Former Hampshire farm becomes woodland tribute to late Queen

A former farm in Hampshire with medieval links to royalty has been unveiled as the latest woodland tribute to the life of Queen Elizabeth II.

Tidgrove Warren is one of the Woodland Trust's "platinum woods" as part of The Queen's Green Canopy (QGC) scheme.

The farm was once home to a hunting lodge belonging to King Henry II.

Charles Sainsbury-Plaice, from Tidgrove, said he was "delighted" the "wonderful woodland-in-waiting" was "coming full circle".

The UK-wide QGC scheme, which sees new trees planted as well as ancient woodlands and forests protected, was created to mark the late Queen's Platinum Jubilee.

It was extended until the end of March to give people an opportunity to plant trees in her memory.

The fledgling 70-acre woodland at Tidgrove, 12 miles (19km) from Basingstoke, has been created without the need to plant any new trees - instead, management of existing scrub will allow the wood to continue to flourish naturally over the next decade.

Mr Charles Sainsbury-Plaice said: "We'll be allowing the already thriving landscape to continue to evolve and develop, and the new woodland habitat will serve as a vital wildlife corridor and buffer zone."

Woodland Trust ambassador Jules Action said the Tidgrove Warren woodland was a "fitting legacy" to Elizabeth II's reign that "looks to the future providing, as it does, a vital haven for nature".

The farm was previously used to grow malting barley for the brewing and distilling industry before farming was abandoned at the site in 1992 and it was left to regenerate under the Country Stewardship Scheme.

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