Suggested Maanagement of the Churchyard

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CONSERVATION AREA

(MARKED ON SKETCH MAP WITH DOTTED LINE)
THE CHURCHYARD HAS A LARGE, WELL-DEFINED CONSERVATION AREA AT THE SIDE OF THE CHURCH. A LARGE PART OF THIS HAS DETERIORATED AND BECOME RELATIVELY SPECIES-POOR SINCE LAST SURVEYED, AND SOME PARTS, PARTICULARLY THE SHADED AREAS NEAR THE BENCH AND BOX TOMB, ARE NOW DOMINATED BY VIGOROUS SPECIES INCLUDING BARREN BROME, COW PARSLEY, COCK'S-FOOT AND FALSE OAT GRASSES. I HAVE INDICATED THE APPROXIMATE EXTENT OF THIS POORER AREA ON THE SITE MAP WITH CROSS-HATCHING.

BY CONTRAST, THE AREA FROM THE LARGE YEW TOWARDS THE BACK OF THE YARD (SHOWN AS DOTTED ON THE MAP), CONTAINS A MUCH GREATER VARIETY OF FLOWERING SPECIES, INCLUDING THOSE THAT ARE PARTICULARLY ASSOCIATED WITH CHURCHYARDS IN NORFOLK, SUCH AS PIGNUT, OX-EYE DAISY, MEADOW SAXIFRAGE AND LADY'S BEDSTRAW. OTHER SPECIES SUCH AS GERMANDER SPEEDWELL, SORREL AND COMMON KNAPWEED ALSO OCCUR.

MANAGEMENT

SPECIES POOR AREA (HATCHED AREA ON SKETCH MAP)
IN VIEW OF THE DETERIORATION OF PART OF THE CONSERVATION AREA, IT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA TO REDUCE ITS EXTENT, SO THAT IT STARTS AT THE YEW TREE AND OCCUPIES THE BACK HALF OF THE CHURCHYARD (SEE MAP FOR SUGGESTED DEMARCATION - WHERE HATCHED AND DOTTED AREAS MEET). I THINK DOING THIS WILL HAVE THE FOLLOWING ADVANTAGES:

• MOST IMPORTANTLY, IT WILL PREVENT THE FURTHER SPREAD OF THE COARSE SPECIES WHICH HAVE NOW TAKEN OVER THE UNCUT AREAS CLOSER TO THE ROAD, AND (BY CUTTING) WILL HELP TO KNOCK THESE BACK AND REDUCE THEIR VIGOUR
• THE CHANGE OF MANAGEMENT WILL BE APPRECIATED BY THOSE WHO TEND GRAVES WITHIN THIS AREA AND OTHERS WHO FEEL THAT THE CONSERVATION AREAS LOOK UNKEMPT
• IT WILL IMPROVE THE VIEW FROM THE BENCH!
• IT WILL IMPROVE THE OVERALL APPEARANCE OF THE CHURCHYARD FROM THE ROAD AND PATH
• IT WILL PERHAPS ENCOURAGE A MORE POSITIVE VIEW OF THE MUCH BETTER QUALITY CONSERVATION AREA AT THE BACK (IE A POOR QUALITY CONSERVATION AREA CAN GIVE CONSERVATION AREAS A BAD PRESS!).

THIS AREA SHOULD THEREFORE BE KEPT CUT SHORT, AND MOWN AT THE SAME FREQUENCY AS OTHER SHORT AREAS AROUND THE CHURCHYARD. AFTER ITS INITIAL CUT, THE CUTTINGS SHOULD BE REMOVED, AS THEY WILL SMOTHER THE SWARD AND ENRICH THE SOIL AS THEY ROT DOWN.

