3
ON THE VERGE OF EXTINCTION
The roadside verges of the Essex countryside
comprise the largest reservoir of our grass-
land herb populations now that the majority
of our ancient herb-rich grasslands have
come under the plough or are being used for
intensive all-year-round grazing.
Tragically, however, changes in the manage-
ment of our verges are exterminating these
rich herb floras at an alarming rate. With
the advent of the flail mower the verges
are cut when the vegetation is at its height,
usually in June or July, and the resultant
mash of grass is left to rot in situ. The
mulching effect of the rotting lumps of grass
kills the plants beneath and in the long
term serves to build up the fertility of the
verge. As the fertility builds up, those
species requiring high nutrient levels such
as docks, thistles, nettles and the ubiquit-
ous Cow Parsley and Hogweed begin to dominate,
the flora becomes a monotonous one of just a
few common species and the productivity of
the verge increases enormously, necessitating
an increase in the rate of cutting to maintain
a low sward. Many annual species are cut
off before they can seed. Thus, the Yellow-
rattle, once a widespread verge plant around
the Easters, for example, is now virtually
extinct.
In addition, our verges are being altered
even more drastically by the dumping of
surplus spoil and decayed road metal. In
the days when our C class roads were country
lanes, they were made passable for motor
traffic by levelling - usually by hand by a
gang of labourers with picks and shovels -