Treeton Woods
The three areas of woodland at Treeton are on the eastern bank of the old course of the River Rother which is now occupied by Treeton Dyke. Hail Mary Hill Wood is located on the eastern side of Treeton Dyke with Falconer Wood contiguous to the south east. Treeton Wood is situated between the villages of Treeton and Aughton, and is some six kilometres south of the centre of Rotherham. These woods are areas of Rotherham designated as Heritage Woodlands.
Falconer Wood & Hail Mary Wood
Hail Mary Hill Wood and Falconer Wood are areas of Rotherham designated as Heritage Woodlands. Hail Mary Hill Wood and Falconer Wood form the northern and southern ends respectively of a block of woodland lying on the western side of the Rother Valley between Treeton and Aughton, about four miles south of the centre of Rotherham. The site has a good network of footpaths, some of which can be used by wheelchairs and pushchairs. Some parts are accessible by bridle path.
Treeton Brook flows through the wetland area of Treeton Marsh before entering the open water of Treeton Dyke so the site contains a number of habitats including wet woodland, dry, acid semi-natural woodland with birch and oak trees and acid grasslands. Beech, ash, hazel, sweet chestnut and elder also occur. In spring the woods are full of bluebells. The woods were subject to close-felling so much of the woodland you can see today is growth that has regenerated over the last 40 years or so.
Historical records for the two woodlands are relatively sparse but both are thought to be at least four hundred years old. In the Middle Ages land here was deeded to the Augustinian monks (canons) of Nostell Priory. They founded a small settlement here called Canonthorpe - a name which is now lost, but the religious connection remains in the name Hail Mary. There is an alternative and probably apocryphal tale that Mary, Queen of Scots spent the night here and the woods were named after her. Falconer Woods are named after the Faukener family who are first recorded in the area in 1311.
Close to the summit of Hail Mary Hill is an archaeological site dating from the Middle Stone Age period (10000BC - 4500BC), where chert and flint were made into tools.
Treeton Wood
Treeton Wood is the largest semi-natural area of woodland in the local area, being of ancient origin. It is one of the woodland areas of Rotherham designated as Heritage Woodlands. This means that the area has been woodland for at least four hundred years. Treeton Woods are first mentioned in a document from about 1600, when it was owned by the 7th Earl of Shrewsbury. It was managed woodland used for coppicing and the production of oak bark used for the tanning of leather. It was known as Oaken Cliff until the 19th Century.
The south-eastern edge of the wood along Treeton Brook is dampish and nutrient rich supporting elm and wych elm. Most of the wood, a mixture of birch and oak, is growing on dry, acid soils which support areas of acid grassland in the clearings.
For more information about the nature reserve please visit onsite at Recreation - Rotherham's Parks - Other Nature Reserves, Woodlands & Wetlands - Treeton Dyke.