Kings Wood and Glebe Meadows, Houghton Conquest

Also within

Bedfordshire County

Condition (Natural England)

Habitats

Ancient woodland, Fast flowing river and stream

Description

Area, 36.10 hectares 89.20 ac Description Kings Wood is an example of ash/maple woodland, characteristic of the heavy Oxford and Boulder Clays. It represents a habitat which has become increasingly scarce in Bedfordshire and over its natural range in lowland England. The wood demonstrates the structural and biological diversity of an ancient, semi natural woodland and the rich flora includes several species which are uncommon within the county. The dominant tree species are pedunculate oak Quercus robur and ash Fraxinus excelsior standards over a diverse shrub community and a rich field layer, dominated by the characteristic dog’s mercury Mercurialis perennis, bluebell Hyacinthoides non-scripta, yellow archangel Lamiastrum galeobdolon and pendulous sedge Carex pendula. There are a variety of plants which are associated with ancient woodland sites including wood melick Melica uniflora, wood anemone Anemone nemorosa, wood millet Milium effusum and the county rarities, violet helleborine Epipactis purpurata and thin spiked wood sedge Carex strigosa. Additional habitats are provided by woodland rides and a small stream. Glebe meadows are adjacent to the northern boundary of Kings Wood. They exhibit the species richness typical of unimproved neutral grassland, traditionally managed for hay and grazing. Such grasslands are confined to the south of the country where they are now rare, especially in the east. Parts of the meadows exhibit ridge and furrow with abundant cowslips Primula veris and throughout, characteristic species include pepper saxifrage Silaum silaus, spiny rest-harrow Ononis spinosa, yellow rattle Rhinanthus minor and two species, uncommon within the county, saw wort Serratula tinctoria and dropwort Filipendula vulgaris. Additional interest is provided by the large mature hedges enclosing the fields and small ponds with good marginal vegetation, one supporting a large frog colony.

Species mentioned

Insects to look out for

These moths, butterflies and beetles are known to feed on plants recorded at this site, and carry a notable UK conservation status — but a host-plant being present doesn't mean the insect has actually been recorded here. Treat this as "worth watching for," not a confirmed sighting.

Host-plant data: Cook et al. (2025), Traits data for the butterflies and macro-moths of Great Britain and Ireland, 2024, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology / Butterfly Conservation; and Padovani et al. (2020), Database of Insects and their Food Plants (DBIF), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (both Open Government Licence). Contains data supplied by UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology.

Plant communities