Churchyard Conservation Project

When I wandered around the churchyard in the spring of 2004 a small seed was sown as it struck me just how many wild flowers enjoyed life there. Meadow Saxifrage, Lady’s Bedstraw and Ox Eye Daisies to mention just a few. Further research showed that many churchyards, both urban and rural are now managed as small wildlife reserves.

The Upper Waveney Project already managed a small conservation area in the churchyard and I then discovered that the Norfolk Wildlife Trust had coincidentally undertaken a survey in early June which showed a wide variety of insects and flowers taking refuge. They had identified over 30 species of flowering plant, in particular a sizeable population of Meadow Saxifrage. Now rare in the wild it was once a common pasture flower. Rumour had it that Bee Orchids appear every few years as well.

The ground at All Saints has probably been enclosed for as long as the church has stood here and is thus a remnant of ancient grassland. It is an unfortunate fact that 98% of traditional pasture has disappeared in the last 30 years and in Norfolk 50% of the population of the county’s flowers live almost exclusively in churchyards.

Supported by Friends of Thorpe Abbotts Church (FOTAC) and with the advice offered by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust and financial support from our local Parish Council, we have re-established the area as a small wildlife haven for both plants and animals. This involved cutting and removing all of this season’s grass, to open up the sward to encourage all the seeds that may have been lying dormant for years. The grass heap (home of slow worms, hedgehogs and all manner of over wintering insects) is growing ever larger!

In July 2005 Stella Taylor came up to undertake a plant survey and found there to be over 100 species of wild flowers and grasses over the 5 conservation areas.

For a copy of the survey click here.

Update

After the Scythe Say on 8th August (see the Mardler page for a report) I set to and cleared the grass that had been cut and due to a sudden rush of blood to the head mowed the area at the SE corner around our small population of Hoary Mullein. The only significant populations of this species of mullein in the UK are found in East Anglia, most commonly found on the southern roads into Norwich and the A12 around Bury St Edmunds. Having now cleared that patch it has been decided that this area will be left in future until the early winter before clearance to encourage the later flowers to set seed such as Bunnett Saxifrage and Pignut.

The last week of August saw Peter Frizzell and his team take off the remaining long grass. So the grass heap has gown very considerably. Due the fact that our helpers concentrate on keeping the high profile areas looking good with a cut every two weeks during the summer this leaves us with no alternative but to get Peter in for which the Parish Council help us with a small grant. He does a fantastic job and the Yard is now looking well shorn just waiting for me to go over with the mower by way of a quick tidy up before the autumn growth kicks in.

Generally here in East Anglia we have had a very dry summer indeed with little rain through all of July and August which has rather upset the locals who went on holiday to Cornwall where it seems to have rained almost continually. This lack of rain has meant that there has generally not been a good growth of anything. The grass has really not done a great deal and generally the wildflowers had been similarly a little sparse. Mind you the Bee Orchids did very well with a record 12 spikes 0n the southern side of the yard. Similarly our small population of Harebells did well with one patch flowering early in July and the other later in August.

Well lthat is it I suppose for the summer so its now just a case of getting the team together in November to have the annual cleanup. Trimming up the bases of the limes and moving a small purple beech from the front to replace a chestnut which has mysteriously died on the northern edge. Finally we have a few trees on which we would like to raise the crown a little to give the grass and wildflowers a bit more of a chance in their shadow.

Simon