Category: Nature
The Knepp Estate Success
NATURE NOTES
Whilst much of the news about wildlife is often negative and depressing, one interesting item that is bucking the trend is the Knepp Estate and anyone with a genuine interest in UK wildlife needs to be aware of it. This is a 3,500 acre estate near Horsham in West Sussex which was not 
making a profit and where from 2001 this intensively-farmed land was ‘rewilded’ by being grazed by Longhorn cattle, Exmoor ponies, Tamworth pigs and red, fallow and roe deer. These animals prevent the scrub land that emerges from becoming woodland, require little or no supplementary feeding, minimal veterinary costs and generally look after themselves throughout the year. There is a lot more to the process than we can do justice to in this short article but if you want to know more, either read the book Wilding by Isabella Tree or look at the website https://knepp.co.uk/ home. You can also visit the site and go on walks or safaris around the estate.
The results in terms of wildlife alone are dramatic. 90% of the UK nightingale population has been lost since 1970. In 1999 there were 9 nightingale territories in Knepp which had risen to 43 by 2013. Since the 1960s Turtle Doves have declined by 96% and the bird is predicted by the British Trust for Ornithology to be the likeliest to be extinct in the UK by 2020. There were 3 singing males at Knepp in 1999 which by 2017 had increased to 16. Our second biggest butterfly, the rare Purple Emperor, was not recorded at Knepp before 1999 yet is now well-established there with an increasing population. 13 of the UK’s 17 species of bat can be found on the estate including two of the rarest in Europe. All five of Britain’s owls have now been recorded there along with 600 species of invertebrates. Doing particularly well are those that feed on dung as this is uncontaminated by parasiticides which may be used in conventional farming. The rare Scarce Chaser dragonfly, which has been found at only 6 sites in the UK, has now turned up at Knepp with 18 individuals counted on a single day. Raptors include Buzzards, breeding Red Kites, Ravens (which had been absent for 100 years) and Peregrine Falcons are now also here.
Whilst there were many hurdles to overcome, interestingly some of the greatest opposition came from local residents who preferred to see fields that were all green with neatly-manicured hedgerows,
however devoid of wildlife they might have been. Comments like ‘It feels like a foreign land’ and ‘he has turned a fine working estate into a wasteland – someone needs to stop him’ are not uncommon. The most obvious point that the intensively-farmed estate was just running at a substantial loss was not acknowledged.
Those behind the project would not argue that profitable and productive farmland should follow this route but for land which is losing money it is an option worth considering. Recent announcements in Wales refer to the Summit to the Sea project which will involve up to 10,000 hectares of land in mid Wales being rewilded. Whatever the future holds we can be sure that we shall hear and see more of rewilding in the months and years to come.
Winter Preparation
On a gorgeous day we had a good turn-out to put the Elizabethan Orchard to bed for the winter, weeding the beds, strimming, pruning the fruit trees and digging the hole for the new pond – just under 6 inches to go and we should be able to get it in position. Medlars seem to grow very well in our climate and soil despite originating in Asia Minor and South East Europe and we get consistently good crops from our four trees. A local producer of preserves, Daisy Craze, has used some of our medlars this year to produce Medlar Jelly which you can buy at Griffiths the butcher in Dinas Powys. They are also sold at local food and craft events – for more information, check out the Facebook page – daisygrazecaketoppers
In another link with local enterprise, Barry-based Mark Jones has just published a new book for children, The Adventures of Dixon Vole: Woodland Detective. Mark has included a reference to the Wenvoe Wildlife Group in his Introduction. Copies of the book sell for £8.99 but Mark will deliver to Wenvoe without charge. For more information go to https://fizzypopcreative.co.uk/
Winter Preparations
RHS December tips
1. Check that your winter protection is still securely in place.
2. Make sure your greenhouse heaters are working properly.
3. Insulate outdoor taps and prevent ponds from freezing.
4. Prune open grown apple and pear trees, not those grown against a wall.
5. Still take hardwood cuttings.
6. Keep mice away from stored produce.
7. Reduce watering of house plants.
8. Prune acers birches and vines before Christmas to avoid bleeding at stems.
9. Harvest leeks, parsnips, winter cabbage, sprouts and any remaining root vegetables.
10.Deciduous trees and shrubs can still be planted and transplanted this month.
