The Eastern Claylands snake from Essex to south Norfolk and encompass ancient and veteran trees, rare woodlands, established hedgerows, beautiful parklands and sparkling river valleys.

Home to rare species including the hazel doormouse, turtle dove and the black poplar, its combination of natural features makes the landscape incredibly special for biodiversity.

Esther Rosewarne is from the Woodland Trust and says a huge amount of work is being done at ground level to try and increase levels of natural abundance.

What’s more is that a third of all trees outside of woodlands here are Ash, as this was the preferred tree to replace Elm trees that succumbed to Dutch Elm Disease, particularly in field boundaries and roadsides. However, Ash Dieback is now prevalent in the area and high loss of trees is expected. The second most prevalent tree is Oak, which is sadly being impacted by acute oak decline. There’s no doubt that it’s time to take action for our trees. 

What are we doing?

The Woodland Trust has been working in the Eastern Claylands with landowners for a long time, mainly delivering support for the creation of new native broadleaved woods in the right places, as well as providing trees to other conservation organisations. This helps to replace lost trees, restore vital habitat connectivity for wildlife, and sequester carbon (see video below).

To date, our projects have ranged from funding wildlife-friendly agroforestry projects, to trialing innovative ways to bring more woodlands into management so that rare flora and fauna can thrive on the forest floor.

But we know we can’t solve the challenges in the Eastern Claylands on our own. That’s why we’re working in partnership with other lots of other organisations at landscape scale to make meaningful change. These range from conservation organisations like Wildlife Trusts and the RSPB, to local authorities and Tree Council Tree Wardens. Combined, our knowledge and experience will help to achieve our vision for a resilient landscape.

In 2021 alone, we partnered up with the Suffolk Tree Warden Network and Suffolk County Council to distribute 300 tree packs to landowners and Tree Council Tree Wardens across Suffolk. That amounted to 15,000 trees and 5,000m of hedgerow! We will continue working with partners across the Eastern Claylands in the long term so that trees, wildlife, and people, can flourish in a resilient landscape. 

Get Involved

Would you like to do your bit for trees and woodlands? There are plenty of ways to get involved, and not just in the Eastern Claylands – from participating in local tree planting initiatives to joining the Tree Council Tree Wardens in your area. For details on Suffolk’s tree wardens see the STWN website or follow them on @SuffolkTrees. 

Community groups and schools can apply for free tree packs for winter planting on the Woodland Trust’s website .Just make sure you’ve got permission from the landowner before planting your trees!

If you’re a landowner in the Eastern Claylands and you’d like to hear more about planting trees on your land or protecting and enhancing your woodland, head over to the Woodland Trust website.

Cover image: C Garry Battel