People are being encouraged to volunteer to find the oldest trees in Sussex to help prevent them from being felled for housing developments.

The Lost Woods project is scouring 314 square kilometres in search of ancient trees which it said have little legal protection.

The project, which is support by a £2 million National Lottery grant, is looking for volunteers to join its team to receive training in identifying ancient trees and make record of their condition.

It comes after the felling of two “ancient” cedar and yew trees in Sussex earlier this month.

The project will also help assess the health of trees and identify where pockets of ancient woodland can be reconnected through natural regeneration or planting.

Lost Woods project manager Sarah Williams said: “Across Sussex and the UK as a whole, we don’t know where all our ancient trees are and so we can’t protect those facing threats from development.

The Argus: The Lost Woods project is also appealing to the public to send in sightings of old trees within the project area, including those in their own gardensThe Lost Woods project is also appealing to the public to send in sightings of old trees within the project area, including those in their own gardens (Image: Michael Heffernan)

"The majority of ancient trees don’t have any legal protection, even though they’re really important living habitats and they’re often beloved local landmarks.

“We really need to find our ancient trees and we’d love communities in Sussex to get involved in this giant citizen science project; either as a trained volunteer to go out and make records of our oldest trees, or by telling us about an ancient tree they’ve spotted.

"We’re really excited to see what trees are discovered.”

The project covers an area between Lewes and Storrington.

Volunteers will be asked to survey a one square kilometre patch at a time.

Bob Epsom, Woodland Trust outreach adviser for Lost Woods project, said: “Ancient trees are incredible habitats, a single ancient oak tree can be home to over 2,000 species of wildlife, plants and fungi.  

"We hope people will join us as volunteers to find these irreplaceable trees that have been a part of our communities in Sussex for centuries.”

All records will be added to the national Ancient and Veteran Tree Inventory, which is available to the public, planners, developers, and ecologists to help identify where the trees are located.

Old trees can be identified if they have some or all these features:

  • A wide trunk and a smaller canopy compared to trees of the same species
  • A hollowing trunk
  • Rougher or more creviced bark
  • Stag-headedness (dead antler-like branches extending beyond the canopy)

For more information, visit www.lostwoods.org.uk