Cefn Eithin Wood, Maenclochog, Clynderwen

Nestled in the foothills of the Preseli Mountains on the outskirts of the village of Maenclochog, a unique opportunity to acquire approximately 15.64 Acres of Woodland with excellent gated access and hardstanding with ample space for vehicles/machinery, plus 2 useful storage container sheds.
We are advised that 'Sittka Spruce' (picea sitchensis) was planted in the 1960's and that these have now been partially felled with the remainder ready for clearing and felling. We further understand that there has been more recent woodland planting (circa 500 trees) in the last 12 years.
While no Woodland grant is currently paid, interested parties are advised to make their own enquiries as to the possibility of any Grants/Aid that may or may not be available. The Woodland is also bisected by a Stream and there is also a Natural Spring. Small Woodland Properties in Mid and North Pembrokeshire are rare and the opportunity to purchase should not be missed.

Situation - Cefn Eithin Wood is situated within a mile or so by road of the centre of the village of Maenclochog.

Maenclochog is a popular rural village which is situated in the heart of Pembrokeshire within close proximity of The Preseli Hills, which provide excellent Walking, Rambling, Pony Trekking and Hacking facilities. The village has the benefit of a good Primary School, a Church, 2 Chapels, a Public House, 2 Petrol Filling Stations, a General Store/Post Office, Cafe and a Village/Community Hall.

The County and Market Town of Haverfordwest is some 12 miles or so South West and has the benefit of an excellent Shopping Centre together with an extensive range of amenities and facilities including Secondary and Primary Schools, Churches, Chapels, Banks, Building Societies, Hotels, Restaurants, Public Houses, Take-Aways, Art Galleries, a Library, Petrol Filling Stations, Supermarkets, a Leisure Centre, Further Education College, The County Council Offices and The County Hospital at Withybush.

The other well known Market Town of Narberth is some 10 miles or so South and has the benefit of a good range of designer Shops, Restaurants, Cafes, Public Houses, Hotels, Antique Shops, Schools, etc etc.

Within 3 miles or so of the Property is the Llysyfran Country Park and Reservoir which provides excellent Boating and Freshwater Fishing.

Also within easy car driving distance are the visitor attractions at Oakwood, Folly Farm, Bluestone, Heatherton and Manor Farm Wildlife Park/ Zoo.

The North Pembrokeshire Coastline at The Parrog Newport is some 10 miles or so north and also close by are the other well known sandy beaches and coves at Newport Sands, Ceibwr, Poppit Sands, Cwm, Aber Rhigian, Aberfforest, Cwm-yr-Eglwys, Pwllgwaelod and Aber Bach.

The other well known Market Towns of Fishguard (10 miles north west), Cardigan (15 miles north east) and Carmarthen (30 miles east) are within easy car driving distance.

There are good Road Links along the Main A40 from Haverfordwest to Carmarthen and the M4 to Cardiff and London as well as good Rail Links from Haverfordwest and Carmarthen to Cardiff, London Paddington and the rest of the UK. The nearest Railway Stations are at Clarbeston Road and Clunderwen.

Further Information - The Sittka Spruce (picea sitchensis) is a native conifer of America, found mainly along the coast of North West America.

First introduced into the U.K, by David Douglas in 1831, it was originally thought of as an exotic tree.

However, due to its fast rate of growth compared with our own native conifers, it is now largely commercially grown for its timber, which is considered to be of a high quality and is very versatile and easy to work with. The tree can yield high volumes of timber in a comparatively short time. The 'yield class' figure is the mean cubic metres growth, for each hectre of tree species for each years growth. Sitka Spruce has a yield class of 14 cubic metres per hectre per year (Oak can be as low as 4). This means that the Sitka Spruce only needs to grow for 40-60 years to reach its maximum timber potential (an oak can take up to 150 years).

The timber from the Sitka Spruce was originally used within the Aviation Industry (e.g. in the construction of aircraft frames and gliders), however in recent years the timber has been used within the Maritime Industry (e.g. boat and ship construction, pallets, packing boxes, board manufacture, etc. 'Thinnings' (smaller trees) are today used in paper making, this is mainly due to the natural white colour of the wood and the cellulose fibres that help produce strong, smooth paper.
The trees can grow up to 20m in height with a straight conical shape trunk and be 2m in diameter. From a pointed crown downward flowing branches hang.

