Introduction
Sable Wood is a 6 acre plot of woodland located adjacent to Forestry Commission land in the Lower Bourne, Farnham, and within the Wealden Greensand National Character Area. It was purchased by the present owners in December 2011 with the objective of maintaining and restoring important habitats, improving biodiversity and encouraging wildlife.
A Management Plan following Forestry Commission guidelines was published on 16 Jan 2014. Click the link to view and download the Plan. This Management Plan remains the blueprint for current work in Sable Wood.
Current activities
The main winter management period, Oct 2024 to March 2025, has begun. During summer, few management interventions are carried out so that the insects, animals and birds in the wood are undisturbed.
Work includes:
- continued thinning of excess Scots pine in many parts of the wood. A new technique of ring-barking was used to reduce the shade cast by Scots pine, while leaving the dead trunk as vertical habitat.
- ensuring that invasive species remain in check. Rhododendron ponticum and gaultheria shallon have been almost completely eliminated from Sable Wood but will attempt a comeback if allowed.
- continued construction of dead hedging using waste material in order to increase habitat for small mammals, insects and birds, and to improve wildlife corridors for movement of small mammals through the wood.
- some restorative work on the western boundary footpath, FP218.
- continued improvement and extension of the small area of heathland to encourage the population of reptiles known to include slow worm, common lizard, adder and grass-snake.
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