Conservators of Therfield Heath
Got a cow helping me cut the grass. He’s a lawn mooer!
Sorry for the bad joke, however it does set the scene for the information we are looking to provide the users of Therfield Heath for the coming months. We have started our cut and collect regime for the site and some of you would have seen some of the large machinery on site carrying out some of this important work and we recommend keeping your dog on a lead and children away from the areas which are being cut.
This work needs to be carried out in order to keep the variety of wildflowers which makes these meadows special for wildlife and people. Cutting and removing the hay (which is used by local farmers for their livestock where possible) reduces the nutrient levels and prevents the wildflowers from being smothered by coarser grasses. The cutting times are staggered so some areas are cut earlier and some later in the summer. There are also areas which are grazed for conservation management and we are hoping to increase this in the future, as this is the best way to ensure the quality of the habitat remains as high as possible. Grazing is a historical way in which to manage any grassland habitat, the different animal species help create a mosaic of grass quality and lengths which benefits both the fauna and flora which can be found on the site, which we cannot match through cutting with machines unfortunately.
The Listing magazine allows us to connect with everyone in the area on a monthly basis. We encourage those readers to also use our website and Facebook as a great way to access instant messages. Please search “Therfield Heath & Greens” and this will take you to our web site and also our Facebook page. Please join us and keep up to date on what is happening and help us celebrate this unique site which is still free to access all year round.
Sorry for any inconvenience caused with our habitat maintenance and if you have any further enquires please email conservation@therfieldheath.org.uk.
Facebook: Therfield Heath & Greens
www.therfieldheath.org.uk
