Mike's Meadow
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Mill Bank, Fladbury,
Grid reference SO994 455 Purchased 28th October 2013. Access: No public Access. |
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This small meadow was heavily grazed by horses for many years before being abandoned in early 2007. It was then left fallow until 2013 when VLHT started to manage the site as a hay meadow. An initial close cut was carried out early in 2014 to reduce the tussock grasses and so improve the site for hay-making which was taken in July 2014 for the first time in many decades.
Hay Meadow flowers at Mike's Meadow
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The meadow has a typical grass community of unmanaged pastures; Cock’s-foot, False Oat Grass and Yorkshire Fog being dominant, with Meadow Foxtail frequent and there is occasional Meadow Barley. Within the meadow are several herbs including frequent Black Knapweed and Lady’s Bedstraw, occasional Meadowsweet, Self-heal, Bird’s-foot-trefoil, Lesser Stitchwort and Sorrel, while Oxeye Daisy, Meadow Buttercup and Cut-leaved Cranesbill are rare. Pepper Saxifrage and Great Burnet are present but rare and there is a patch of Meadow Rue near the north-east corner of the meadow.
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Tall ruderals were abundant around the edges of the meadow and in patches within the site; Cow Parsley and Hogweed are the dominant species with Creeping Thistle, Stinging Nettle and Burdock species occasional, Spear Thistle is present. Goose Grass or Cleavers is frequent within these stands. The hay cutting and aftermath grazing management is slowly reducing these invasive plants. Teasel and Hedge Mustard grow near the gate and there are three hawthorn bushes within the meadow.
The site is enclosed by hedges on three sides with a defunct hedge on the north-west boundary. These hedges consist of Hawthorn and Blackthorn with occasional Elder, Bramble, Dog Rose and Buckthorn. Large mature Ash trees stand in the hedgerows and Crack Willows are present adjacent to the Oxton Ditch which flows along the south-east boundary to the river. Invertebrates associated with the grassland include early colonising species such as the Common Meadow Bug Leptopterna dolabrata and Meadow Grasshopper. Speckled, Dark and Roesel’s Bush-crickets have all been found here. Several species of Bumblebee frequent the site and include the cuckoo bumblebee Bombus vestalis. Near the water course are insects typical of wetlands including the striped hoverfly Helophilus pendulus. The locally rare Box Bug has been found on Buckthorn in the hedgerow. Butterflies include Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Orange-tip, Marbled White and Essex Skipper in the grassland while Comma, Red Admiral, Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell breed in the patches of nettles. Birds include Whitethroat nesting within the Cow Parsley, Chiffchaff, Garden Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat, Goldfinch and Greenfinch in the hedgerows and scrub, while Stock Dove and Green Woodpecker nest in the old trees. Roe Deer and Foxes have been seen in the meadow.
The site is enclosed by hedges on three sides with a defunct hedge on the north-west boundary. These hedges consist of Hawthorn and Blackthorn with occasional Elder, Bramble, Dog Rose and Buckthorn. Large mature Ash trees stand in the hedgerows and Crack Willows are present adjacent to the Oxton Ditch which flows along the south-east boundary to the river. Invertebrates associated with the grassland include early colonising species such as the Common Meadow Bug Leptopterna dolabrata and Meadow Grasshopper. Speckled, Dark and Roesel’s Bush-crickets have all been found here. Several species of Bumblebee frequent the site and include the cuckoo bumblebee Bombus vestalis. Near the water course are insects typical of wetlands including the striped hoverfly Helophilus pendulus. The locally rare Box Bug has been found on Buckthorn in the hedgerow. Butterflies include Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Orange-tip, Marbled White and Essex Skipper in the grassland while Comma, Red Admiral, Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell breed in the patches of nettles. Birds include Whitethroat nesting within the Cow Parsley, Chiffchaff, Garden Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat, Goldfinch and Greenfinch in the hedgerows and scrub, while Stock Dove and Green Woodpecker nest in the old trees. Roe Deer and Foxes have been seen in the meadow.
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