King's Cliffe Millennium Wood - King's Cliffe, Oundle

Site Description

Kings Cliffe Millennium Wood is an 11.1 acre (4.5ha) woodland creation site planted in February 2000. It was planted as part of the Woodland Trust Woods On Your Doorstep initiative to celebrate the Millennium. This has led to the woodland name. The woodland lies off Willow Lane, a track running north from the village of Kings Cliffe. The woodland is 600m from the centre of the village. The site is surrounded by hawthorn hedges.

The community of Kings Cliffe were very active in all aspects of the woodland creation, assisting the Trust in raising funds, designing the wood and help in the planting. The community won a 'Care In The Environment' award for their work in making the woodland happen.

The woodland has been planted with native trees, mainly broadleaf although groves of Scots pine have been included amounting to 0.3 ha. Oak, ash, field maple and cherry are the main species planted. There are no individual tree guards, the whole site is protected by a combined deer and rabbit fence, fallow and muntjac deer being present within this part of the Rockingham Forest. In addition to the Scots pine, there is also a hazel grove and a ring of willows, which will be sculptured into a living feature once sufficiently established.

A further feature of the site includes two stone seats. These are constructed from large slabs of Jurassic limestone mounted on brick bases. There is also a small pond, created by the Environment Agency. It is fed from a drainage channel leading from the trackside ditch. A network of paths allows easy access to all parts of the wood. There is open access to the whole of the site.