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Ashwoods
'The Ash, from the lightness of its foliage, the graceful sweep of its branches, and the silvery appearance of its stem, has been called the Venus of the Forest' Strutt 1822 The ash is a distinctive tree in summer, with its elegant leaves held above the bundles of ash keys (these are the fruits of the ash - one tree can produce up to 100,000). It is also easily identifiable in winter because of its light, silvery bark and black buds. In the woodlands found on the steep sided White Peak limestone dales, ash is the dominant tree. This is due to the calcareous nature of the soil providing the high alkalinity preferred by the ash tree. Due to its relatively open foliage, the ash tree allows considerable sunlight through to the ground below. As a result, many Peak District ashwoods have developed into important habitats with diverse species (some nationally important) such as the large-leaved lime, mezereon, lily-of-the-valley, field maple and lemon slug.
Lily-of-the Valley The Peak District ash woodland sites are the largest in Great Britain and cover some 900 hectares in total. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - |
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