RICHER AREA (DOTTED AREA ON MAP)
WHILE THIS AREA IS MUCH RICHER IT IS ALSO SHOWING A TENDENCY TO BECOME RANK IN PLACES, AND MIGHT BENEFIT FROM MORE FREQUENT CUTTING, IF THIS IS POSSIBLE. AN EARLY SPRING CUT, SAY IN LATE MARCH/EARLY APRIL WITH THE CUTTER BLADES SET HIGH, WILL PARTICULARLY BENEFIT MEADOW SAXIFRAGE WHICH FLOWERS IN MAY AND FLOURISHES IN SHORTER GRASS, WHERE IT HAS LESS COMPETITION. AFTER THIS, MOWING CAN REMAIN MUCH AS IT IS, IE A LATE SUMMER CUT, WITH CUTTINGS REMOVED, AND IF POSSIBLE A FURTHER CUT IN THE AUTUMN, AGAIN WITH CUTTINGS TAKEN OFF IF THERE IS SUFFICIENT MANPOWER.

IDEALLY, OVER TIME, THE CUTTING FREQUENCY WILL BE INCREASED SLIGHTLY SO THAT A MONTHLY CUTTING REGIME IS IN PLACE, WTH ONE OR PERHAPS TWO CUTS LEFT OUT DURING THE MAIN FLOWERING PERIOD (IE CUTTING IN EARLY APRIL, THEN EARLY JULY AND MONTHLY AFTER THAT TILL OCTOBER, WITH CUTTING ALWAYS REMOVED AFTER THE JULY CUT. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO PREVENT A BUILD-UP OF NUTRIENTS AS THE CUTTINGS ROT DOWN, AND TO AVOID THE LITTER FROM THE CUTTINGS SMOTHERING THE LOWER GROWING SPECIES. USING A STRIMMER OR RECIPROCATING MOWER PRODUCES CUTTINGS THAT ARE EASIER TO RAKE UP). THIS MORE FREQUENT CUTTING HAS BEEN FOUND TO KEEP COARSE GRASSES AND HERBS FROM TAKING OVER, BUT STILL ALLOWS THE MEADOWS PLANTS TO FLOWER. HOWEVER, IT IS NEVER A GOOD IDEA TO CHANGE THE CUTTING REGIME TOO SUDDENLY, SO IF THE NORM UNTIL NOW HAS BEEN TO CUT IN LATE SUMMER, WITH PERIODICALLY AN AUTUMN CUT, THEN INTRODUCING A SPRING CUT FOR THE TIME BEING IS PROBABLY SUFFICIENT.

MOWN PATHS
I WOULD ALSO RECOMMEND CUTTING WIDER PATHS THROUGH THE CONSERVATION AREA. THIS WILL HAVE THE DUAL ADVANTAGE OF ENCOURAGING MORE PEOPLE TO WANDER THROUGH AND ENJOY THIS AREA, AS WELL AS HELPING TO GIVE IT A WELL-KEPT APPEARANCE. THIS IS OFTEN HELPFUL IN SITUATIONS WHERE THERE ARE MIXED VIEWS ABOUT THE APPROPRIATENESS OF UNCUT AREAS IN CHURCHYARDS - THE DESIRED IMPRESSION IS OF A MANAGED AREA OF LONG GRASS, RATHER THAN AN AREA WHICH IS NEGLECTED, AND CLEAN-MOWN EDGES ARE INVALUABLE IN ACHIEVING THIS EFFECT.

IF POSSIBLE, IT WOULD BE VALUABLE TO INCLUDE A ZONE OF GRASS WHICH IS CUT MUCH LATER IN THE YEAR, IN OCTOBER, TO BENEFIT FROGS, SLOW-WORMS AND LIZARDS. THIS NEED ONLY BE 1-2 METRES WIDE, AND COULD BE AT THE VERY EDGES OF THE CHURCHYARD, WHEREVER CONVENIENT.

