Black Firs Wood Nature Reserve is a 1.15 hectares (2.8 acre) nature reserve

Nature reserve

A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...

 managed by the Cheshire Wildlife Trust

Cheshire Wildlife Trust

The Cheshire Wildlife Trust is a wildlife trust covering the county of Cheshire and parts of the counties of Greater Manchester and Merseyside, England...

. It is located at Black Firs Lane, Somerford

Somerford

Somerford is a civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is adjacent to the north west of Congleton, from which town it has some housing overflow. According to the 2001 census, the population of the civil parish was 343.-References:...

, near Congleton

Congleton

Congleton is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Dane, to the west of the Macclesfield Canal and 21 miles south of Manchester. It has a population of 25,750.-History:The first settlements in...

, Cheshire

Cheshire

Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, .

Description

An oak

Oak

An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...

-dominated woodland

Woodland

Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...

 with a series of marl

Marl

Marl or marlstone is a calcium carbonate or lime-rich mud or mudstone which contains variable amounts of clays and aragonite. Marl was originally an old term loosely applied to a variety of materials, most of which occur as loose, earthy deposits consisting chiefly of an intimate mixture of clay...

 pits throughout, this reserve can be accessed from a public footpath. A pathway runs the entire length of the wood, leading to a roadway at the far end from which Hogswood Covert can be seen and accessed.