Scratchwood is an extensive, mainly wooded, country park in

Mill Hill Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross, close to the Hertfordshire border. It was in the Historic counties of England, historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it b ...

in the

London Borough of Barnet The London Borough of Barnet () is a suburban London boroughs, London borough in north London, England. Forming part of Outer London, the borough was formed in 1965 from parts of the ceremonial counties of Middlesex and Hertfordshire. It is the ...

. The 57-hectare site is a Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation and together with the neighbouring Moat Mount Open Space. It is a Local Nature Reserve.

History and ecology

Scratchwood is a remnant of the once great Middlesex Forest, and has the largest area of ancient woodland which survives in Barnet. Parts of it may go back to the woods which grew up after the end of the last ice age, the

Younger Dryas The Younger Dryas (YD, Greenland Stadial GS-1) was a period in Earth's geologic history that occurred circa 12,900 to 11,700 years Before Present (BP). It is primarily known for the sudden or "abrupt" cooling in the Northern Hemisphere, when the ...

, 11,500 years ago. The ancient woodland consists mainly of sessile oak and

hornbeam Hornbeams are hardwood trees in the plant genus ''Carpinus'' in the family Betulaceae. Its species occur across much of the temperateness, temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Common names The common English name ''hornbeam'' derives ...

, with some wild service trees, while secondary woodland areas are mainly

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...

, hawthorns and

sycamore Sycamore is a name which has been applied to several types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms. The name derives from the Ancient Greek () meaning . Species of otherwise unrelated trees known as sycamore: * ''Acer pseudoplatanus'', a ...

. In the view of the London Ecology Unit, "Scratchwood is the Borough's best woodland in terms of floral diversity, especially of ancient woodland indicator species". The herb rich grassland and the pond have a number of rare plants. Breeding birds include

nuthatch The nuthatches () constitute a genus, ''Sitta'', of small passerine birds belonging to the family Sittidae. Characterised by large heads, short tails, and powerful bills and feet, nuthatches advertise their territory using loud, simple songs. Mo ...

, lesser whitethroat and

cuckoo Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae ( ) family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes ( ). The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals, and anis. The coucals and anis are somet ...

. The area of Scratchwood south of the entrance was once hay meadows, growing food for London's vast horse population, but in 1866 Scratchwood and Moat Mount were part of a 400-hectare estate which was purchased by Edward William Cox, and Scratchwood was then used for sport and rearing game. The areas which are now nature reserves were purchased by Hendon Urban District Council in 1923. The main entrance is by the car park, which is accessed from the northbound lane of Barnet Way, a dual carriageway which is part of the A1 road, near Stirling Corner. There is also access by a footpath from Barnet Lane in Elstree. The London Loop crosses the reserve. In December 2019 a murder victim was found inside a car which was parked next to the Scratchwood area.

Mill Hill Golf Course

Mill Hill Golf Course is a 60-hectare Site of Borough Importance for Nature Conservation, Grade I, immediately south of Scratchwood at Grid Ref . 150 years ago it was farmland, and it later became part of a country estate which included Scratchwood and Moat Mount. The golf course was created in 1927. The most important feature of the site is its rich birdlife, including the rare willow tit. Deans Brook rises on the course, and a number of small streams converge towards Stoneyfields Lake, created by damming the brook when the site was a country estate. The lake and streams support many species of water loving plants. The area close to Scratchwood is acid grassland which has uncommon species such as dyer's greenweed and heath speedwell. There are some larger areas of woodland, such as Hemmings Wood at the southern end of the course.Hewlett, pp. 64-65

External links

Scratchwood
on the VisitWoods website

References

{{Local Nature Reserves in Greater London Local nature reserves in Greater London Nature reserves in the London Borough of Barnet Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Barnet Ancient woods of London Mill Hill Younger Dryas

History and ecology

Mill Hill Golf Course

See also

External links

References