Drainage

 

Without drainage much of the 'forest' would be wholly unsuitable for growing timber, too wet you see, hence the extensive drainage networks and the Victorians straightening of lengths of forest stream. Times change though, as do priorities. Today many sections of the streams have been returned to their pre Victorian courses, and all over the forest the filigree of drains go for the most part unmaintained, often filling with debris to the point where many are becoming redundant. The forest is returning to a more natural boggy state.

Drain

 

Although there's been some restoration to sections of the forests' streams and drains to their pre-Victorian watercourses, they're the anomalies rather than the rule. The straight forestry drains remain the rule. Though the restored sections have been cleverly selected to mean that many of the remaining drains cease to function as designed, backing up and flooding out into their surrounding woodland, where they hold the waters back as desired. They're certainly holding plenty of water at the moment as it remains wet out. This morning was a rainy walk again. There seems a sort of rhythm to our current weather, a couple of days rain and grey, followed by a dry and sunny day.

Dames Slough

Dames Slough. Even the forestry drains have a certain beauty to them.

Stockyford Green

 

An old forestry drain cuts through the stands of Stockyford Green.

Straight drain

Although many of the larger drains have been remodelled, or their depth greatly reduced, there are still plenty of straight drains in the forest. Saying that, you sometimes wouldn't think so what with the forest as wet as it is.

Drain

I've posted about the bog woodland restoration program and the returning of the forests streams to their pre-Victorian meandering courses. I usually post an image of the restored meanders resplendent in diversity, now here's an example of what many of them looked like before. As you can see, a far more sterile environment. Notice the steep cut banks on which for the most part little is growing and where stuff is growing there's limited diversity. Notice the bare gravels, dry and lifeless in the summer season, where as the flow in restored streams may decline, on the whole they continue to flow and sustain plant communities. These drains may well have been functional and served their purpose, though as you can see didn't make too good an environment of diversity. Nor are they aesthetically pleasing as the gentle meandering stream. 

Drain

There are few of the Victorian 'drains' which criss crossed the enclosures remaining, they used to be a common feature, until their remodelling, meandering and filling in the pursuit of re-establishing bog woodland, a rare environment.  Six or seven feet deep in places, these drains were essential if the New Forest enclosures were to remain dry enough for growing timber, still a vital resource at the time. You can tell a drain, they're usually straight, or run in straightened lengths, they're deep with a flat bottomed 'v' sided profile and there are spoil heaps along the tops of the banks from their construction and subsequent maintenance.  This one in Bramshaw Wood is a good example, exhibiting all the features mentioned (although not in the photo).  Whereas I thoroughly agree with rewilding (although it's questionable whether the re establishment of Bog Woodland is rewilding), I think it would be sage to retain some of these features, they are after all part of the forests history and archaeology.  The NPA and the Forestry Commission are not good in that respect as can be seen in, what I see as, their short sighted approach to the World War Two archaeology of the forest. I'm primarily speaking about the wholesale destruction of every period airfield and their associated features throughout the forest.  A great loss to the collective archaeological/historical/educational resource, both locally and nationally.