Woodland and scrub communities in the British National Vegetation Classification system

This article gives an overview of the woodland and scrub communities in the British National Vegetation Classification system.

Introduction

The woodland and scrub communities of the NVC were described in Volume 1 of British Plant Communities, first published in 1991.

In total, 25 woodland/scrub communities have been identified, consisting of 19 woodland communities, four communities classed as scrub and 2 as underscrub.

The woodland communities consist of:

• Six mixed deciduous or oak/birch woodland communities, which between them are found throughout Britain
• Three Beech woodland communities, found mainly in southern England
• A Yew woodland community, almost completely restricted to southeast England (community W13)
• A Scots Pine woodland community, restricted to Scotland
• A Juniper woodland community (community W19)
• Seven wet woodland communities, characterised by the presence of alder, birch and willows (communities W1, W2, W3, W4, W5, W6 and W7).
• Communities of arctic-alpine willows

The scrub communities consist of:

• Communities consisting of shrubs such as hawthorn, blackthorn and elder
• Gorse and broom scrub

The underscrub communities consist of bramble and bracken underscrub.

A further scrub community, SD18, dominated by Sea Buckthorn, is classified among the sand-dune communities.

List of woodland and scrub communities

The following is a list of the communities that make up this category:

• W1 Salix cinerea - Galium palustre woodland
• W2 Salix cinerea - Betula pubescens - Phragmites australis woodland
• W3 Salix pentandra - Carex rostrata woodland
• W4 Betula pubescens - Molinia caerulea woodland
• W5 Alnus glutinosa - Carex paniculata woodland
• W6 Alnus glutinosa - Urtica dioica woodland
• W7 Alnus glutinosa - Fraxinus excelsior - Lysimachia nemorum woodland
• W8 Fraxinus excelsior - Acer campestre - Mercurialis perennis woodland
• W9 Fraxinus excelsior - Sorbus aucuparia - Mercurialis perennis woodland
• W10 Quercus robur - Pteridium aquilinum - Rubus fruticosus woodland
• W11 Quercus petraea - Betula pubescens - Oxalis acetosella woodland
• W12 Fagus sylvatica - Mercurialis perennis woodland
• W13 Taxus baccata woodland
• W14 Fagus sylvatica - Rubus fruticosus woodland
• W15 Fagus sylvatica - Deschampsia flexuosa woodland
• W16 Quercus spp. - Betula spp. - Deschampsia flexuosa woodland
• W17 Quercus petraea - Betula pubescens - Dicranum majus woodland
• W18 Pinus sylvestris - Hylocomium splendens woodland
• W19 Juniperus communis ssp. communis - Oxalis acetosella woodland
• W20 Salix lapponum - Luzula sylvatica scrub
• W21 Crataegus monogyna - Hedera helix scrub
• W22 Prunus spinosa - Rubus fruticosus scrub
• W23 Ulex europaeus - Rubus fruticosus scrub
• W24 Rubus fruticosus - Holcus lanatus underscrub
• W25 Pteridium aquilinum - Rubus fruticosus underscrub