OTHER AREAS
DEPENDING ON ITS ULTIMATE USE, IT MIGHT BE POSSIBLE TO SEED THE DISTURBED AREA ADJACENT TO THE BOUNDARY WHERE THE LEYLANDII HEDGE HAS RECENTLY BEEN REMOVED. THIS HAS MANY BARE SOIL PATCHES AND MIGHT BE A GOOD AREA IN WHICH TO SOW HAND-COLLECTED SEED FROM THE CONSERVATION AREA. ALTERNATIVELY, THE LONG GRASS FROM THIS AREA, WHEN CUT AND TAKEN OFF IN LATE SUMMER, CAN BE STREWN HERE FOR A FEW WEEKS UNTIL THE SEED FALLS. THERE APPEAR TO BE PLENTY OF COWSLIPS IN THIS AREA WHICH SHOULD SET SEED WELL. SEED CAN ALSO BE TAKEN FROM THE COWSLIPS AND DISTRIBUTED ELSEWHERE IN THE CONSERVATION AREA.

ST SAVIOUR'S

THE MANAGEMENT OF THIS AREA IS DIFFICULT. THE DENSE NETTLE GROWTH HAS ONE ADVANTAGE IN THAT IT PRESUMABLY KEEPS PEOPLE FROM CLIMBING AND SITTING ON THE RUINS, BUT THE NETTLES ALSO OBSCURE THE SITE FOR LENGTHY PERIODS DURING THE SUMMER MONTHS. SHORT OF APPLYING HERBICIDE, THE ONLY WAY TO TRY TO CONTROL NETTLES IS TO CUT THEM REPEATEDLY DURING THE MAIN GROWING PERIOD, AND REMOVE THE CUTTINGS. OVER SEVERAL YEARS, THIS SHOULD START TO DECREASE THEIR VIGOUR, BUT TO SOME EXTENT THIS DEPENDS ON THE SOURCE OF THE NUTRIENTS WHICH HAVE ENCOURAGED THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE (THERE WAS NO OBVIOUS SOURCE OF NUTRIENTS - THE SITE IS ON A SLOPE, ON RELATIVELY FREE DRAINING, POOR SOIL AND THERE WERE NO OBVIOUS EXTERNAL SOURCES). FURTHERMORE, MANAGEMENT BY REPEATED CUTTING/REMOVING IS EXTREMELY LABOUR INTENSIVE, AND IS PROBABLY NOT PRACTICAL.

THE ELDER SAPLINGS GROWING ON THE WALLS SHOULD HOWEVER BY KILLED USING A HERBICIDE BUT THE ROOTS SHOULD NOT BE PHYSICALLY REMOVED AS THIS WILL POTENTIALLY DAMAGE THE MORTAR AND STRUCTURE OF THE WALLS. IVY AND OTHER WOODY SPECIES GROWING ON THE WALLS HAVE BEEN TREATED AND KILLED IN PREVIOUS YEARS, AND THIS IS PROBABLY ROUTINELY DONE BY THOSE CURRENTLY MANAGING THE SITE.

IF YOU DO TAKE OVER THE MANAGEMENT OF ST SAVIOURS, IT MAY BE NECESSARY TO SEEK ADVICE ABOUT WHAT CAN AND CANNOT BE DONE FROM THE ARCHAEOLOGY DEPARTMENT OF THE COUNTY COUNCIL, PARTICULARLY IF, AS I IMAGINE IS THE CASE, THE BUILDING IS A SCHEDULED ANCIENT MONUMENT.

I THINK IT WOULD ALSO BE A GOOD IDEA TO CONSULT RELATIVES OF THOSE BURIED AT THE SITE (FOR EXAMPLE, THE ELLIS FAMILY) TO SEE WHETHER THEY HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS OR VIEWS ABOUT HOW THIS AREA SHOULD BE MANAGED (ESPECIALLY IN VIEW OF THE FACT THAT IT IS CURRENTLY MANAGED BY THE WARDEN OF WHEATFEN). PERHAPS A FRIENDS GROUP COULD BE FORMED, IF ONE DOES NOT ALREADY EXIST. IT WOULD POTENTIALLY MAKE A GOOD AREA FOR WILDFLOWERS, BUT CONSULTATION IS VERY IMPORTANT I THINK, GIVEN THE NATURE OF THE SITE.