Description

The wood is a mixed, predominantly broadleaved wood with some clumps of conifers, including some impressively large Scots pine. The broadleaves include oak, beech, silver birch, hornbeam, sycamore, ash and hazel. Oak is the dominant species and include a number of tall and heavily branched large trees which give great character and presence in the wood. There is an understory of bracken and holly, and the soils are sandy and free draining. At the south east corner of the wood there is a pond like hollow, which was dry at the time of visit.

Kings Wood forms part of Kings and Baker’s Wood Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The SSSI designation is due to the varied nature of the land including lowland heath, acidic grassland and ponds, with a diverse range of rare species including great woodrush, wood vetch and saw-wort. These woods also form part of the largest remaining area of woodland in Bedfordshire. Kings Wood, and the woods that surround it, are designated as Ancient and Semi-Natural Woodlands (ASNW) indicating that there has been continuous woodland since pre 1600. The SSSI and ASNW designations do not preclude woodland management, but do require that all the necessary consents and licences are in place before works are undertaken, and that works are carried out to high standards.

The wood is accessed by an unsurfaced track that leads from Brickhill Road, over the wide verge and into the wood via a locked metal gate. This track is included in the title. Internal access is on an unsurfaced ride that runs from the metal gate and forms the western perimeter of the wood. Minor works to cut or remove fallen trees and clear back vegetation would be required in order to make this track suitable for vehicular use. Kings Wood is set away from the public footpaths and this gives it a sense of seclusion. The wood also contributes to, and gains from, the biodiversity interests of the larger woodland area in which it is situated.