Hedgerow Heaven

Habitats Created Thanks to D’Oyly Carte Trust

Wildlife from birds to bats will have new hedgerows to call home after more than 1,600 hedge plants were planted on our nature reserve.

The new hedgerows filled with shrubs and trees perfect for a wide variety of Carymoor creatures were funded by a grant from the D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust.

Carymoor’s dedicated team of volunteers and students from Farleigh College in Frome helped our conservation team get the hedge plants in the ground last week.

Neil Gemmell, Community Ranger at Carymoor, said: “We want to improve our hedgerows both for wildlife value and because we want our hedges to be a really good exemplar for future hedge laying courses. When the original field system was planted back in the late 90s the blackthorn in particular didn’t do very well so we have now gapped up these spaces to try and improve the hedges.”

With a reduction in the amount of woodlands in the UK, hedgerows have taken on more importance, providing a vital habitat for a range of priority species. They are breeding sites for birds, small mammals and invertebrates and provide an important food source.

Neil added: “Hedgerows are of particular importance at the Carymoor site as it is a relatively newly formed nature reserve. Hedges provide essential wildlife corridors that link our site to the surrounding area. It is important that wildlife can come and go with ease.”

Elsewhere on our nature reserve, students from Newbury Manor School in Mells have been busy clearing out the nature pond next to our Education Centre. The pond needs a good clean up every winter to remove weeds and rushes that overcrowd the water and shade out other plants.

Neil added: “Thank you to all the volunteers and students that have been involved in both of these projects. Without their help we couldn’t keep providing important habitats for wildlife on our nature reserve.”