It had been a few years since I last visited my favourite ancient woodland sites at Allen Banks and Briarwood Banks — my most recent visit taking place during a student field trip in 2022. I’m not entirely sure why it’s taken me so long to return, but regardless, this week I was thrilled to get back into the swing of things leading a group of keen botanists from my ‘Botanist’s Year’ course on a walk along the River Allen, taking in the sights and sounds of these remarkable reserves.
Ancient woodland is a rare thing in Northumberland, especially in a truly diverse and undisturbed state. The River Allen catchment is one of the few places where it’s still possible not only to observe many of the characteristic plants of this special habitat, but to see them in abundance — a sight sorely lacking in my local patch around Newcastle. As we set out from the National Trust car park, it was immediately clear we were in for a treat: just about everything one hopes to find in such sites was flowering merrily.
Within moments of starting our walk, ancient woodland indicators began revealing themselves at a rapid pace. The first leg of the trip took us along the drier, upper slopes of the gorge, where we were treated to glorious patches of Wood Crane’s-bill Geranium sylvaticum alongside Goldilocks Buttercup Ranunculus auricomus — two species I encounter far too infrequently for my liking. Lower down, although the bluebells and wood anemones had finished flowering, Sanicle Sanicula europaea was in full bloom, and members of the group were quick to point out some lovely patches of Yellow Pimpernel Lysimachia nemorum.
One of the other curiosities during this leg of the trip was a mature variegated Sycamore Acer pseudoplatanus which may or may not be the cultivar Simon-Louis Freres. Presumably this was planted here by the Victorian custodians of the site but either way, it made for an impressive sight.
(I think)
Continuing along the riverside path, our attention briefly turned to ferns, with sightings of most of the common species one might expect in a woodland like this: Hard Fern Blechnum spicant, Hard Shield-fern Polystichum aculeatum, Lady-fern Athyrium filix-femina, and others. Great Horsetail Equisetum telmateia was also noted, and several attractive woodland grasses gave us reason to pause. The most abundant was the delicate Wood Melick Melica uniflora, but we also recorded Hairy-brome Bromopsis ramosa, Giant Fescue Schedonorus giganteus, and perhaps most exciting of all, Wood Fescue Drymochloa sylvatica — a completely new plant for me, despite having unknowingly wandered past it for years. The Tyne catchment is one of the key strongholds for this rare woodland grass.
It wasn’t long, however, before our focus returned to flowers, with plenty of Bugle Ajuga reptans in bloom and Hybrid Avens Geum x intermedium growing alongside both of its parent species in a damp depression. Bitter-vetch Lathyrus linifolius and Wood Vetch Ervilia sylvatica were also observed, and a brief pause to key out specimens rewarded us with Intermediate Lady’s-mantle Alchemilla xanthochlora.
Another curiosity spotted on this leg of the trip was the attractive shrub shown below. Clearly a honeysuckle but which one? My money is on Fly Honeysuckle Lonicera xylosteum – likely an old introduction here.
Reaching the end of Allen Banks, we soon crossed the invisible boundary into the Northumberland Wildlife Trust’s reserve at Briarwood Banks. This is a fantastic site, carefully managed for a wide range of wildlife, including Hazel Dormice which are said to lurk in the undergrowth. Before venturing further, we stopped for lunch on a stunning patch of Calaminarian grassland, brimming with Mountain Pansies Viola lutea. As you can see, these little beauties come in a delightful range of colours, and personally, I’m especially fond of the less common yellow ones! This same area also held Common Bistort Bistorta officinalis on the riverbanks.
After lunch, it was time to begin our ascent up the banks, with Mel Rockett taking the lead, drawing on his extensive volunteering experience at the site. Our main target was Bird’s-nest Orchid which we had missed on the way in, but along the way we encountered a fine selection of species not seen earlier in the day, including Early-purple Orchid Orchis mascula and Common Cow-wheat Melampyrum pratense. Only when we reached the summit (and I’m not being melodramatic — the walk is genuinely steep at this point) did we finally find our quarry…
Thanks to Mel’s expert guidance, we finally caught up with Bird’s-nest Orchid Neottia nidus-avis. Two, to be exact, growing beneath a mature Beech Fagus sylvatica in a rocky patch of earth, far removed from the ‘rich humus’ they’re said to prefer in the textbooks. A quirky little plant, it may not be as striking as some of its orchid relatives, but it’s certainly fascinating: parasitic on the roots of its host tree and lacking the chlorophyll that gives most plants their green colour. These specimens weren’t fully open yet, but a few flowers had begun to reveal themselves.
While at Briarwood, we were also lucky enough to catch up with the rather delicate fern shown below. This is Oak Fern (Gymnocarpium dryopteris), a pretty uncommon species in our region, typically found in rocky, ancient woodlands. It was such a treat to see a thriving patch of it as we made our descent down the bank.
And that, folks, is a wrap. It’s always such a pleasure to get out and about with a group of keen botanists, especially when their local insight leads to unexpected encounters. A big thank you to Mel for taking the reins at Briarwood Banks.
