After a wet start to the year, March has seen a change to more settled weather patterns.
Farming
All of our spring crops of barley and oats have been planted in good conditions before the end of the month. The demand for malting barley has decreased 17% over the last 6 months with a reduction in consumer demand and tariffs affecting exports out of the UK, so this is the smallest area of barley we’ve cropped for a number of years.
Winter crops are starting to grow away rapidly as the day length extends and temperatures increase. Oilseed rape is now coming into full flower which provides a rich source of nectar and pollen, benefiting short-tongued, generalist insect species of bees, flies, and beetles.
Attention now turns to establishing areas of wild bird seeds and pollen & nectar mixtures for the coming summer, autumn and winter. These areas form part of our Countryside Stewardship agreement which is in the final year following a one year extension being granted for 2026.
Tree work on Ashampstead Common
The work to the trees on Ashampstead Common has been completed and now that the weather has improved and the ground dried up, we can continue the tidying up work. We have planted approximately 250 trees and flowering shrubs which will act as cover for birds. These plants have been planted further back than the original trees to encourage wildlife to stay away from the road and we should see a greater variety of flora and fauna appear now that the tree canopy has been opened up and light can reach the floor.
We have been asked by a lot of people why we are stacking the coppice into the ‘dens’, ‘wigwams’ or ‘bonfires’ that can been seen from the road. These structures are in fact to protect the coppice stools. When a tree is coppiced the base of the trunk left behind will sprout new shoots and by stacking the coppice in a tent shape around the base it naturally protects the young shoots from being eaten by deer and rabbits whilst allowing them space to grow. These timbers will be left and by the time they naturally fall away the shoots should be strong enough that the deer and rabbits won’t bother them.
