According to the Domesday Book, woodlands in this area of the Pennines were predominantly used as pasture, open and unenclosed. Although the trees were closely managed to provide building materials and fuel, at certain times of the year farmers were allowed to bring their livestock such as pigs and cows to browse on the foliage and feed on fallen nuts. Sometimes the trees were managed by an ancient practice called POLLARDING, in which a tree was periodically cut 6 to 10 feet above the ground, out of the range of damage by the animals. This allowed the tree to grow, often beyond the lifespan of an untouched tree. This large and ancient oak tree in Towneley woods is a perfect example of a pollarded tree. By the 14th century coppicing became the popular form of tree management and woods became enclosed due to population pressure, leading to a decline in woodland, as land was cleared for farming and settlement.
To the Celts, the most sacred tree of all was the oak, which represented the axis mundi or centre of the world. The root of the oak was, for them, the doorway to the other world.
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