The ancient woodland of the Low Weald and Downs. Looking at plants. How do I know I am walking in ancient woodland? Butcher’s Wood, Lag Wood and Newer Copse (Wolstonbury Hill) 07.04.25

Home to myth and legend, where folk tales began. It fuelled our ancestors and still houses thousands of species. Ancient woodland has grown and adapted with native wildlife, yet what remains only covers 2.5% of the UK. Woodland Trust

This afternoon I walked through the ancient woodland of Butcher’s Wood (Woodland Trust), Lag Wood (private but with permissive access), both just south of Hassocks and Newer Copse (Wolstonbury Hill, National Trust) near Clayton. I am a volunteer with the Woodland Trust and Action for Rural Sussex’s Lost Woods of the Low Weald and Downs project and my particular biological interest is the lichens of woods, and I lead introduction to lichen walks. But in spring, my attention is drawn to the beauty of wild plants in ancient woodland.

This post is written for the general public; especially those new to wild plant identification.

All these woods are a short walk from Hassocks Rail Station or the Jack and Jill bus stop at Clayton (Metrobus 270, 271, 272, 273)

Butcher’s Wood and Lag Wood are woods of the Low Weald (and their underlying geology is the clay of the Gault Formation). Newer Copse, Wolstonbury Hill, is woodland of the South Downs (chalk of the West Melbury Marly Chalk Formation). Underlying geology determines soil type, and this affects which plants grow where. You can find out the geology of anywhere in the the UK by using the British Geology Survey Geology Viewer Viewer

Butcher’s Wood

I could find out if I was in ancient woodland simply by consulting Natural England’s index of ancient woodland; it’s map of ancient woodland can be explored here: Natural England Ancient Woodland; and these three woods are indeed Ancient Woodland (Ancient semi-natural woodland (ASNW))

Natural England classifies ancient woodland thus:

Firstly,  woodland can be calassified as Ancient Semi-Natural Woodland; mainly made up of trees and shrubs native to the site, usually arising from natural regeneration.  They are areas that have been wooded continuously since at least 1600. This does not mean the trees in ancient woodland are themselves ancient; although some might be.

Moreover, ancient trees can be found not in woods. Ancient Pendunculate Oaks, Quercus robur, can be found in Low Weald grazing pasture and hedge rows.  These are probably relics of former woodland that was cleared for pasture and left for shelter for livestock or for ield boundaries.

The oldest trees in Sussex are polllarded pasture Oaks in ancient medieval Deer Parks; those in the Low Weald include Danny Park south of Hurspierpoint and Plashett Park north of Ringmer. There is only limited public access by public footpath to these parks

Alternatively, Natural Englsnd designates ancient woodland as Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sights (or Ancient Replanted Woodland) – replanted with conifer or broadleaved trees (e.g. Sweet Chestnut, Castanea sativa) that retain ancient woodland features, such as undisturbed soil, ground flora and fungi

Another way of determining whether you are in ancient woodland, without looking at the Natural England ancient woodland maps, is to look at the plants growing in the woodland you are walking through. Certain plants indicate that the wood you are walking through may be ancient; as these plants take a bery long time to establish themselves in woods.

This post illustrates the Ancient Woodland Indicator Plants that I found in Butcher’s Wood, Lag Wood and Newer Copse today. Ancient Woodland Indicator Plants are listed in Indicators Of Ancient Woodland – the use of vascular plants in evaluating ancient woods for nature conservation. Francis Rose, British Wildlife 10.4 April 1999, Pages 241-251. At the end of this post is a full list of the ancient woodland indicator plants listed by Rose

Resources that can help you identify wild plants:

Harrap’s Wild Flowers is an excellent and easy-to-use field guide, that uses photos with key identification features. Simon Harrap: Harrap’s Wild Flowers A Field Guide to the Wild Flowers of Britain & Ireland ( 2nd edition 2015)

Flora Incognita App

This is the most accurate of AI photo recognition App to support plant identification as it requires photos of the flower, leaves and the whole plant.

iNaturalist App

This also useful for identification and has the added advantage that it records your observations if you want to. Saved onservations are checked by others and records which reach “Research Grade” are submitted to county recorders and if agreed they will be added to the National Biodiversity Network Atlas . There are questions about the reliability of Research Grade verification; but iNaturalist is extremely useful for community projects as your records can be seen by anyone; and can be seen in “projects” e.g. the Henfield Nature Challenge . As you progress with identification, I would recommend that you use iRecord, as your plant records will automatically be seen and checked by the County Recorders for vascular plants and if verified they will be added to the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland’s database and could appear in the next edition of the Sussex Plant Atlas. iRecord

N.B. AI photo identification gets things wrong at times; always check an AI identification with a field guide or an expert botanist (if you know one!)

