Knightwood Oak

A short, immensely thick trunk splitting into a crown of heavy limbs, the classic shape left by pollarding: the old practice of cutting branches for timber and fuel without killing the tree. It was first pollarded at around 200 years old and last cut roughly 150 years ago, which is why the upper limbs are so massive. Interpretation around the tree explains the technique, along with inosculation, where branches of neighbouring trees fuse together. Young oaks nearby have been pollarded in the same way, and saplings grown from this tree have been planted around the site.

• The path starts at the Knightwood Oak car park on Ornamental Drive, the first car park on the left after turning off the A35 into Bolderwood Ornamental Drive when coming from Lyndhurst.
• The trail is about 0.4 km / 0.25 miles each way, roughly 15 minutes, on a fairly smooth, flat gravel surface with no gates.
• Benches and frequent resting places along the way; suitable for pushchairs, manual wheelchairs and mobility scooters.
• Two accessible parking spaces; dogs and assistance dogs are welcome.
• The route crosses the road to reach the tree, so cross carefully with children and dogs under control.

This is one remarkable tree, not a big attraction. The oak is ringed by a traditional cleft oak fence to protect its roots, so you view it from outside rather than walking up to the trunk, and photographs of a wide, low-crowned oak rarely convey its bulk. Treat it as a short, worthwhile stop slotted into a wider woodland day rather than a destination in itself.

No facilities are confirmed at the site beyond parking and picnic tables, so bring water and anything else you need with you.