The woodland flora of the Forest of Writtle and surrounding area
montana, Wood Sedge, Early Dog Violet, Goldilocks Buttercup Ranunculus auricomus, Violet
Helleborine Epipactis purpurata and even an occasional Solomon's-seal Polygonatum multiflorum.
Osborne's Wood: TL660012. Size: originally 4 ha/10 acres, around half of which were lost to
road building when the Margaretting by-pass was built in the 1960s. Handley Green Farm (formerly
The Hyde Estate). Another rectangular Ash/Hornbeam copse that appears to have been planted at
around the same time as the above. Dominated by Bluebells to the exclusion of most other plants
but both Foxglove and Rosebay Willowherb flourished for a few years when the eastern edge was
coppiced in the 1980s.
The Hyde Lake: TL653006. Size : 2 ha/5 acres. The Hyde Estate. A narrow belt of woodland
flanking a small lake that was planted as an ornamental feature when the grounds of The Hyde were
landscaped in the mid-1700s. It contains a wide range of tree species but Yew Taxus baccata and
Sycamore are by far the most common. The flora is fairly rich for such a small site and includes
Common Polypody Polypodium vulgare, which occurs at only one other site in the area. Recent
colonists have included Wood Anenome (possibly along dormant relic of an old introduction) and
Broad-leaved Helleborine.
Elmfield Farm Copse: TL647001. Size: 2 ha/5 acres. Secondary Oak/Ash/Sycamore woodland
that has developed on former meadowland alongside the Al 2 since the 1960s. It has been colonised
by a wide range of garden species including Snowdrop Galanthus nivalis, Three-cornered Leek
Allium triquetrum, Sweet Violet Viola odorata and Yellow Archangel Lamiastrum galeobdolon
ssp. argentatum.
The Grove: TL647008. Size: 5 ha/12 acres. Haldin's (Harding's) Farm. Around three acres of
this wood - known as Freehold Copse - is ancient woodland (mostly Hornbeam coppice), pre-
dating 1600. The remainder was probably planted as an ornamental feature in the early 17th century
by members of the Petre family, who owned Old Mill Green House, to which the land was attached
at that time. Freehold Copse is an Oak/Hornbeam wood while Alder, Ash and Crack Willow flank
the stream which forms the central feature of the wood. A wide range of other species were planted
during the Victorian/Edwardian era including Wild Cherry Prunus avium and Horse Chestnut while
Hybrid Black Poplar has been added in recent decades. The tithe map of 1839 shows the northeast
end to have been planted with Osier Salix viminalis but no trace of these remain. There are, however,
some wonderful old coppice stools in this wood including Ash, Hazel, Crack Willow and Common
Lime. The flora has deteriorated in recent years due to lack of coppicing but still includes hundreds
of ferns - Soft Shield-fern Polystichum setiferum among them - and both Moschatel Adoxa
moscahatellina and Common Twayblade Listera ovata. It is also very rich in fungi, Macrotyphula
fistulosa and Rhodotus palmatus being two of the scarcer species found here.
Woodbarn's Spring: TL618003. Size: 6 ha/15 acres. Woodbarn's Farm. Depicted on the estate
map of 1600 but by 1779 it appears to have been converted to farmland. If so, it had reappeared by
1839, when the tithe map was published. A dry Oak/Hornbeam wood with only a small quantity of
Sweet Chestnut, the flora is poor due to a lack of recent coppicing.
Portsmorhall Wood: TL613007. Size: 8 ha/20 acres, of which around half were grubbed out in the
1960s. Woodbarn's Farm. It was further damaged by illegal fly-tipping in the 1980s. During the
Victorian era Ordnance Survey were in the habit of renaming woods where the old name had fallen
into disuse and the wood had been re-christened by locals, and this Oak/Hornbeam/Sweet Chestnut
coppice is an example of this. For years I wondered where the grand house associated with this
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Essex Naturalist (New Series) 20 (2003)