These habitats are rare and irreplaceable. Help us now and see your donation to our Buckland Wood appeal doubled!
Inspired by the restoration work taking place next door in Ausewell, the owners of Buckland Wood support our vision for conserving Devon’s temperate rainforest. We've been given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to buy and restore 102 hectares (252 acres) of this rare habitat.
Owning Buckland Wood gives us an opportunity to connect existing sites and as a result, boost the biodiversity and resilience of a much larger area, and expand and buffer vital ‘refugia’ habitats where precious wildlife can thrive. We’ll also have significant opportunities to work with neighbouring landowners to connect and restore the landscape at scale, which will be transformative for the region.
The wood’s mature conifer crop was expected to attract significant commercial interest, so we had to act quickly to secure the sale of this precious site. Now that Buckland Wood is under our care, we urgently need your help to raise the £2.8 million cost back.
The good news is that a long-time friend and supporter of the Woodland Trust has pledged to match every donation, up to £750,000. Their wonderful generosity means the majority of your donations will be doubled!
of irreplaceable rainforest habitat need urgent protection.
The wood will connect two of our existing woods, maximising our impact and what we can achieve for wildlife, landscape resilience and nature recovery.
needs to be raised.
We need your help to raise the cost back for purchasing Buckland Wood and to restore it for the next five years.
of the planet has climatic conditions similar to temperate rainforests.
It is vital for the health of the planet that we protect what temperate rainforests we have left. We must act now.
Together with Ausewell and Grey Park Wood, caring for Buckland Wood means we'll connect and protect 256 hectares (633 acres) of Devon's precious rainforest.
Buckland Wood is in the heart of Devon’s temperate rainforest zone and lies northwest of Ausewell Wood, another incredible rainforest site we purchased with your help in 2019 and co-own with the National Trust. Thanks to your support, five years of restoration work has helped bring sunlight to dormant ancient soils, removed non-native species and created a thriving habitat for rare wildlife including pine martens, raptors and pied flycatchers. Now, we urgently need to do the same next door at Buckland Wood.
Based on what we know about Ausewell, restoring Buckland Wood could potentially support and benefit many threatened species. This includes mammals such as dormouse, otter and 12 species of bats, as well as breeding and winter migrant birds like goshawk, peregrine falcon and redwing.
We'll be restoring Buckland Wood to a thriving rainforest habitat that will support rare and threatened wildlife.
Credit: Phil Formby / WTML
We'll restore the 'plantation on ancient woodland' back to ancient woodland by gradually thinning non-native conifer, planted in the 1950s and 1960s, while removing invasive species. This will allow majestic Scots pine conifers to grow and mature into ancient ‘granny’ pines of the future. We'll also enhance the existing ancient woodland by managing light levels, ground flora and deadwood.
Credit: Duncan Usher / Alamy Stock Photo
We'll revive the habitat across Buckland Wood to help nature recover, support rare mammals and give threatened bird species a place to shelter, breed and feed.
Credit: Phil Formby / WTML
We'll restore this vital habitat back to health to fight the effects of climate change, while paying careful attention to rare plants, lichens and bryophytes, and the role and function they play in the wider ecosystem.
Credit: Phil Formby / WTML
We'll create more wet woodland, increase humidity levels and enhance landscape resilience. This will benefit declining species such as salmon, sea trout and brown trout. We'll also improve water quality and river health by holding back the silt.
With climate change making these precious rainforest landscapes in the South West even more fragile and vulnerable, it's vital that we bring as much as we can into restoration as quickly as possible.
Temperate rainforests are one of the UK's most important and rare habitats. They are native woodlands in areas with high oceanicity (influence of the sea), high rainfall, humidity and mild, stable temperatures. These conditions occur in less than 1% of the planet.
A single woodland can host over 200 species of bryophytes and 100-200 species of lichens, many of which are globally rare. Mosses and bryophytes help maintain a stable and humid microclimate. This stability plays a vital role in landscape resilience, providing resource and acting as an important refuge for wildlife, especially during droughts or heatwaves.
We can’t miss this wonderful opportunity to save another irreplaceable rainforest habitat and Site of Special Scientific Interest.
The remnant native oaks along the slopes and riverbanks of Buckland Wood offer a glimpse of the ancient rainforest that once covered the area. With your support, we can bring this special place back to life and highlight its full potential for nature and people.
Please donate to help us raise the purchase cost back for Buckland Wood and begin its vital restoration. Every pound you give will be matched, up to £750,000 – doubling your impact.
Call us on 0330 333 3300 between 8.30am and 5pm, Monday to Friday, and our friendly team will be there to assist.
Send a cheque to our head office at Buckland Wood Appeal, Woodland Trust, Kempton Way, Grantham, Lincolnshire, NG31 6LL. Please make cheques payable to the Woodland Trust.
