LAND MANAGEMENT
Look after your Soils
Are you noticing that parts of your fields are waterlogged after heavy rain? Are your fields hard as rock in the summer? Keep re-seeding but those bare patches just won't cover? All of these things indicate a problem with your soil management. Ideally the soil life should be looking after your soil and in turn the soil will ensure your grass is fed; but grazed grass needs a rest now and then. Worms and soil microbes are the engineers creating that important humus layer just beneath the surface, but over-use leads to compaction and worms don't wear hard hats! There are a range of minor tests that you can do to find out how healthy your soils are. For help with repairing your field condition, soil management and practical advice contact me.
Healthy Hedges
At this time of year you may be starting to plan your hedgerow cutting. Healthy hedges play host to a wealth of wildlife, providing nesting places for breeding birds, summer flowers for many field butterflies and bees followed by autumn fruit and berries for birds, field mice, dormice and insects. Healthy hedges provide habitat corridors for bats as many moths are attracted to the shelter they provide. To encourage thick hedges, try to stagger your cutting so that there is always some uncut hedgerow to the field or perhaps only cut one side of the hedge. Light trimming encourages thicker hedges. Tall leggy hedges may be laid or coppiced to encourage new growth and to help the hedge to thicken up, whips can then be planted at the same time if necessary using a local native hedging species mix. For more information contact me.
Dealing with 'weeds'
There are a variety of plants that will, given the opportunity, establish themselves and can become a real problem to get rid of. Docks and thistles for example have several ways of multiplying and often need several years of treatment to get under control. Add to that a watercourse or protected landscape and you can be left wondering what can be done. Contact me for advise on remedial work.
