Rookhill Coppice

Rookhill Coppice nature reserve

WildNet - Amy Lewis

Rookhill Coppice

A mix of ancient broadleaf and plantation conifer woodland.

Location

Rookhill Coppice Nature Reserve
Bottom Lane
Whitbourne
Herefordshire
WR6 5RU

OS Map Reference

SO 723 577
A static map of Rookhill Coppice

Know before you go

Size
1 hectare
image/svg+xmlP

Parking information

Parking is very limited, with room for only one car on the verge a little way along Bottom Lane heading away from Whitbourne.
image/svg+xml

Grazing animals

None
image/svg+xml

Walking trails

A small gate leads into the reserve although no path is currently marked, it is possible to trace a route along the valley. Parts of this walk may be slippery or muddy in wet weather.

image/svg+xml

Access

There are currently no surfaced paths and no wheelchair access at this reserve.

Dogs

image/svg+xmlOn a lead

When to visit

Opening times

Dawn to dusk

Best time to visit

Spring

About the reserve

This small area of oak and ash woodland is surrounded by other wooded areas and lies on the west-facing slope of a ridge of Old Red Sandstone.  There has certainly been woodland here for hundreds of years, long enough for it to have acquired many of the characteristic plants of ancient woodland. Some of the singled ash trees give evidence of having grown up from former coppice, but there are also many fine standards of oak and ash. 

The moist humus-rich soils carry a carpet of bluebells in early spring, together with other ancient woodland indicators including bluebells, ramsons, dog's mercury, violets and broad-leaved helleborine. The wood contains a considerable amount of dead, fallen timber and rotting tree hulks, which provide valuable micro-habitats for fungi and wood-boring insects.

Contact us

David Hutton
Rookhill Coppice

Rookhill Coppice

Wildflower meadow of yellow and white flowers with tall hedgerow in background and hills beyond

Davies Meadow Nature Reserve (Paul Lloyd)

Join today and receive a free Nature Reserves guide

When you join us as a member of Herefordshire Wildlife Trust you will receive our Herefordshire Nature Reserves Guide with full details of all our nature reserves including maps and species of interest.

Join today!