Grass will continue to grow at temperatures above 5 degrees so if conditions allow, you may need to cut using a higher setting. Sharpen up the edges of lawns and carry out repair work as turves are available most of the year. Keep lawns clear of leaves. All this will help to make life easier next year.
This time of year there will still be quite a bit of work to be done on some trees. Don’t touch ornamental cherries, plums and almonds as these are prone to silver leaf disease if pruned now. Other deciduous trees will be easier to shape now that most of the leaves have fallen. Bay and laurel can be cut back as much as you wish; it will always come back. Small and medium sized conifers need to be tied up during winter months to prevent damage by high winds and snow settling on them, otherwise they lose their shape and branches break.
Christmas trees – the choice of tree seems to increase every year. To prevent needle drop choose any of the newer types but remember to cut a couple of inches off the bottom of the stem so that the tree can take up water. Make sure you keep the tree away from radiators. To be honest my choice would be the Norway spruce; yes, it drops needles which stick in your socks and jam the vacuum up when it’s time to get it out of the house but it smells fantastic.
If you’re lucky enough to have a holly with berries, cover a couple of the branches with netting to use as decorations in the home.
Make sure you write your present list or Father Christmas will bring you socks or things to take up space on a shelf, which won’t be a lot of use in the garden. If you feel the need to tell the main man of your wish list for Christmas, I have been reliably informed that he is at our local garden centre from 25th November. There is no age limit, you just have to believe.
To all the people I’ve met who have shared their love of gardening with me, thank you. Have an enjoyable Christmas and a happy new year.
I would just like to thank the What’s on team for the effort they put in to make this magazine the success it is.
Take care – Happy gardening.
November tips from the RHS
November tips from the RHS
1. Clear up fallen leaves, especially from the lawn and pond.
2. Raise containers off the floor to prevent water-logging.
3. Plant up Tulip bulbs for Spring displays.
4. Prune Roses to prevent wind rock.
5. Plant out Winter bedding.
6. Cover Brassicas with netting, if pigeons are a problem.
7. Insulate outdoor containers to protect from frost.
8. Stop winter moth damage on fruit trees with grease bands.
9. Most people like a bonfire, so gather up any debris that can't be composted, especially anything that's diseased and burn it – if allowed.
10. Make sure the mower is cleaned before putting away.
People who know my wife will know of her love of all things Christmas. So this time of year garden centres are some of her favourite haunts. The earliest Christmas shop to open, which we visited this year was The Old Railway Line, Brecon which opened at the end of September. At the time of writing the one with the best choice is Caerphilly Garden centre, according to Mrs Christmas. Wenvoe's local Garden Centre Christmas shop has yet to open. I'm sure that some centres would not survive without the footfall that these displays bring.
Everyone loves to see birds in the garden and we tend to put extra out as the weather gets colder. It can be a double edged sword as more food usually means more waste, which attracts vermin. Probably the best way to avoid rats and mice, other than not feeding the birds, is to have the feeders hanging over a hard surface which can be cleared easily and often. The BTO (British Trust for Ornithology) have some good tips on ways to feed and look after our wild birds.
After the first frosts cut all the growth off Dahlias, dig up and store in a cool dry place untill the spring. In some parts of the country they will survive in the ground where the soil is sandy and has good drainage but not in Wenvoe, which has clay in most places.
There is still time to take root cuttings of Perennial Poppies and Phlox. Start by digging up the plant and cut some roots off near to base of the plant. Do not take more than half of the root system, then replace the plant back into the ground as soon as possible with the roots cut into 3'' lengths and plant the right way up in compost and cover with grit. Put in a cold frame, then be patient .
Weeds do not follow the seasons and seem to grow at all times of the year so if you can get into the garden to keep the borders and veg patches clear it will save a lot of time in the spring. If bind weed is still growing, now would be a good time to spray
November 18th will see the return of a certain Mr Gwyndaf Breese to the marquee at the Wenvoe Christmas Craft fair, along with myself. After you have met this man your life will be far richer for it. If you time it right, and Mr Noel Williams is with him, then believe me we will all learn something.
Happy gardening.
Future Meetings Schedule
In future the Group will meet on the second Monday of the month at the Community Centre at 9.30am. If it is felt there is a need for an additional meeting during the month it will be decided at the meeting.