All of the photos in this post were taken today (07.04.25) in Butcher’s Wood, Lag Wood or Newer Copse; except for some examples of other indicator plants that can be found in other Low Weald woods (Butcher’s Broom and Wild Service Trees). All the photos in the post were taken by me.

Butcher’s Wood and Lag Wood (Low Weald)

Lonicera periclymenum Honeysuckle (Butchers Wood)

Primula vulgaris Primrose (Lag Wood)

Hyacinthoides non-scripta Bluebell (Butcher’s Wood)

Anemonoides nemorosa Wood Anemone (Butcher’s Wood).

Wood Anemones turn their flowers to the direction of the sun. The yellow flowers are Lesser Celandine, Ficaria verna. It is not an ancient woodland indicator plant but is a very common flowering plant in woodland; and is one of the first flowers to bloom in spring, and so is very important to pollinating insects.

Ilex aquifolium European Holly

An ancient pollarded Carpinus betulus,  European Hornbeam, within Lag Wood. Rose makes it clear in his list that Carpinus betulus should only be considered an ancient woodland indicator only if they occur well within the wood and do not appear to have been planted.

Polypodium sp., Polypody Fern (Lag Wood)

The exact species of polypodies is only determinable by microscopic inspection of their spore; but all species of Polypody Ferns are ancient woodland indicators.

This epiphytic Polypody was growing at the top of a Pendunculate Oak, Quercus robur. It looks a bit shrivelled due to the lack of rain of late, and it is being exposed to the full sun while the Oak has no leaves. A branch had fallen from this tree, with Polypody on it; this look more like what Polypody typically looks like

Carex sylvatica, Wood-sedge (Butcher’s Wood)

Carex pendula, Pendulous sedge (Lag Wood)

Theses sedges are a feature of Low Weald woodland, because clay is a soil type which retains water and these sedges grow in wet woodland.

In Lag Wood an ancient field boundary can be seen, consisting of a bank and coppiced Hornbeam. Ancient (medieval) field and wood boundaries often indicate that woodland is ancient.

Ancient woodland has not been “wild” since the delopment of agriculture; since the Neolithic Revolution, between 3100 and 2900 BC. Ancient woodlands have been coppiced and pollarded for 1000s of years. The beauty and biodiversity of these woods comes from sensitive, appropriate human management.

Newer Copse (Wolstonbury Hill), South Downs

Many of the ancient woodland indicator plants of the clay Low Weald and found growing on chalk Downland and vice versa.

I saw Bluebells, Wood Anemones and Holly, in Newer Copse, but I also saw Early-Dog Violets, Moschatel, Yellow Archangel, Soft Shield Fern and Dog’s Mercury; all ancient woodland indicator plants. On other occasions, I have seen Ransoms, Spurge-Laurel Early Purple Orchids and Spurge-Laurel here, also ancient woodland indicator plants.

Viola reichenbachiana Early-Dog Violets

Early Dog Violets are difficult to separate from Common Dog Violets; the Early Dog-violet has a darker purple spur behind the petals. PlantLife: Early Dog Violet

Adoxa moschatellina Moschatel or Townhall Clock

These are very small; and easy to overlook

Laminate galeobdomon Yellow Archangel, not yet in flower.

Polystichum setiferum, Soft Shield-fern

Ferns are difficult to identify, and differentiating between Soft and Hard Shield Fern is very difficult. But both species are indicators of ancient woodland. The shield ferns have this characteristic “thumb” on the leaflets of the fronds and the spores cover both the leaflets and the thumb – you can just about make this out in one or two of the leaflet British Wild Plants Polystichum setiferum 

Mercurialis perennis Dog’s Mercury

This is a greatly magnified photo; the flowers of Dog’s Mercury are VERY small!

Dog’s Mercury with no magnification.

