A Tale of Trees : The Battle to Save Britain's Ancient Woodland

Title Page -- Contents -- Prologue -- The first few thousand years -- The wood that nearly died -- Rhapsody in purple -- King Conifer -- Birds -- Under the plough -- Tunnel vision -- The spectre of development -- Night shift -- Millions like us -- Conservation: missing and misguided -- Ground control -- A government champion -- The woodsman -- The pinewood story -- Small victories in defeat -- The woodlanders -- Owners -- The darkness before dawn -- Step this way -- A change of heart -- Written in the wind -- A Breakthrough for the pinewoods -- Revival -- Ash to ashes -- What next? -- Last words -- Appendix I: How to identify an ancient wood -- Appendix II: Wood words -- Acknowledgements -- Index -- Copyright We are a nation that loves its ancient woods and trees. We prize our sturdy oaks, craggy pines, bluebells and primroses, badgers and dormice. We value the history and heritage of places that have been woodland since before the Norman Conquest. But only a generation ago we were all set to wipe them out. It was said that in the space of just 30 years, nearly half of our ancient woods were destroyed. How and why did this happen? And who prevented them all being lost?A Tale of Trees features the voices of those who cut down the woods and those who saved what was left. It is a story full of tragedy and heroism, ingenuity and blindness. And it will inspire the reader to go out and explore more ancient woods, and delight in our natural treasures. We Are A Nation That Loves Its Ancient Woods And Trees. But In The Space Of Just 40 Years, More Than A Third Of Our Ancient Woods Were Destroyed. How And Why Did This Happen? A Tale Of Trees Is The Untold Story Of How We Nearly Lost Our Greatest National Treasure. The extraordinary untold story of what happened to Britain's ancient woodland.