Buggenhoutbos

Buggenhout Forest

Buggenhout presents itself as the ‘forest municipality’. And indeed, in the urbanized triangle between Brussels, Antwerp, and Ghent, a forest area of this size is remarkable. It’s no wonder that the forest has gained an important recreational function in recent decades.

It is also clear that the municipality derived its name from this beech forest. The first time the municipality is mentioned in a deed was in a deed of gift from 1125 when it was referred to as ‘Buckenholt’. The etymology of ‘Buckenholt’ reveals the predominant presence of the beech in the area: bokina is Germanic for beech, hulta is Germanic for forest.

It is undoubted that the current forest is only a fraction of what it once was, but how large was it originally?

The management plan of Buggenhout Forest indicates that in 1573 the contiguous area of forest still amounted to about 1000 ha. In 1686, the area of the forest, including the castle grounds, was 360 bunder2 (day measure), which is 517.7 hectares. After coming into unrestricted possession of the lords of Grimbergen in 1777, fragmentation began.

World War I was disastrous for Buggenhout Forest. No less than 250 ha were cut down from the 400 ha large forest! This is therefore more than the current size of Buggenhout Forest, including the planned forest expansion. Thus, the forests along Ravenstraat disappeared among others. The felled high-quality trees were used as construction material at the front. The smaller and less suitable specimens were turned into charcoal by the Germans for use in powder factories. There was a shortage of fuel for the German occupier. The charcoal was processed into gunpowder. The cleared area was later occupied by agriculture and housing in new streets such as Bosdreef and Kalkenstraat.

With its 163 hectares, 66 a, 95 ca, this was in 2000 the largest broadleaf forest in East Flanders (noting that East Flanders is one of the least forested provinces in Belgium).

Since then, there have been 3 forest expansions, bringing the current area to 200 ha, 11 a, 98 ca. In 2023, a fourth expansion is planned along Schommeldreef, which will bring the total size to 211 ha, 96 a, 48 ca.

The archives of the Land of Dendermonde report that in 1610 the last premium for a dead wolf was paid out and that in 1567 five young wolf pups were captured in Buggenhout Forest.

Jurgen Vermeulen