Speech House Oaks

Speech House Oaks
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Oak near Speech House in autumn colours
Location within Gloucestershire
Area of Search	Gloucestershire
Grid reference	SO622123
Coordinates	51°48′31″N 2°32′56″W / 51.808503°N 2.548942°W / 51.808503; -2.548942Coordinates: 51°48′31″N 2°32′56″W / 51.808503°N 2.548942°W / 51.808503; -2.548942
Interest	Biological
Area	16.26 hectare
Notification	1972
Natural England website

Speech House Oaks (grid reference SO622123) is a 16.26-hectare (40.2-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1972.^[1]^[2]

The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).^[3]

Location and habitat

The Speech House Oaks are located in the Forest of Dean, which is managed by the Forestry Commission.^[4] The site is a linear band of open woodland of oak on either side of the Speech House Road near Speech House, and is close to the Forest of Dean Sculpture Trail.^[1]^[4]

The planting and careful management of the vast woodland of the Forest of Dean has been carried out for hundreds of years. This has resulted in a mosaic of different types of tree. The central area of the forest is on the Coal Measures and this supports oak. Such woodland has limited ground flora as this area is acid. Limestone and Old Red Sandstone rocks surround this central area. The soils in the surroundings are richer, and support a variety of tree types and a more abundant ground flora.^[1]

Flora

The site is significant for epiphytic flora and supports a range of uncommon lichens and bryophytes. There is considered to be a low level of atmospheric pollution in this area, and, together with the ancient trees, this has encouraged a significant diversity of ephyitic flora (numbers are recorded and particular species listed).^[1]

The oaks and hollies are on acid loam which is poorly drained. There is bracken, bramble and common bent. This is the usual make-up of such areas which are grazed oak woodlands.

Fauna

Old trees develop holes where they shed branches, and these are recorded nesting sites for particular birds such as the redstart.^[1]

References

SSSI Source

External links

Natural England (SSSI information)
Forestry Commission

Speech House Road
Royal Oaks opposite Speech House
Speech House

Biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire

Summarised data for all sites (biological and geological)

Ashleworth Ham Astridge Wood Badgeworth Barnsley Warren Barton Bushes Bigsweir Woods Blaisdon Hall Bourton Down Box Farm Meadows Boxwell Brassey Brooks Head Grove Buckshraft Mine & Bradley Railway Tunnel Bull Cross, The Frith and Juniper Hill Bushley Muzzard, Brimpsfield Caerwood and Ashberry Goose House Chaceley Meadow Clarke's Pool Meadow Cleeve Common Cockleford Marsh Collinpark Wood Coombe Hill Canal Coombe Hill Cotswold Commons and Beechwoods Cotswold Water Park Crickley Hill and Barrow Wake Daneway Banks Dean Hall Coach House & Cellar Devil's Chapel Scowles Dingle Wood Dixton Wood Dymock Woods Edge Common Elmlea Meadows Frampton Pools Highbury Wood Hobbs Quarry Hornsleasow Roughs Hucclecote Meadows Innsworth Meadow Juniper Hill, Edgeworth Kempley Daffodil Meadow Kingscote and Horsley Woods Lark Wood Leckhampton Hill and Charlton Kings Common Lineover Wood Lower Woods Lower Wye Gorge May Hill Midger Minchinhampton Common Nagshead Old Bow and Old Ham Mines Old River Severn, Upper Lode Pennsylvania Fields, Sedbury Poor's Allotment Puckham Woods Range Farm Fields River Wye Rodborough Common Rough Bank, Miserden Salmonsbury Meadows Selsley Common Severn Estuary Severn Ham, Tewkesbury Shorn Cliff and Caswell Woods Slade Brook Soudley Ponds Speech House Oaks Stenders Quarry Stinchcombe Hill Strawberry Banks Swanpool Wood and Furnace Grove Swift's Hill Sylvan House Barn The Hudnalls The Malvern Hills Tudor Farm Bank Turvey's Piece Upper Severn Estuary Upham Meadow and Summer Leasow Upper Wye Gorge Walmore Common Westbury Brook Ironstone Mine Whelford Meadow Wigpool Ironstone Mine Wildmoorway Meadows Winson Meadows Woodchester Park Workman's Wood Wotton Hill Yarley Meadows

Neighbouring areas Avon Hereford and Worcester Oxfordshire Wiltshire

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