Churston Woods facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Churston Woods |
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Churston Woods
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 Location in Devon
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| Location | Devon, South West England |
| Coordinates | 50°24′06″N 3°31′40″W / 50.401647°N 3.527850°W |
Churston Woods is a beautiful forest area located near the village of Churston Ferrers and the town of Brixham. It's a special type of forest called semi-ancient woodland. This means it has been a forest for a very long time. The woods have two main parts: The Grove and Ball Copse. Torbay Council owns both parts. They are looked after by the Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust.
About Churston Woods
Churston Woods is right on the coast. It sits between the towns of Paignton and Brixham. This area is part of the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. This means it's a special place with amazing views and nature. It is protected to keep it beautiful for everyone.
You can enter the woods from many spots. One entrance is near Churston Court. Another is above Fishcombe Cove in Brixham. Two famous walking paths go through the woods. These are the South West Coast Path and the John Musgrave Heritage Trail. In 2018, the main path led through the middle of the woods. This area now has many small trees and shrubs. It goes from the lane near Churston to Churston Cove.
History of the Woods
Churston Woods has some old buildings called lime kilns. These kilns are not used anymore. You can find one on each side of the valley near Churston Cove. There are also old quarries nearby.
People used to burn limestone from the quarries in these kilns. They would mix it with coal. This process made something called quicklime. Quicklime was very useful. It was used to make whitewash and mortar for buildings. Farmers also used it to make their soil better for growing crops.
Protecting the Trees
In January 2017, a problem was found in Churston Woods. The Forestry Commission discovered that many trees were sick. They had a disease called Phytophthora ramorum. This disease can harm and even kill many types of trees and plants.
The Commission ordered that all larch trees be cut down. They also ordered the removal of sweet chestnut trees that looked sick. This work had to be finished by March 31st of that year. This was done to stop the disease from spreading.
After the sick trees were removed, new trees were planted. In May 2018, the Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust announced good news. The replanting of the main part of the woods was finished! Local people and groups helped a lot. They had four days where the community came to plant trees.
In total, 4800 new trees were planted. About 1000 of these were planted by volunteers. Most of the new trees were native oak trees. This helped the forest grow back strong and healthy.
