Queen's Wood Country Park facts for kids
Queenswood Country Park is a special place in Herefordshire, England. It's the only official country park in the whole county! You can find it on Dinmore Hill. This park has two main parts: a beautiful tree collection called an arboretum, and an old, natural woodland. The arboretum covers about 47-acre (0.19 km2) and has more than 1,200 different kinds of trees, many of them rare or from faraway places. The ancient woodland is much bigger, about 123-acre (0.50 km2). It's carefully managed to keep it wild and natural. Because it's so important for nature, it's a "Site of Special Scientific Interest" (SSSI) and a "Local Nature Reserve" (LNR). The park is looked after by two groups working together: the Herefordshire Wildlife Trust and New Leaf.
The History of Queenswood
Queenswood is a small piece of a huge, old oak forest. This forest once stretched all the way to the Welsh borders and even further! Over time, this land sometimes belonged to the king or queen. When Queen Elizabeth II was on the throne, its name changed from 'Kings Wood' to 'Queenswood'.
In the 1600s, Queenswood was part of the nearby Hampton Court Castle. This castle is just across the main road from the park. During World War I, almost all the trees in Queenswood were cut down. This timber was needed to help with the war effort.
Exploring the Arboretum
The Queenswood arboretum is a special collection of trees. Planting here began in 1953. This was done to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. A public fundraising effort, called 'The Queenswood Coronation Fund', helped pay for it. Sir Richard Cotterell, who was in charge of the park's committee, started this fund.
People from Herefordshire gave many donations. This allowed Sir Richard to buy many rare and beautiful trees. You can still enjoy these trees today!
The work of the Queenswood Coronation Fund became famous around the world. In 1981, the arboretum won a special award. It received the Dendrology Award from the International Dendrology Society. This award recognized the amazing quality of its tree collection.
The Queenswood Coronation Fund is still active today. It is a registered charity (No. 518624). Many people who visit and enjoy the park and arboretum continue to donate to it.
