The chestnut has been coppiced, but not in recent years and there are many hazels throughout the reserve most of which are coppiced. There is a small plantation of oak and a somewhat larger one of mixed trees.

Coppicing is also being carried out on alders beside one of the streams to support the mosses and liverworts growing there. The stream runs down to a tiny marsh but, unfortunately, all our streams dry out in summer.

Wildlife features include green woodpeckers, common lizards, wood ants, ferns and some interesting mosses and liverworts. There are some 80 varieties of flowers, 28 of trees and shrubs, and 21 species of birds.

The great storm of 1987 reshaped the whole wood and many areas had to be replanted. The Trust acquired the land in 1969, later selling the house and garden. The reserve has been modifies extensively through replanting, storm damage and unauthorised tree felling.

Soon after it was bequeathed to Sussex Wildlife Trust a neighbour felled several mature oaks because they spoiled her view of the South Downs! She was prosecuted.

Then, in October 1987, Sussex received the full blast of a hurricane. Unfortunately the weather had been wet and the leaves were still on the trees - the worst coinicidence, because the tree roots were in soft, wet soil, while tree leaves stopped the wind blowing through the branches and easily pushed the trees over. A cutting from a local paper at the time, noted that the reserve was the worst affected in the county: three acres of the wood were extensively damaged, and three thousand trees had to be planted to replace the losses.

More recently and less damaging was when someone took a chainsaw to open up a footpath for themselves just where we did not want any disturbance, and this year the Trust has had to erect a gate on the drive to the reserve to stop noise and litter in the car park during the night which, of course, upset our neighbours.

John Hall