Bringing a fork and secateurs with you can prove useful. The Group does have a few additional tools in their store room.
The Ivy Bee
Spotted in early October on some ivy growing near the Village Shop was this bee, the Ivy Bee – our first record in the parish although it has probably been around for a while. Amazingly this bee was new to Science in 1993 and first recorded in Britain in 2001 in Dorset since when it has spread out steadily. New species are always of interest although some, unlike this one, bring their own problems such as the Harlequin Ladybird.
Whatever Brexit may bring or not bring the news on the wildlife front overall is not good. England (we have no comparable figures for Wales but it is improbable that they are any better) has the largest membership of wildlife-protection organisations in Europe but has amongst the smallest amount of land protected as nature reserves. France has 2,750,000 hectares protected; England has 94,400. Even Estonia manages 258,000. America has its National Parks where wilderness is sacrosanct – in all of our National Parks large areas are intensively grazed by sheep or in England and Scotland, managed as grouse moors. In an earlier issue of What’s On we noted how far behind their own targets for tree planting Wales and England were.
For whatever reasons, wildlife is very low on the political agenda at the practical level. Look at the minutes of Council meetings or coverage in the Gem to see how often wildlife features. Twenty years ago the Cuckoo could be heard in Wenvoe every Spring. It is now extinct in the parish. This may all seem quite dispiriting but there are things that we can all do. For instance, planting wildflowers helps pollinators. If you cut a tree down, replace it with another – still better, plant more. Make sure your garden is hedgehog-friendly with spaces for them to travel around – an adult hedgehog may roam 2 kilometres each night. There are many other small practical things that can be done but also consider letting your elected representatives know your views on these topics so that conservation is prioritised and some funding allocated. To end on a more positive note a future issue of What’s On will cover what is emerging as a real success story – the Knepp Estate.
Fungi Competition
At the time of writing we had been inundated with photos of fungi for the competition and it has been great to see how many people are out there snapping toadstools and mushrooms which are popping up everywhere with the damper weather. Somewhat disappointing is that we have not received any entries in the craft or painting and drawing sections. Hopefully there will be a last-minute rush as we know there are plenty of artists and craftspeople out there. Look out for the December edition of What’s On to see the final results.
A good harvest from the orchards has been enjoyed by many and this means that next year we can celebrate an Apple Day where you will be able to come and sample the fruit as well as try pressing some fruit juices. More on that next year. Work continues at Goldsland where we hope to add some more fruit trees in the Farm Orchard. The benefits to wildlife are becoming more apparent and this year seems to have been particularly good for Hornets and small mammals.
If you would like to help out in any way, do contact the Wildlife Group.
Fungi Competition
With the Wildlife Group fungi competition ongoing until the end of October it is worth reflecting on what fungi are and why they are so important to us. Most people think of fungi as the familiar mushroom or toadstool sticking out of the ground and, so far, competition entries have followed this line. But just as an apple is a small part of the whole tree, a mushroom is simply the fruiting body of a whole organism stretching out for many metres under the ground or through a tree.
These filaments are called hyphae – they release enzymes and absorb food. They can link to tree roots and greatly increase the spread of nutrients that a tree can get access to which is why gardeners and horticulturalists add Mycorrhizal fungus to the roots when planting trees or shrubs as we have done with the fruit trees in the Wenvoe orchards. The fungi take sugars from the tree and in return give them moisture and nutrients.
There are many 'amazing facts' about fungi. They provide us with medicines (and not just Penicillin) and were being used in the shape of yeasts to make mead 9,000 years ago. Think how many types of food use yeast! Truffles, Marmite, Quorn and cheese all depend wholly or partly on fungi. A fungus has been found which breaks down plastics in weeks rather than years and they are used to make bioethanol from crop waste. They are even being used to extract cobalt and lithium from old batteries. Synthetic rubber, even Lego, are made using an acid from fungi. But they do have a darker side wreaking havoc across the world to trees and crops.-,Honey Fungus can often be found in our local woods where it kills trees and shrubs.
So there is a lot more to fungi than the occasional pretty red and white spotted mushroom growing under a Birch tree or the punnets in your local supermarket. They deserve respect and we hope that the competition will help all of us to be more aware of what they can do for us