Stuart's Wood is named in memory of Stuart Brown, who loved this land and grew good asparagus here for nearly twenty years. His family planted the trees in 2003 with the aid of a grant from the Forestry Commission and a lot of help from their friends, and in the hope that Stuart's Wood will give as much pleasure in the future as his asparagus did in the past.
Had the land been left to its own devices, it would eventually revert to woodland anyway: after seven years without grazing or cultivation there would be a mass of tall grasses and other plants, brambles and shrubs like hawthorn. After twenty years young trees including oak and ash would emerge from the protection of shrubs, and within 150 years these trees would be tall enough to shade out many of the shrubs and smaller plants.
Stream on southern boundery
Stuart's Wood is natural in that the combination of broadleaf trees planted is similar to that found in the semi-natural woodland along its southern boundary., and across the Sussex Weald generally. There are oak, ash, hornbeam, field maple, lime, whitebeam, wild service, crab-apple, wild cherry, and a mixture of native shrubs (including dogwood and guelder rose) around the edges. The trees were planted as saplings and protected in the early stages from grazers (especially rabbits) with plastic tree shelters. Although the trees are all natives that might grow here naturally, the balance of species is unique, and therefore Stuart's Wood will develop its very own balance of inhabitants, favouring some species of flora and fauna and disadvantaging others.
Woodlands are good for our wellbeing. For most of us the benefits we receive from such areas affect us only
subconsciously, but if they were to disappear altogether they would be sorely missed. They contribute to the life
of a community in a way that is just as important as the service they provide for wildlife and the environment.
Woodlands create a unique atmosphere unobtainable in any other natural or man-made environment, and woodland recreation can take many forms. Nowadays, woodlands are most likely to be appreciated as places of solitude and tranquillity: they can offer a taste of being in the wild, or an escape from the pressures of urban modernity.
As the population of the world increases, there is a corresponding pressure on existing woodlands. It is easy to condemn the deforestation occurring in the tropics, but we forget that in our own recent history we have almost completely cleared our entire island of forests. Today we have only 1% of the woodland that we had 200 years ago. Although felling trees may sometimes be a necessity, in Britain now, felling is always followed by replanting.
Woodlands help to maintain the biodiversity of our natural flora and fauna.
Woodlands help to limit global warming by reducing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Woodlands control erosion, and they lessen the risk of flooding by reducing the sediments that accumulate in rivers and streams.
Woodlands require no fertilizing themselves and they act as a buffer, absorbing chemicals from agricultural land
before they get into water and pollute it.
There is no parking at Stuart's Wood.
From the village centre, follow The Street east to the mill pond and then take the footpath through the
vineyards.
The total distance is about a quarter mile.