The bark is of a grey/brown colour, whilst the leaves are strong, sharp flattened needles that grow individually. Red flowers grow at the top of older trees, which ripen into light brown, domed cones with crinkled scales protecting the seeds inside.

The tree flourishes when planted in deep, moist and well-drained soils, more commonly found in elevated positions in the north and west of the country. The trees naturally regenerate by dropping seeds from its cones, which quickly germinate in the soil to produce new growth.

Sitka Spruce grow closely together making a dense canopy, it is therefore quite difficult for other species of flora and forna to grow on the forest floor, due to the lack of natural sunlight. However, Sitka Spruce Woods can provide an excellent habitat for all types of wildlife, including Frogs, Toads, Snakes, Butterflies etc as they provide shelter from the elements. Deer and Foxes can also be found sheltering beneath its canopy and birds of prey, such as the Goshawk and Sparrowhawk, are often found nesting and hunting around a Sitka Spruce Wood.

Directions - the village of Maenclochog take the first sharp left hand turn. Follow this road for a third of a mile or so and follow the road to the right and continue straight on until you get to the end of the track where there is a turning bay. Cefn Eithin Wood is a 100 yards or so further on, on the right and just beyond the 2 galvanised gate posts.

Public Footpath - A Public Footpath runs off the B4313 road and over the access lane leading to the Woodland and onwards up to Cwm Cerwyn.

General Planning Information - A range of forest buildings can be erected without normal planning permission. This includes the erection, extension or alteration of a forestry building, such as a tool shed, store, office or shelter, or putting in a “private way” (access track). This is called Permitted Development (PD) and details are contained in Part 7 (Forestry Buildings and Operations) of the General Permitted Development Order 1995 (GPDO).

Any building or track must be used for the purposes of forestry and not, for example, primarily for leisure or educational activities. Unlike agriculture PD rights (Part 6), there are no restrictions on the size of the forestry building, no requirement that the forestry must be run as a trade or business (so hobby forestry is OK as long as it is forestry) and no stipulation that it must relate to forestry operations only on that unit. Full PD rights also apply to any size of forestry holding, whereas, for agriculture, there are reduced PD rights for holdings less than 5 hectares. A small anomaly is that osier growing counts as agriculture and therefore the two tier agricultural PD system applies, with less generous PD rights for holdings smaller than 5 hectares.

To qualify as Permitted Development, a building that is erected cannot be used as a dwelling, cannot be within 25 metres of a classified road, and must be “reasonably necessary” for the purposes of forestry. Also, any building must be designed for the purpose for which it is intended, so a forestry hut that looks like a house, or even is capable of providing overnight shelter, is not allowed as PD.

A condition of Permitted Development rights for forestry is that you must give advance notice to the local planning authority of what you intend to do. This system is called the Prior Notification Procedure (or the Determination Procedure) and involves filling in a simple form and providing a map and drawing. The planners then have 28 days in which to notify you that your development should not begin without their prior approval of the siting, design and external appearance. At this point they could also reject the proposal as not “reasonably necessary” for the purposes of forestry.

A precedent set by the planning appeal, T/APP/V2255/A/97/2861 93/P7, provides a useful guide to what can be erected in a woodland setting. In this case, the Inspector allowed a 6 by 18 metre wooden building for the storage of equipment, as a workspace for producing fence posts, and as an office with washroom facilities, all of which was deemed necessary for managing a 21 hectare coppice woodland in Kent.

Using a caravan for forestry purposes, such as storage, shelter for workers or as an office, is another matter. Provided the caravan is not for residential use, it falls completely outside planning controls, and you do not need to ask the planning authority in advance. According to the Caravan Sites Act 1968, the legal definition of a caravan includes mobile homes and self-built structures. Under this definition, there is no necessity for the caravan to have wheels, as long as it is under the size limit (60 feet long, 20 feet wide and 10 feet high), can be delivered in no more than two sections by lorry, and is capable of being moved in one piece along a road when assembled.

Grant Infomation - Under the Welsh "Glastir" scheme, there are two types of grant are available: the Woodland Creation Grant, for planting trees on land that is not currently woodland, and Glastir Woodland Management for thinning, restocking, infrastructure, pest control, and so forth

For more information on the Welsh grant schemes, see