Piddington Wood

Piddington Wood is a 18 hectare woodland in north-east Oxfordshire located between Thame and Bicester. The wood is a remnant of the ancient Bernwood Hunting forest dating back to Henry II which once covered an area of some 400km2 from the Great Ouse river in the north to the Thame river in the south. Piddington Wood is located on a hillside with a north-westerly aspect overlooking the village of Arncott and lies within Piddington parish. Most of the wood (almost 10 ha) is ancient woodland which has been managed historically as coppice; oak ash silver birch and hazel are the main species. The rest of the site to the north and east is a mixture of young trees and open ground. The Woodland Trust bought the wood in two main phases. The ancient woodland was bought in 1989 and then in 2002 the land to the north south and east was acquired (compartments 2 and 3). The wood sits on calcareous clays and consequently the ground can remain very wet. Piddington Wood is a low key site for the public and has a limited number of visitors. Access to the wood is from a small lay-by at the B4011 road from which a public footpath enters the site. From here there is good network of paths around the whole site. The wood is well renowned locally for its populations of uncommon butterflies including black hairstreak and brown hairstreak.