Practical conservation projects throughout south east Essex Autumn 2013

THE

SOUTH EAST ESSEX
CONSERVATION VOLUNTEERS

Butts Hill Pond, Canewdon

Butts Hill Pond sits atop Butts Hill in Canewdon, at the edge of the village and overlooking the fields down to Upper Raypits farm and the River Crouch about a mile to the north.

There has been a pond on this site for several hundred years. It appears to be spring fed with an upwelling in the north central section so presumably it is sourced from an aquifer running under the hilltop as, given its position, it has little natural catchment area. It is quite shallow over most of its area, being no more than 45cm deep by late summer although considerably deeper in winter and with a thick muddy silty substrate that is a trap for the unwary. In some years it has dried out altogether in summer, leaving only a muddy puddle at the centre whereas in wet winters it overflows to the ditchline along the north eastern corner.

It supports a range of wildlife, including the protected Great-crested Newt, which was the basis of EWT action to preserve the pond when the rough grazing field in which it sat was the site of a housing development. Eventually it was handed over to EWT by the developers in 1988 and designated as a Nature Conservation Area. From September 1989 a committee of local residents undertook management to create the current habitat areas. Considerable work was required in the first few years to clear the pond, to establish the meadow area and to plant native trees and hedges. In line with the mandate to manage the pond ‘in the best interests of wildlife and the local community’ a jetty was built to allow better access to the pond itself, the footpath to the east was opened up and seats provided.

The first efforts in clearing the pond included removing items such as an old moped, a water tank, bits of chicken coops and a large number of saturated polystyrene insulation sheets blown into the pond from the building site by the October 1987 gales. These latter provided a good base for germinating seedlings and a number of young hawthorns were ‘rescued’ for subsequent planting in the hedgeline.

Following several key members of that group leaving the village from the late 90s it has been managed solely by the current warden, Jeff Delve, since 2003. This largely involves small scale maintenance of the hedge and meadow but larger tasks have required support from EWT staff and the SEECV who have cleared reedmace over several years.

The site consists of the pond, a small copse to the western boundary and a patch of land to the south and east, now delineated with a mature hedgeline, and which has been mostly managed as summer meadow. The pond itself is about 0.5ha and has been colonised by a small duckweed (Lemna sp.) which has proven difficult and time consuming to control since it must be removed mechanically and can recolonise remarkably quickly, doubling in a couple of days in sunny weather. This and the irregular drying out has prevented submerged weeds from developing and oxygenating the water, which has prevented fish from surviving in the pond. The shallow nature of the pond lends itself to ready invasion by great reed mace and sedges which rapidly encroach from the banks and require regular pulling to avoid complete domination and succession to a marsh.

The copse comprises 0.3ha of mixed Hawthorn, Elder, Elm and Blackthorn with several Oaks planted or introduced by the Jays now well established. The water’s edge has several large pussy willow that overlay a small side pool that only fills at higher water levels. The centre of the copse is dominated by rank vegetation in the summer with bramble, cow parsley and nettles.

The small meadow (0.1 ha) was levelled and sown with a Suffolk meadow mix after the building work had completed and managed as summer meadow ever since. It boasts a growing population of cowslip in spring and oxeye daisy, knapweed and meadow cranesbill later in the summer. Alongside the meadow a log pile has long been maintained that has been attractive to Common Lizard with counts of up to 30 in 2005 although numbers have not stayed at that level.

Our mature hedgeline is the result of planting in the early 90s and took many years to establish well. It is dominated by the Field Maple, with Hawthorn and Blackthorn plus some Dog Rose, Hazel, Hornbeam and Bird Cherry. The northern end was laid in 2004 and a further section cleared of large Field Maple last year in preparation of a further section being laid this winter.

So there we have it, a small reserve with a diverse range of habitats that can boast a good variety of wildlife and a good place for a quiet sit.

SEECV Autumn 2013 Programme

All tasks start at 10.00am at the designated meeting place. If you intend to arrive later, please arrange to meet on site. You are not required to stay all day, or even work all day! Don’t forget to bring some food and drink, to dress in old clothes and to wear stout footwear (preferably safety toe-caps). Please also bring work/gardening gloves. If you think you may have difficulties with directions, please phone Alan or Julian (see numbers below).

N.B. Children under 16 years MUST be accompanied by a responsible parent/guardian.

September 8th - Canewdon sites (Finches Nature Reserve / Lion Creek (EWT))

Meet in the Anchor PH car park, High Street, Canewdon.

Possible work includes path/pond maintenance and meadow cutting/raking.

September 22nd - St. Mary’s Nature Reserve, North Shoebury (Southend Borough Council)

Meet in the car park of St. Mary’s church, North Shoebury Road, North Shoebury.

General maintenance required at this site (path, litter clearance etc.) and meadow cutting/raking.

N.B. This may be a morning-only project.

October 6th - Butts Hill Pond, Canewdon (Essex Wildlife Trust)

Meet on site. Entrance to site is in Butts Paddock, Canewdon.

Project involves clearing reedmace from the pond edge. Please be prepared for working in mud and to bring wellingtons or waders, if you have them.

October 20th - Rayleigh Mount (National Trust)

Meet by the main entrance to the Mount in Bellingham Lane, near the Mill Hall.

Possible jobs include work in the orchard area, examining the recently installed pond weed enclosure and continuing with coppicing on the Mill bank.

November 3rd - Hadleigh Castle Country Park (Essex County Council)

Meet by the Rangers’ Office (near the Iron Age roundhouse) in the car park, at the far end of Chapel Lane, Hadleigh.

Task unconfirmed.

November 17th - Hadleigh Castle Country Park (Essex County Council)

Meet by the Rangers’ Office (near the Iron Age roundhouse) in the car park, at the far end of Chapel Lane, Hadleigh.

Task unconfirmed.

December 1st – St. Laurence Orchard, Eastwood (Trust Links / Southend Borough Council)

Meet on site. The Orchard is on the corner where St. Laurence Way meets Eastwoodbury Lane.

Hedgelaying and other tasks, if required. A peaceful site, St. Laurence is an example of a traditional orchard.

December 15th - Canewdon sites (Finches Nature Reserve / Lion Creek (EWT))

Meet in the Anchor PH car park, High Street, Canewdon.

Coppicing around the pond at Finches and other winter jobs, as necessary.

Hopefully we’ll be cooking spuds on the bonfire for lunch. Please feel welcome to bring along some festive food to share.

Happy Christmas! Projects continue in 2014.

For further details and joining information, please contact the South East Essex Conservation Volunteers:

SEECV, c/o Charnwood, Anchor Lane, Canewdon, Rochford, Essex, SS4 3PB

Tel: 01268 780585 (Alan) or 01702 258492 (Julian)

Email: Website: http://www.seecv.org.uk/