Forestry body turns over a new leaf

THE FORESTRY Commission is to make a radical break with its past by felling 200,000 immature trees to create a nature reserve. It will clear 300 acres of Corsican pines from Whitbarrow, a fell in the Lake District, and return it to its former glory as a limestone grassland rich in rare flowers and butterflies.

It is a departure for a body that a decade ago was accused of ruining the landscape by planting massed rows of dark confifers across Britain. But its remit has been broadened in recent years and now includes a duty to conservation and the landscape.

The commission agreed to the felling of the trees, which, at 30 years old, are only half their normal harvesting age, after representations from English Nature, the Government's wildlife agency. On Friday the two bodies are to declare Whitbarrow a National Nature Reserve.

Its limestone grassland, which supports many rare plants and insects, is an internationally important habitat and Whitbarrow is one of the best examples in Britain. "It's a very species-rich sward and it becomes absolutely wonderful when in flower," said Simon Webb, conservation officer for English Nature in Cumbria. "It's full of things like thyme, which is purple, rock rose, which is yellow, and squinancy-wort, which is white, with violets and harebells." The fell supports nearly 50 scarce invertebrates, including other uncommon butterflies such as the Duke of Burgundy.

The Forestry Commission planted the pines in the 1960s, when it was covering vast areas with conifers. "In those days they were planting for the next war," said the commission's Graham Prest. "But now our mandate is very broad; it's much more multi-purpose forestry. Timber production is only a part of it. Conservation, landscape and recreation are also important now. "