Orchis mascula Early Purple Orchid May 24, 2024 Newer Copse (Wolstonbury Hill)

Allium ursinum Ramsons or Wild Garlic 30 May 2023 Newer Copse (Wolstonbury Hill)

Daphne laureola Spurge-Laurel May 24, 2024 Newer Copse (Wolstonbury Hill)

Spurge-Laurel is neither a spurge nor a laurel; it flowers shortly after Christmas.

Newer Copse has a hollowway bostal running up Wolstonbury Hill. Bostals are ancient drover tracks, that generally go up the scarp (steep) slopes of Downs diagonally. It is a Sussex dialect word.

Other Low Weald ancient woodland indicator plants.

I have seen both Butcher’s Broom and Wild Service Trees in Low Weald woods; but not in Butchers Wood or Lag Wood

Ruscus aculeatus Butcher’s-Broom, Ebernoe Common

Butchers broom is uncommon in southern UK and gets rarer the further north you go. … [it] is rare on the chalk.

Butchers broom is known as an ‘ancient woodland indicator’. This is because it doesn’t colonise new habitats or spread easily to new woods; where it is growing, the wood has usually been there for a very long time.

Butchers broom is quite unlike any other British plant. It is a short evergreen bush growing up to about two feet high and all the leaves end in a pointed spike; one of its old English names is ‘knee holly’. In early spring, the tiny, pale green six-petalled flowers sit in the middle of the leaf and show that these leaves are, technically, flattened stems.

Butchers broom was used to scour butcher’s blocks until the nineteenth century. The spiky leaves seem ideal for getting into the cuts of old wooden blocks to clean them. https://www.newforestnpa.gov.uk/discover/plants-fungi/woodland-flowers/butchers-broom/

Torminalis torminalis Wild Service-Tree

A true springtime stunner, it’s not so long ago that you could find wild-service fruit at a market. These days it’s rare and hard to find but it’s still a favourite with wildlife like the wood pigeon, whose gut softens its seeds for propagation.

The fruits, also known as chequers, are said to taste like dates and were given to children as sweets. They can be made into an alcoholic drink and it is thought they influenced the naming of ‘Chequers Inns’, although it is unclear which came first – the name of the fruit or the inns. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/a-z-of-british-trees/wild-service-tree/

This is Francis Rose’s list of Ancient Woodland Indicator Plants (AWVP) for South East Woodland

