NIWT: woodland area by main tree species |
Over one half (53%) of the total woodland area in Great Britain is made up of conifers although this proportion ranges from 31% in England to 72% in Scotland.
Sitka spruce accounted for almost one half (49%) of the conifer area in Great Britain, followed by Scots pine (16%) and Lodgepole pine (10%). Amongst broadleaf species, Oak covered 23% of the broadleaf area, followed by Birch (16%) and Ash (13%).
Table 1.7 Area of woodland in GB by main tree species
Species | England | Scotland | Wales | GB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| thousand hectares | |||||
Conifers | |||||
Scots pine | 82 | 140 | 5 | 227 | |
Corsican pine | 41 | 2 | 3 | 47 | |
Lodgepole pine | 7 | 122 | 6 | 135 | |
Sitka spruce | 80 | 528 | 84 | 692 | |
Norway spruce | 32 | 35 | 11 | 79 | |
European larch | 14 | 9 | 1 | 23 | |
Japanese/hybrid larch | 33 | 56 | 22 | 111 | |
Douglas fir | 24 | 10 | 11 | 45 | |
Other conifer | 19 | 5 | 6 | 30 | |
Mixed conifer | 9 | 8 | 0 | 18 | |
Total Conifers | 340 | 916 | 149 | 1 406 | |
Broadleaves | |||||
Oak | 159 | 21 | 43 | 223 | |
Beech | 64 | 10 | 9 | 83 | |
Sycamore | 49 | 11 | 7 | 67 | |
Ash | 105 | 5 | 19 | 129 | |
Birch | 70 | 78 | 13 | 160 | |
Poplar | 11 | 0 | 1 | 12 | |
Sweet chestnut | 12 | 0 | 1 | 12 | |
Elm | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5 | |
Other broadleaves | 84 | 18 | 18 | 120 | |
Mixed broadleaves | 91 | 62 | 8 | 160 | |
Total broadleaves | 648 | 206 | 118 | 971 | |
Total - all species | 988 | 1 123 | 266 | 2 377 | |
Felled | 15 | 23 | 9 | 47 | |
Coppice1 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 24 | |
Open space2 | 72 | 134 | 11 | 217 | |
Total woodland | 1 097 | 1 281 | 287 | 2 665 | |
Not National Statistics.
Source: 1995-99 National Inventory of Woodland and Trees.
Notes:
1. Coppice includes coppice with standards.
2. Areas of integral open space, each less than 1 hectare.
