General Description

The Pasture and Woodland Associated with Heathland landscape character type is an enclosed landscape with pockets of low intensity grazed pasture in a well-wooded setting. The character type includes the heathland edge around the New Forest perambulation and is closely associated with a zone of former heathland, which still retains a heathy character. Parklands are a typical feature, characterized by landscape features such as scattered trees, rows of trees, wood pasture (in the case old deer parks) exotic trees, ancient pollard trees and veteran trees. Woodlands and shelter belts often occur with these parklands.

Settlements are characteristically found to have an open but nucleated settlement pattern having developed in an essentially open, heathland environment to support the rapid growth of Southampton and Chandlers Ford.

Location

Pasture and Woodland Associated with Heathland is found in the southern borders of the Borough on higher ground. It is closely associated with heathland (including LCT1) to the south, which extend into New Forest District and is generally more heavily wooded, and influenced by non agricultural human activity, than the adjacent areas of mixed farmland and woodland (LCT3 and 4) to the north. Two character areas have been classified within this landscape character type.

• LCA2A Embley Wood and Heathland

• LCA2B North Baddesley to Chilworth Woodland Mosaic

Physical Influences

Geology: The boundary of the character type is mainly defined by local geology and relates to the transition where shallow poor soils over gravels become deeper initially in patches and then becoming uniform and so more viable to cultivate. This landscape typically occurs on a varying geological formation of sands, sandy clays and gravels.

Landform: A very gently rolling landscape, almost a plateau, with generally small dry valleys, smooth ridges and no sharp escarpments.

Drainage: This type lies within the Test and Itchen catchment areas and includes small streams and ponds.

Biodiversity and Vegetation Pattern

Pasture and Woodland Associated with Heathland is characterised by extensive ancient and semi-natural woodland and active coppice, linked by hedgerows. There is a high proportion of improved grassland and localised arable use on patches of more favourable soils. Fields of unimproved acid and neutral grassland form important habitats. There are occasional patches of lowland heath dominated by heather, together with mosaics of acid grassland, patchy woodland and scrub. Often the valleys have wet areas due to soil erosion and deposition over time.

Notable habitats:

Ancient semi-natural woodland.
Unimproved grassland.

Historical Influences

This landscape is characterised by tracts of nineteenth century woodland and some elements of woodland with a pre-1810 origin interspersed with areas of small and irregular assarting up on the higher ground flanking the river valleys. Where the ground slopes down towards the valley floor the agricultural landscape changes with more parliamentary fields, associated with the wooded areas, in evidence.

These characteristics demonstrate a process of developing human influence over what has traditionally been a largely forested environment. The generally linear alignment of the assarted field boundaries suggests a later, possibly early nineteenth century date for their creation although some earlier assarting may exist particularly closer to the interface with the New Forest. Valley associated parliamentary field systems indicate the rapid enclosure of the lower land of this character type.

Settlement Pattern

Heath Associated Settlement Types dominate this landscape character type. These settlements characteristically have an open but nucleated settlement pattern having developed in an essentially open, heathland environment. Some fragmentary historic cores dating to the seventeenth and eighteenth century can be identified within some of these heath associated settlements although they tend to be the extant remains of apparently isolated farms and manorial complexes which have attracted later settlement growth. These settlements appear to have generally later post-medieval origins with relatively extensive areas of nineteenth and twentieth century development. This process of later post-medieval expansion is particularly associated with the rapid growth of Southampton and its principal suburbs during this period.

Communication Network

Several gently winding roads, in part respecting the contours of the land, appear to extend north south through this character type particularly in the west of the Borough. These may be the remains of the drove roads connecting the ancient forest farmland to the core of the New Forest to the south of the river Blackwater. In general the east west aligned roads appear to be much straighter and extend directly between principal settlements. Recreational opportunities are high with a good density of footpaths.

Key Natural and Cultural Landscape Issues

• Hedgerow fragmentation and loss

• Pressures for new built development

• Cumulative visual impact from extensive storage of caravans, redundant farm machinery

• Pressure for further recreational provision on heathland and woodland in the urban fringe including motor sports, mountain biking and golf courses

• Threat to remnant heathland and unimproved pasture

• Dilution of locally distinctive character through standard development form and design

• Potential change in farming practices, with increased areas managed as ‘hobby farms’ or as horse paddocks, characterized by rank weedy grassland and poorly managed boundaries.

• Loss of open heathland resulting from conifer plantation, and in some instances manicured golf course designs

• Loss of parkland features

• Increased risk of localized flash flooding due to run off from new developments

• Isolation of small patches of lowland heathland and unimproved grassland

• Loss of historic landscape character with assarted field systems giving way to the development of large open fields associated with mechanized forms of agriculture

• Loss of historic heathland areas to settlement development associated with the continuing growth of Southampton.