Acer campestre*, Field Maple

Adoxa mosichatellina, Moschatel

Allium ursinum, Ramsons,

Anagallis minima, Chaffweed

Anemone memorosa, Wood Anemone

Aquilegia vulgaris*, Columbine

Blechnum spicant, Hard Fern

Bromopsis ramosa, Hairy-brome

Calamagrostis epigejos, Wood Small-reed

Campanula latifolia, Giant Bellflower

Campanula trachelium, Nettle-leaved Bellflower

Cardamine amara, Large Bitter-cress

Carex laevigat, Smooth-stalked Sedge

Carex pallescens, Pale Sedge

Carex pendiula*, Pendulous Sedge

Carex remota, Remote Sedge

Carex strigosa, Thin-spiked Wood-sedge

Carex sylvatica, Wood-sedge

Carpinus betulus*, Hornbeam

Ceratocapnos claviculata, Climbing Corydalis

Chrysosplenium oppositifolium, Opposite-leaved Golden-saxifrage

Colchicum autumnale, Meadow Saffron

Conopodium majus, Pignut

Convallaria majalis, Lily-of-the-valley

Crataegus laevigata, Midland Hawthorn

Daphne laureola*, Spurge-laurel

Dipsacus pilosus, Small Teasel

Dryopteris aemula, Hay-scented Buckler-fern

Dryopteris affinis, Scaly Male-fern

Dryopteris carthusiana, Narrow Buckler-fern

Elymus caninus, Bearded Couch

Epipactis helleborine, Broad-leaved Helleborine

Epipactis purpurata, Violet Helleborine

Equisetum sylvaticum, Wood Horsetail

Euonymus europaeus, Spindle

Euphorbia amygdaloides, Wood Spurge

Festuca gigantea, Giant Fescue

Frangula alnus, Alder Buckthorn

Galium odoratum, Sweet Woodruff

Gnaphalium sylvaticum, Heath Cudweed

Helleborus viridis*, Green Hellebore

Holcus mollis, Creeping Soft-grass

Hyacinthoidles non-scripta, Bluebell

Hypericum androsaemum, Tutsan

Hypericum pulchrum, Slender St John’s-wort

Ilex aquifolium, Holly

Iris foetidissima, Stinking Iris

Lamiastrum galeobdolon, Yellow Archangel

Lathraea squamaria, Toothwort

Lathyrus liniifolius, Bitter-vetch

Lathyrus sylvestris, Narrow-leaved Everlasting-pea

Luzula forsteri, Southern Wood-rush

Luzula pilosa, Hairy Wood-rush

Luzula sylvartica, Great Wood-rush

Lysimachia nemorum, Yellow Pimpernel

Malus sylvestris*, Crab Apple

Melampyrum pratense, Common Cow-wheat

Melica uniflora, Wood Melick

Milium effusum, Wood Millet

Moehringia trinervia, Three-veined Sandwort

Narcissus pseudonarcissus*, Wild Daffodil

Neottia nidus-avis, Bird’s-nest Orchid

Orchis mascula, Early Purple Orchid

Ophris purpurea, Lady Orchid

Oreopteris limbosperma, Lemon-scented Fern

Oxalis acetosella, Wood-sorrel

Paris quadrifolia, Herb-Paris

Phyllitis scolopendrium*, Hart’s-tongue

Pimpinella major, Greater Burnet-saxifrage

Platanthera chlorantha, Greater Butterfly-orchid

Poa nemoralis, Wood Meadow-grass

Polygonatum multiflorum

Polypodium spp., Solomon’s-seal

Polystichum aculeatum, Hard Shield-fern

Polystichum setiferum, Soft Shield-fern

Populus tremula, Aspen

Potentilla sterilis, Barren Strawberry

Primula vulgaris*, Primrose

Prunus avium, Wild Cherry

Pulmonaria longifolia, Narrow-leaved Lungwort

Quercus petraea*, Sessile Oak

Radiola linoides, Allseed

Ranunculus auricomus, Goldilocks Buttercup

Ribes nugrum, Black Currant

Ribes rubrum*, Red Currant

Rosa arvensis, Field-rose

Ruscus aculeatus, Butcher’s Broom

Sanicula europaea, Sanicle

Scutellaria minor, Lesser Skullcap

Scirpus sylvaticus, Wood Club-rush

Sedum telephium, Orpine

Serraula tintoria, Saw-wort

Solidago virgaurea, Golden-rod

Sorbus torminalis, Wild Service Tree

Stachys officinalis, Betony

Tamus communis, Black Bryony

Tilia cordata*, Small-leaved Lime

Ulmus glabra, Wych Elm

Vaccinium myrtillus, Bilberry

Veronica montana, Wood Speedwell

Viburnum lantana, Guelder Rose

Vicia sepium, Bush Vetch

Vicia sylvatica, Wood Vetch

Viola palustris, Marsh Violet

Viola reichenbachiana, Early Dog-violet

Wahlenbergia hederacea, Ivy-leaved Bellflower

* Consider these species only if they occur well within the wood and do not appear to have been planted.

It should be noted that when calculating Ancient Woodland Indicator Plants scores:

• A high AWVP score is a reliable indication of natural diversity.
• It also indicates ancient woodland, but does not on its own constitute proof.
• Some woods which are undoubtedly ancient have a low AWVP score. Study of other components of the woodland biodiversity such as lichens, or invertebrates in rotting wood, may give clearer indications of ancient woodland status. Quite often, ancient sites that are rich in AWVP’s will be poor in lichens and rotting wood invertebrates and vice-versa.
• Not all indicator species are strictly limited to ancient woodlands. For example, where secondary woodland adjoins older woodland, it will acquire species associated with older woods much more quickly than isolated secondary woods.
• Plants which are also cultivated in gardens (e.g. Wild Daffodil) should be used with great caution.
• Certain woodlands can credibly be established as being ‘ancient’ through the study of old historical records such as maps and estate records. Observations of landscape features such as banks, ditches and other topographical features within a wood will also give clues to previous land use. By surveying a number of these ‘proven’ ancient woodlands, species which are usually confined to this type of habitat can be identified.  From: Countryside Information Ancient Woodland Indicator Species