The Brecks

The Brecks developed where temporary fields were cultivated for a few years and then once the soil was exhasuted were allowed to revert to heathland once more.

Before the Scots Pine belts were planted to act as windbreaks, harsh sandstorms were often a regular occurrence. One of these storms engulfed the village of Santon Downham in 1668.

Over the last 100 years heathland was lost to the large scale pine plantations of Thetford Forest and to the rapid developement of farming technology as large scale irrigation made it easier to grow crops on the normally dry soil. More recently many areas of heathland are being restored on Forestry and arable land.

The Brecks is a landscape Unique in Britain.