Goodwood is famous for its festivals, racing and award-winning organic farm. Visitors flock to its events and admire the sweep of its parkland. Yet few people ever step behind the scenes to see how the estate manages its 800 hectares of woodland. A recent walk with Darren Norris, Head of Forestry at Goodwood, offered that rare chance. What we discovered was a level of vision, innovation and long-term care that deserves far more attention.
A Landscape Shaped By Long-Term Thinking
Goodwood’s approach to land is shaped from the top. The Gordon-Lennox family hold a deep commitment to organic principles and better biodiversity. They set clear expectations, support their managers, and take a view measured in centuries. The estate has been in the family for at least 300 years, and its woodland decisions look ahead another 300. That long horizon attracts people at the top of their craft. Almost every local woodsperson that I have met this year works in some way for Goodwood, which says a great deal about the estate’s reputation.
I first met Darren earlier this year at Home Farm in Halnaker. Our initial conversation ranged wide and fast. He knows the estate like most people know their own gardens. He grew up across the fields and has worked for Goodwood for much of his adult life. His knowledge is not simply technical, it is intimate. He notices when trees struggle, senses where water gathers and knows which slope each species prefers. Years of walking the woods have attuned him to the land’s most subtle contours.
Planting New Woodland: More Complex Than It Looks
When we met again for the walk, Darren explained one of his biggest aims: increasing woodland cover. Planting trees may sound straightforward, however, in reality it isn’t. Many fields on the estate have been compacted by decades of event parking. Their soils are tight and tired. “The land speaks one language, and the trees speak another” he said. “You need a translator”. That translator is mycelium, the underground fungal network that helps young trees find nutrients and water.
Goodwood began using mycelium pellets supplied by Re-Genus, a company based in Wales. However, now Darren cultivates his own estate-specific strain. He compared it to a sourdough starter: keep it fed, and it pays you back. This careful nurturing helps new woodlands take hold in places where they would otherwise fail.
Compaction affects mature trees too, including Goodwood’s iconic Cedars of Lebanon. Darren described the specialised air tools that have been used to loosen soil around these giants without harming their roots. This slow, careful work supports the trees’ long-term health. Goodwood also plays a role in international conservation. It now serves as a seed bank for Cedars of Lebanon, a species under serious threat in its native range because of conflict.
Managing Threats: Pests, Disease & Historic Ground
As we walked further into the forest, the track grew muddier. Ahead, machinery was at work clearing a large block of Norwegian spruce, recently hit by the eight-toothed spruce bark beetle. Although this wasn’t part of the original woodland plan, Darren saw opportunity in the problem. The clearing will be replanted as mixed woodland, creating a more resilient habitat for the future.
Managing trees at Goodwood brings another challenge. Foresters must watch not only the canopy but also the ground. The southern dip slope of the Downs hides a range of archaeological features including strip lynchets (a relic of ancient farming) and tumuli. A significant share of England’s protected monuments sit under woodland, so Goodwood’s team must plan every extraction route with precision.
Wildlife pressure adds yet more complexity with grey squirrels high on Darren’s list of concerns. He showed us how to spot the subtle signs of their destructive bark stripping. While seemingly small, these wounds invite infection which can ultimately kill a tree. Interestingly, our prehistoric ancestors once used ring-barking deliberately. It was a way to weaken large trees when armed only with flint axes. Today’s foresters, equipped with chainsaws and harvesters have no need for the squirrel’s “help”.
A living Estate With An Eye On The Future
We ended the walk beside long runs of newly planted hedgerow. These break up once large fields creating vital corridors for wildlife. Another boost for biodiversity comes from around 30 large owl boxes, beautifully made by Built By Artizans, who are now based on the estate. Their use of sustainable, locally sourced roundwood and green oak fits neatly with Goodwood’s wider plan: attract skilled makers, grow high-quality local timber, and use that timber to support the building of sustainable structures that tread lightly on the landscape.
In 2025, Rural Strides has explored the Western Weald’s deep woodland heritage. Stepping into Goodwood’s forestry operations felt like the perfect way to close the year. With custodians like Darren and the wider estate team, Goodwood lives up to its name – Goodwood by heritage, and genuinely “good wood” by nature, management and long-term care.
