If You Go Down to the Woods…

PASSIONS ran high at a low – impact event celebrating ancient woodlands and the natural environment during the festive season.
Town joined gown for Loughborough University’s Christmas In the Woods, organised by the gardens’ team, to find a use for the semi-natural Burleigh Wood and rejoice in the beauty of biodiversity at the start of the holiday.
Loughborough University Assistant Gardens’ Manager Richard Fenn – Griffin opened the event saying at this time of year a tree that was once living is brought inside dead whereas here the historical space of the forest as a living museum can be celebrated.
Symbolic of the rich natural surroundings at Christmas evergreens holly and ivy in Celtic and pagan culture promise everlasting life and life to come and in Christianity red berries show the blood of Christ.
“It would be disrespectful to creatures if we didn’t discuss them or the biodiversity crisis,” said Mr Fenn – Griffin.
“The robin is the most obvious bird we think of at this time of year as the one that sings with its bright red breast and while they’re doing OK at number six in the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch the U.K. has lost 38 million birds from its skies in the last sixty years.”
Richard said the white berries of mistletoe are seasonal favourites but the plant’s suffered catastrophic decline in the last fifty years following the reduction in the number of orchards.
The canopy of Burleigh wood is 30 per cent ash, suffering dieback, hazel and oak, currently struggling to regenerate in the U.K. There is also rare sycamore Acer pseudoplatanus as well as a rich understory of maple, hawthorn, holly and field maple.
“But with only 2.5 per cent of Britain ancient woodland there has been a 37 per cent decline with 40 per cent happening in the last five years alone following threats such as HS2,” said Richard.
“16 per cent of British species is in danger of extinction.”
Mulled wine, mince pies and gingerbread were shared during poetry recitals and carol singing by the Loughborough University Choir directed by Eleanor Graff – Baker who said it was a lovely event. Michael Harry sang a solo and a student sextet led everyone in Oh Come, All Ye Faithful.
Burleigh Wood is owned and managed by the university and is a traditional coppiced wood dating back to Anglo – Saxon and Norman times. It shows on maps as a deer park for hunting up until the civil war and a deer bank known as Earl’s Dyke of the feuding Earls of Leicester and Huntingdon encircled the entire park at the western edge onto Charnwood Forest, remaining in parts. Today there is a permissive path popular for walks, particularly during the holiday period.
“To quote David Attenborough: “no species has the control we have” – we have a duty to our generation and generations to come. It can’t be someone else’s problem or tomorrow’s problem. Pledge to do something to change biodiversity loss to biodiversity gain,” added Mr Fenn – Griffin.