Welcome to the latest edition of the Bishop's Meadow Newsletter!
We have have been busy since our AGM back in September and lots to share from sewing seeds, to caring for trees and...getting new bins! We hope you enjoy the update and if you have any photo's of your visits to the meadows which you would like to share please email them to info@bishopsmeadowtrust.com
waterways & seed planting
The stream that runs around the north eastern end of the Meadows has been widened and deepened as it takes a huge flow of water from the street drains in West Street. Before this work was completed the community wellbeing garden space2grow often flooded and it is hoped that this work will stop that from happening again. Many thanks to Tindle Newspapers who paid for this work.
The exposed bare earth on the bank side has been seeded with three different mixes of native wild meadow seed and we look forward to seeing the results!
In the Meadow, grassland seed mix was sown in four different patches which was first mown and then raked, to see where they do best - we'll update on this experiment later in the year.
Many thanks to our volunteers who have once again worked hard to keep the Tudor Ditch bottom and sides clear of vegetation. It's pretty full at the moment as it takes all the road runoff water from Pengilly Road, Meadow Bank and surrounding roads. (Read about the previous work done here and watch a video over the ditch here)
Habitats and tree care
The bramble thickets in the hedgerows and wild areas are a wonderful habitat and wildlife resource. However, in the absence of browsing animals, they become dominant over time, rooting from the stem apices (tips) to form a new root system. We have therefore been controlling their spread into the grassland, and also managing the size of clumps in the wild areas to create a variety of habitats, including cutting back the first metre from the fence to the grassland. This also allows the Crab apple trees to remain accessible.
All of the trees that are parallel with the footpath from St. Andrew’s church have also had a makeover. One tree was replaced, new stakes added where necessary and mesh around the base of each tree to reduce competition as they establish.
The same work has been completed in the orchard. During this work we found six Common Lizards fast asleep and they were moved to a similar environment which had been undisturbed.
Further work was carried out recently on the two cracked willow trees either side of the Tudor Ditch. They had branches and limbs overhanging the public footpath and they also had rot within the trunks. These have now been cut so now no branches from the remaining cracked willows will fall across the footpath.
(photo courtesy of Chris Shepheard)
This limb of the Leylandii came down as a result of Strom Eunice on the 18th February. This has now be chipped and the wood chipping has been taken offsite to be recycled. Many thanks to Waterside Mews (Farnham) Management Ltd who manage the land on the other side of the public footpath and who paid for this work.
Biodiversity
One of the missions of the BMT is to inform the public on environmental issues especially as they relate to the meadow. This is an introduction to what we hope will be a continuing series.
The first piece is on biodiversity and the full piece can be found on the website by clicking the link at the bottom.
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is a word at the top of the news agenda but its meaning and its ecological significance is not widely understood. Biodiversity resides in interconnectedness, in the formation of mutualistic interactions forming an interdependent community of organisms. It is not merely a list of species. Beyond its appearance a species represents a collection of functions in a net-work or community of organisms.
The richness of this network is biodiversity.
Each species lives in a certain specific way [its function] and compliments other species around it. The richer the variety of species, the more ecological roles or functions are present and the more interconnected, efficientand stable the system is. Most of these functions are unseen, things like degrading dead plant material to release nutrients, providing a food source for another species, pollination, providing protection or nesting sites, aerating soil, providing nutrient and water scavenging for plants, mutual control of prey/parasite species achieving balance. Some of these interactions are very specific.
image courtesy of Mick Frank
hedge improvements
There has been lots of work planting new hedging plants to improve the quality and depth of the hedges on the meadows.
The Trust received part funding for this project from Andy Macleod’s annual allowance from Surrey County Council and we have purchased and planted over 500 new hedging whips and saplings this spring and we hope to do more in the autumn.
As part of Surrey County Council’s ambitious plan to plant 1.2 million trees the Trust was given 30 small trees and tree stakes with the majority being planted in the Wildlife Protection Zone beyond the cattle field along with 80 whips of Crab apple and Oak which have been planted out in the margins of the meadows.
New bins!
A very big thank you to George Hesse (one of our two local councillors and a member of the Trust) and Waverley Borough Council who have worked together to remove the single litter bins and replace them with two double bins.
It is hoped that the additional bin at each end of the North-South footpath will reduce the amount of rubbish that mounts up and fills the bins to overflowing which has many risk potentials for everyone especially those men who come round to clear the bins.
From this... to this!
We look forward to updating you on the progress of the projects and if you would like to do anything else to help preserve the natural beauty of the Bishop’s Meadow, please email us at info@bishopsmeadowtrust.com