Bog Wood

Bog Wood is a small (2.83ha) and currently isolated mature broadleaved secondary woodland located in the heart of the Sandymoor Valley in Runcorn. It is currently in a relatively rural setting but there are development proposals that will affect all of the woodland boundaries in the future. The woodland once formed part of the estate of the Brookes Family that centred on Norton Priory. The woodland contains semi-mature/mature oak with sycamore, ash, alder, silver birch and occasional beech, hornbeam and sweet chestnut. There is a sparse shrub layer of hazel, hawthorn, elder. In the mid 1970's the Runcorn Development Corporation acquired the woodland with a view to incorporating it into a landscape structure that would, at some point in time, provide the setting for new housing development. The New Town installed surfaced footpaths/bridges and also underplanted/ edge planted the woodland with a wide range of broadleaved species including rowan, wild cherry, beech, oak and ash. These group plantings have become suppressed under the closed canopy. There are a number of specimen trees and some have the potential to be retained at future veteran trees. The woodland is surrounded by a ditch network that acts as the main drainage system for the surrounding fields and the woodland itself. Care must be taken to protect this drainage network in the context of any new development. The ground flora of the woodland is quite sparse but it does contain a population of bluebell. Bramble and bracken are also present. In the past few years more people have started to visit the woodland (as new housing has encroached). There have been a number of fires, dens and some vandalism to gates, signs and bridges.