Some great work has been done in recent weeks to help manage the meadows and the Trust has been greatly helped by The Skill Mill volunteers and the 3rd Farnham Scouts. We wanted to share some of the fantastic work which has been carried out and share some of the results.
The Skill Mill volunteers
The Skill Mill volunteers have worked for the Trust by digging up and replanting the large Roses, Blackthorn and Hawthorns in the area that was going to fenced off to protect the bank side and the wildlife. This work was completed over two days using the once small whips in the orchard area which were planted out there to be used for this very purpose and many have been used previously to add to the hedges.
Sadly the fence put up to protect the river bank needed to be extended and reinforced due to the desire of some kids to jump over and around it and to try and destroy the newly planted shrubs. Hopefully this fence will now continue to protect the bank and the river environment so that the ducklings, fish and wildlife can come back without interference. We hope nobody takes the opportunity to swim or wade upstream and undo our work.
The 3rd Farnham Scouts
Due to the totally different weather pattern from last year there has been an invasion of Oil Seed Rape on the margin of Manor Field which might prove an invasive weed if they were not removed before they set seed.
The 3rd Farnham Scouts came to the rescue and for two hours they tolled away and cleared a vast area and we look forward to seeing them back again.
Although we didn’t have cattle back this year, the up-side has meant that an accurate biodiversity survey can be carried out without the cattle confusing the results.
Tudor Ditch Maintenance
After the Tudor Ditch sides were cleared (read more HERE) there was still a vast amount of various grasses growing on the base of the Ditch which couldn’t be cleared until the Ditch was dry.
Again thanks to the help of The Skill Mill volunteers the work is progressing well which means when we have water coming in from the run off from the local roads it will be able to flow freely to the river.
With the good growing conditions this year the volume of Cleavers and Nettles on the edge of the Tudor Ditch has expanded again and needed to be reduced before the seed was set. This work has now been completed which leaves a very bare and sparse area but it will mean that the grass shouldn’t get invaded with these pernicious weeds and there are still vast areas where it is untouched and growing happily for the wildlife to use.
'The Flight' - Fantastic image courtesy of Jonathan Durham ARPS
Bat Survey
A bat survey was carried out on June 9th by Isobel Girvan and Nick Green, both Trustees of the Bishop’s Meadow Trust.
Here is a summary of the survey and an image below which illustrates where the activity takes place - on these long summer nights its a great time to get out and enjoy the activity of these residents on the meadows;
Bat Activity Transect undertaken June 9th 2021
Started at 21.00, sunset at 21.15 and stopped at 22.45.
All recordings were of Common Pipistrelle and Soprano Pipistrelle, except at the end of the transect by the large oaks and cemetery , when one Serotine was heard at 22.33. Common Noctule and Nathusius Pipistreele may also have been recorded (being checked)
To read more about the different species there is a great informative page on the Bat Conservation Trust site - click HERE
Pepper-saxifrage spotted!
We're pleased to say that we've seen a return of this plant to the meadows. This is a meadow plant with yellow flowers that prefers clay and it is a Surrey Rare Plant.
It was last seen in 2010, in roughly the same place Oak Field, the cattle field. Before that it was recorded near the River Wey in 1991. So it is not common at the Bishop’s Meadow and a good find. Read more about the plant HERE
Clearing of docks & thistles
A big clear of docks & thistles also took place this week. The grass on the meadows is going to be cut for hay again this year by Malcolm Coles. (...many of you may remember going to Thursley to the Coles Strawberry PIY farm in the past decades.) Docks and thistles don’t sit well in a hay crop as the stems are tough for any animal to digest so we have made efforts to take them out before the hay crop begins this year. Docks have roots up to 2 foot long and have a huge head of seeds. Creeping thistle, as the name suggests uses their underground root structure to pop up everywhere. The work undertook this week should hopefully result in a better hay crop.
Environmental education workshop visit
An environmental education workshop also came to visit the meadows who, as a part of the John Muir Award, followed parts of the River Wey from sources to where it joins the Thames.
They looked mostly at the river and its physical structure and also water quality (doing some basic tests such as turbidity, pH, nitrates, phosphates and temperature) and looked for aquatic life indicators of water quality. They also look at the history of the river and how humans use the river now and in the past.
Heres an account of their visit;
"We had a lovely day walking along the river at Bishops Meadow and it really helped the children get the idea of the importance of flood meadows and how rivers are monitored to tell if a flood might be imminent or if the water is too low (with the ranging station). The bank protection work helped us all to understand more about erosion and how it can be managed.
We did a quick water sample at Bishops Meadow and found the water to be very clear with no smell. It was low in nitrates and nitrites, slightly high in phosphates and high carbonate hardness (not surprising given its' chalk origin). The pH was 6.8.
Unfortunately as access to the river to study a 10 stretch was not great, we did not do that survey at Bishops Meadow, instead went to Gostrey Meadows. Again, realising that the area is actually designed to manage flooding was very interesting, as was the fact that in Farnham the town is built around the river and celebrates the river by making it a publicly accessible feature for most of its length. (This was compared to Alton where the town is built over the river in many places, the river has been canalised a lot and is barely noticeable).
We also did an invertebrate survey at Gostrey Meadows and were thrilled to find a burrowing mayfly nymph along with swimming mayfly, shrimps and larvae.
We did not see much in the way of litter along the banks in Bishops Meadow and on the whole of our journey we collected about half a bin-bag full - mostly from in the river! Quite a lot of glass, food wrapping and plastic.
Good luck with the work you are doing at Bishop's Meadow, it really is saving Farnham from a lot of flooding and will do into the future.”
Images courtesy of Jonathan Durham ARPS
Finally, many thanks to Mark Whitmore and his team for coming in more than once and doing a very impressive litter-pick. And many thanks to all those anonymous people who do the same during the week by keeping the Meadows tidy. Compared to some other areas we are very lucky to have you but we know the summer is coming in fast with all it brings with it.
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