On the 1st June 2023 The Barby Woodland Trust signed the long term lease for the site and are now the official stewards of the land.
Planting commences in November 2023 and preparations for the site are underway ahead of that date. The first of these is to allow the grassland on the site to grow out to be cut for hay in late June. The reason for this is to take some of the nutrients out of the soil in preparation for Wildflower planting in 2024 - wildflowers prefer soil which is low quality and low nutrient so that they don't have to compete with grass for sunlight.
From the hay harvest until just before tree planting the grass will be kept short by being grazed with sheep.