The Green Green Grass of Home
Luke Bristow Countryside and Ecology Officer, Essex County Council.
Email Luke.Bristow@essex.gov.uk
In 2008 'species-rich grassland' was added to the Essex Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP)
list of habitats requiring priority action. Having (been) volunteered to draft the associated
plan, I thought I would write a short piece summarising some of the positive action
taking place upon the county's key grassland sites. Although I have been involved to
varying degrees in most of the sites (ranging from very little! to a lot) the majority of the
hard graft has been undertaken by the site managers and their colleagues whose respective
organisations work in partnership to deliver the Essex, and ultimately, UK BAP.
Hitchcock's Meadow (part of the Danbury Common SSSI)
Botanically, this grassland is arguably the best in the county, with no less than 12 UK
and Essex red data list plants recorded here in the recent past, including green-winged
orchid Anacamptis morio, heath violet Viola canina, lesser Calamint Clinopodium
calamintha, and autumn lady's tresses Spiranthes spiralis.
Survey work carried out this year by Graham Smith, on behalf of Essex Wildlife Trust
(EWT), has revealed that whilst many of these species can still be found some of the
notable ephemeral plants, which favour open impoverished turf such as hoary Cinquefoil
Potentilla argentea and knotted clover Trifolium striatum, appear to have disappeared.
This is a difficult site to manage with the character of the grassland changing significantly
over short distances; with much of the higher ground resembling acid grassland, shifting to
more typical mesotrpohic pasture down-slope. In recent years, sheep grazing appears to
have helped maintain the lower areas to the detriment of the hill-top, where the stock tends
to congregate and deposit their dung thereby enriching the soil. In light of these findings,
EWT are looking to switch from sheep to cattle grazing. Cows tend not to dung in one
spot, and their trampling will hopefully create more bare ground for specialist plants.
Roding Valley Meadows SSSI
Covering around 66 hectares this series of meadows is the largest surviving area of
unimproved flood-plain grassland left in Essex, and has been identified by Natural
England as being of international importance due to its affinity to the European Annex 1
habitat 'Lowland hay meadows'.
Despite enrichment from flood-water, high levels of amenity use and past difficulties
securing appropriate management it still retains an interesting flora, including smooth
brome Bromus racemosus, pepper saxifrage Silaum silaus, Sneezewort achilea ptarmica,
brown sedge Carex disticha, devil's- bit scabious Succisa pratensis and marsh marigold
Caltha palustris.
A recent survey, undertaken in 2007/08 by EWT, reveals that, although much reduced
in number, many of the special plants remain, and with sensitive future management of
both the vegetation and water resource the meadows should recover their former diversity.
Mill Meadows SSSI
At 36 hectares, after Roding Valley, this site probably represents the largest surviving
area of 'meadow' left in the county. Like many of the grasslands mentioned in this
Essex Field Club Newsletter No. 57, September 2008 15