This guide deals with the management of ancient semi-natural lowland mixed broadleaved woods. These are concentrated in the English lowlands, where they are by far the dominant type in the Midlands and East Anglia, but they also occur sparingly in the Scottish and Welsh lowlands and the upland margins. They mostly occupy ‘mesic’ soils, i.e. neither the extremely dry sites on limestone outcrops, nor the extremely acid, podzolised soils associated with heathlands.
Typically, they occupy a wide range of fertile, moist loams and clays, and support a rich flora containing both lime-loving and lime-avoiding species. There are estimated to be 130,000–160,000 ha of ancient semi-natural woodland of this type.
