Many temperate rural landscapes are composed of cropland, pastures and a diversity of tree-based landcovers including small patches of forests. As these small forests are relatively persistent in time, they can be considered as ecological infrastructures that influence ecological processes, including those who contribute to the provision of ecosystem services (ES). In this presentation, we review ES provided by small forests. Based on several long-term studies in French rural landscapes, we analyse the main factors influencing the production of these ES, the role of remote sensing data in ES mapping, and the role of ES in management decisions made by diverse stakeholders. Our analysis shows that small forests provide many ES to farmers, but also to other stakeholders, such as hunters or tourists. ES production is primarily influenced by the internal structure and composition of forests, as well as by the spatial configuration of forests and adjacent land covers, factors which do not only depend on local practices but also on other factors that are more difficult to influence. Remotely sensed data can be used to map ES that are related to the structure and composition of forests over large spatial scale. This may help to identify hotspots of ES production and to propose specific management actions to consolidate the provision of ES at the landscape or regional levels.