelters, the areas of planting will have their shelters removed (approx in 2010). Within the new planting blocks a network of rides and glades have been created whose significance for biodiversity will become more important as the surrounding trees mature. The ride and glades will be cut initially on a twice yearly basis, the initial cuts being concentrated on the centre of the ride and the final cut of each season being to the full width of the ride.
- The areas of the estate still being farmed are currently entered into the Countryside Stewardship Scheme (1998 - 2008). All the fields north of Church Road are currently under arable production with 6 metre wide arable conservation margins. All the fields south of Church Road have been converted from arable use to permanent semi natural grassland and are managed by a combination of grazing and cutting for hay.
The use of Woodland Trust land for permanent arable production does not accord with our Farming Policy - arable farming is an approved use but as a prelude to a more sympathetic land use. The Woodland Trust has carried on arable farming since our purchase in 1997, however our Long Term Intention is to stop arable farming by 2008. Following a full review and consultation process our intention is to convert some areas to permanent pasture which will be managed by a combination of grazing and cutting for hay, some areas to permanent pasture but grazed less intensively to allow the development of natural regeneration of tree and woody shrub species, and some areas to be planted with native provenance tree and woody shrubs and managed as woodland.
New hedges planted in 1998, which replace some of those lost during the C20th within the fields, will be maintained by weeding for the first five years (until the end of 2003), guards removed and a laying programme initiated when approximately 6- 7 years old. Existing mature roadside hedges will be cut once per annum between November and December. There are several sections of roadside hedge which would be beneficial to lay.
- Various monitoring programmes will be initiated to verify the effectiveness of management carried out on the estate. A butterfly survey will be carried out every third year, recording the number of butterflies seen, species recorded and the location of each sighting. These results will give an indication of the effect continued coppicing at Hucking, of creating the wide ride habitats through the high forest areas and linking up with the semi natural open space with the possible movement of invertebrates including butterflies between the 2 habitats.
An annual vegetation survey of the permanent sample plots within compartment 10a was initiated in 2001 to record and track the migration of woodland plant species from the mature woodland into the areas of new planting. After 2003 this survey will carried out every 5th year. To compliment this vegetation survey, a soil analysis was carried out in 2002 by taking soil cores to measure various parameters, again to record how the soil structure and nutrient levels change as the area is converted from arable farmland to woodland. Soil cores have been analysed and the cores are stored at Woodland Trust Head Office for further analysis if required. This will be a long-term investigation which could go on for many decades.
Monitoring of the newly established grassland sward through the "dry valley" to record its development is to be undertaken periodically along with an invertebrate survey.
- The Woodland Trust's corporate objective of increasing the public enjoyment of our woods has already started at Hucking by the provision of regularly maintained permissive paths through woodland and the "farmed" areas, the construction and maintenance of a small car park off Church Road and permission to use the car park of the Hook and Hatchet pub, erecting an information board at 2 locations (in our car park and next to the Hook and Hatchet pub) and the production and reprinting of an information leaflet. The opportunity to create a further way marked route on site should be explored by 2006 with interpretative boards at some of the natural and archaeological features. There is potential for linking Hucking Estate via footpaths with the new Whitehorse Wood owned by Kent County Council at the top of Detling Hill.
Although there is a Bridleway and a Byway through Hucking Estate which is regularly used by horses, any further legal access off the roads by horses in the area is very limited. To provide greater off road facility for the significant horse using population in the area, the Woodland Trust in conjunction with TROT (Toll Ride Off-Road Trust) have opened a route linking Broadstreet Hill with the Drove Road. If this is successful further routes across our land could be considered which will link tracks/roads to form more routes where horses can be ridden off the narrow country lanes, which are a feature of the area.
- Actively managing the woodland will ensure that another of the Woodland Trust's corporate aims of no further loss of (semi) ancient woodland is also achieved.
