Free tools Windows power users keep installed
One-click scans. No signup required.
The Lost Woods of the Low Weald and Downs project reported 5,570 recorded trees by 3 October 2026, more than volunteers expected. The figure is a survey tally: volunteers have been finding and recording trees as they cover the area, not increasing the number of trees growing there.
What the 5,570-tree figure counts
A BBC News report published on 3 October 2026 said volunteers had recorded 5,570 trees across 314 square kilometres between Lewes and Storrington since the project began in March 2024. Its breakdown was 348 ancient trees, 2,467 notable trees and 2,743 veteran trees; the remaining 12 were in another category. The report said records are checked before being added to the Ancient Tree Inventory. BBC News reported the milestone.
The project homepage separately said on 28 September 2026 that more than 5,500 ancient and veteran trees had been mapped. That statement uses a narrower category description than the report’s 5,570 total, which includes notable trees and another category. The two figures should not be treated as identical measures. The Lost Woods homepage carries the project update.
Ancient, veteran and notable are different categories
These labels are not interchangeable. The report gives separate totals for ancient, veteran and notable trees, so the headline number includes several kinds of records rather than only ancient trees. The published figures do not define the criteria for each category; consult the Ancient Tree Inventory for its recording context.
The Tool Desk
Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →#1 Best Overall
Why volunteers found more trees than expected
The count grew as surveyors covered more ground and located trees that had not previously been recorded. The BBC report attributes to Lost Woods outreach adviser Bob Epsom the observation that new clusters appeared on the map in places where volunteers had been working. That supports an explanation based on expanding survey coverage; the report does not give a quantified original target.
Mapping more trees does not show that the landscape’s tree population grew. It shows that more trees were identified and entered into the project’s records. The number also depends on where volunteers have surveyed and which records have passed verification.
Rank #2
- Pocket Guide to Trees and Shrubs of North America
- Pocket Guide to Trees and Shrubs of North America
- National Geographic Maps
What the Lost Woods project does
Lost Woods of the Low Weald and Downs is a five-year project in Sussex, between the South Downs National Park and the High Weald National Landscape. The Woodland Trust says the work aims to improve and reconnect fragmented ancient woodland, support biodiversity, train woodland managers, engage communities and record ancient, veteran and notable trees. It is made possible by The National Lottery Heritage Fund and works with Action in Rural Sussex, Sussex Wildlife Trust and Small Woods Association. The Woodland Trust project overview describes its aims and partners.
The same overview says the project area has 14% tree cover, compared with 22.8% in the South Downs and 24.8% in the High Weald, and that 60% of woods in the project area are neglected and in poor condition. The page does not state a publication year for these figures. They provide context for the wider landscape work, but are not measurements of how many trees the mapping effort has added to the inventory.
Quick wins for a faster PC:
Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Rank #3
How the tree survey works and how to help
Volunteer recording
Lost Woods says volunteer recorders receive around one or two half-day training sessions and are assigned one-square-kilometre areas. They record tree locations and condition. The project page says applications for the recorder role are currently paused, so check its homepage for the latest status.
Report an old tree
Members of the public can also submit information about an old tree. The project recommends checking the inventory first; a What3Words location, photograph and species identification, if known, are useful details. These help the project assess the report and locate the tree. See the project’s tree-recording information for current guidance.
Rank #4
Why recording trees matters
A mapped record makes a tree’s location and condition easier to consider in decisions about care and protection, and contributes to the Woodland Trust’s Ancient Tree Inventory. Recording is one part of Lost Woods’ wider landscape programme, which also includes woodland restoration and management.
In a 10 October 2023 project article, outreach adviser Bob Epsom said a single ancient oak can be home to over 2,000 species of wildlife, plants and fungi. That is Epsom’s quoted claim, not an independently verified statistic in the project’s current tree-count announcement. The project’s 2023 article explains its call for people to help locate ancient trees.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- Pocket Naturalist Trees by James Kavanagh - 9781583551783
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
