Puckham Woods () is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

to the east of

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

near Whittington, notified in 1954.Natural England SSSI information on the citation
/ref> The site (including Scrubs Complex) is listed in the 'Cotswold District' Local Plan 2001-2011 (on line) as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).

Location

The woods lie within the

Cotswold The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale. The area is defined by the bedrock of Juras ...

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Cotswold Hills Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA). The site was previously called Puckham. Over the years there have been boundary amendments and review of the operations on the site to protect the special interest of the designation. There are three units of assessment; two are woodland and one is pasture (two fields). The site is on the edge of the Cotswold scarp and its geology is of the

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...

time interval and is made up of Inferior Oolite limestone. There is a band of Fuller's Earth in the northern woodland area.

Habitat and flora

This site is noted for its unimproved limestone grassland, and its ''flower-rich'', ancient semi-natural woodland. So much of this type of habitat has been ''lost'' due to changes in land management and land use. The woods are an example of old woodland which comprises

Ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

, Oak, Silver Birch, Whitebeam and

Rowan The rowans ( or ) or mountain-ashes are shrubs or trees in the genus ''Sorbus ''Sorbus'' is a genus of over 100 species of trees and shrubs in the rose family, Rosaceae. Species of ''Sorbus'' (''s.l.'') are commonly known as whitebeam, r ...

. This kind of woodland is relatively scarce in the Cotswolds which is mostly

Beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...

. The forestry practices for the wood have ensured that native species are maintained on the site. Understories include

Hazel The hazel (''Corylus'') is a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K. (1999). ...

, Field Maple,

Hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

Guelder Rose ''Viburnum opulus'', the guelder-rose or guelder rose () is a species of flowering plant in the family Adoxaceae (formerly Caprifoliaceae) native to Europe, northern Africa and central Asia. Description ''Viburnum opulus'' is a deciduous shru ...

and Holly. This type of woodland is rich in its ground flora and supports species such as Bluebell,

Dog's Mercury ''Mercurialis perennis'', commonly known as dog's mercury, is a poisonous woodland plant found in much of Europe as well as in Algeria, Iran, Turkey, and the Caucasus, but almost absent from Ireland, Orkney and Shetland.Ramsons ''Allium ursinum'', known as wild garlic, ramsons, cowleekes, cows's leek, cowleek, buckrams, broad-leaved garlic, wood garlic, bear leek, Eurasian wild garlic or bear's garlic, is a bulbous perennial flowering plant in the amaryllis family Amary ...

Yellow Archangel ''Lamium galeobdolon'', commonly known as yellow archangel, artillery plant, aluminium plant, or yellow weasel-snout, is a widespread wildflower in Europe, and has been introduced elsewhere as a garden plant. It displays the zygomorphic flower mo ...

and Woodruff.

Angular Solomon's-seal ''Polygonatum odoratum'' (syn. ''P. officinale''), the angular Solomon's seal or scented Solomon's seal, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, native to Europe, the Caucasus, Siberia, the Russian Far East, China, Mon ...

is recorded and other similar rarities such as

Herb Paris ''Paris quadrifolia'', the herb Paris or true lover's knot, is a species of flowering plant in the family Melanthiaceae. It occurs in temperate and cool areas throughout Eurasia, from Spain to Yakutia, and from Iceland to Mongolia. It prefers ...

, Lily-of-the-valley, Wood Vetch,

Greater Butterfly Orchid ''Platanthera chlorantha'', commonly known as greater butterfly-orchid, is a species of orchid in the genus ''Platanthera''. It can be found throughout Europe and Morocco. The name ''Platanthera'' is derived from Greek, meaning "broad anthers", ...

and

Meadow Saffron ''Colchicum autumnale'', commonly known as autumn crocus, meadow saffron, or naked ladies, is a toxic autumn-blooming flowering plant that resembles the true crocuses, but is a member of the plant family Colchicaceae, unlike the true crocuses, whi ...

. The pasture faces south to south-east and species include Upright Brome, Tor-grass, Red Fescue,

Meadow Oat-grass A meadow ( ) is an open habitat, or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non-woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows may be naturally occurring or artifi ...

and

Quaking-grass ''Briza'' is a genus of annual and perennial plants in the grass family, native to northern temperate regions of Eurasia, North Africa, and certain islands in the Atlantic. The group is generally referred to as the quaking grasses because the ...

. It is ''herb-rich'' and includes

Common Rock-rose ''Helianthemum nummularium'' (known as common rock-rose) is a species of rock-rose (Cistaceae), native to most of Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical si ...

, Dwarf Thistle, Thyme, Salad Burnet and several species of orchid (notably Pyramidal Orchid,

Bee Orchid Bee orchid is a common name for several orchids and may refer to: *'' Cottonia peduncularis'', a species of orchid from India and Sri Lanka *'' Diuris carinata'', a species of orchid from the south-west of Western Australia *'' Ida barringtoniae'', ...

and

Green-winged Orchid ''Anacamptis morio'', the green-winged orchid or green-veined orchid ( synonym ''Orchis morio''), is a flowering plant of the orchid family, Orchidaceae. It usually has purple flowers, and is found in Europe and the Middle East. Description It f ...

. The nationally scarce

Bastard Toadflax Bastard toadflax or bastard-toadflax is a common name for a plant which may refer to: *''Comandra'' *''Thesium humifusum ''Thesium humifusum'' is a species of hemiparasitic flowering plant in the family Santalaceae found in western Europe and nor ...

is recorded.

References

SSSI Source

Natural England SSSI information on the citation

Natural England SSSI information on the Puckham Woods units

External links

Natural England
(SSSI information) Image:Grazing land above Puckham Wood - geograph.org.uk - 1337340.jpg, Grazing land above Puckham Woods Image:End of the bridleway - geograph.org.uk - 1629136.jpg, Long distance view to Puckham Woods {{SSSIs Gloucs biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire Sites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1954 Forests and woodlands of Gloucestershire Cotswolds