Plans for Twyford Farm in Sussex - Summer 2014

THE LARK

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST

NEWSLETTER

SUMMER 2014 | ISSUE No. 51

Plans for Twyford Farm in Sussex Plus: The Tree Bumblebee and CRT Open Days

Lark Summer 2014.indd 2

25/06/2014 13:05:12

The Country Store Whatever your size, there's something for you at The Country Store

Animal feeds, bedding and accessories, shooting requirements, country clothing

The National Hedge Laying Society “Committed to conserving hedgerows through traditional skills” PATRON: His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales

Saturday 25th October 2014 9am-5pm

36th NATIONAL HEDGE LAYING CHAMPIONSHIPS AND

COUNTRY SHOW To be held at Moor Barn, Brandon Road Hough on the Hill, Grantham, Lincolnshire, NG32 2FQ

for big, medium and small!

By kind permission of J H Lord and Sons

~ Over 100 competitors ~ 8 regional hedge laying styles ~ ~ tractor & trailer tours with commentary ~ ~ heavy horse logging demonstration ~ children’s activities ~ ~ vintage & modern farming equipement ~ ~ local micro-brewery real ale ~ food stalls and much more ~ For more information contact the NHLS Secretary on 01507 481263

£5

Per car inc. free prize draw entry

www.thecountrystore.co.uk Unit 12a, Sawston Trade Park, Pampisford, Cambridge CB22 3EE. 01223 837977

www.hedgelaying.org.uk Registered charity number: 288850

Festival of Farming, Food & Wildlife 28th Sept, 11am - 4pm, FREE entry Come with the family and enjoy a harvest themed celebration of farming, food and wildlife including: • • • • • • • • • •

cooking demonstrations and talks various local food and craft stalls crumble making competition (open to all) children’s activities tractor and trailer rides guided farm walks and harvest fruit picking sheep dog demos and sheep shearing Suffolk Punch horse demos refreshments tent Church service at 4.30pm with guest speaker

Bird’s Farm, Haslingfield Rd, Barton, Cambridge, CB23 7AG. Tel: (01223) 262999 www.countrysiderestorationtrust.com

Lark Summer 2014.indd 2

25/06/2014 13:05:14

Contents

Features The Lark is published three times a year by the Countryside Restoration Trust. The Countryside Restoration Trust is the UK’s leading charity promoting wildlife-friendly farming and campaigning for a living, working countryside.

We believe that wildlife is integral to good farming.

That philosophy is put into practice on over 1,500 acres of working farms, small-holdings and woodland across the country – where, alongside our tenants, we are demonstrating how farming and other sustainable land uses can co-exist with and benefit from a countryside rich in wildlife.

Our mission is to protect the farmed countryside, its wildlife, and the people with the knowledge and skills to look after it – and to communicate that together these represent a strategic resource vital for our future food security.

Patron: David Shepherd CBE Wildlife Patron: David Bellamy Environment Patron: Jonathan Porritt Patron for Dorset: Brian Jackman Red Squirrel Patron: Dr.Craig Shuttleworth Trustees: Robin Page - Chairman, Andrew West - Vice Chairman, Ken Gifford - Treasurer, Chris Knights, Zac Goldsmith, Robin Maynard, Tilly Smith, Annabelle Evans, Nicholas Watts MBE. Editor of The Lark: Laure Tordjmann Photographs and drawings courtesy of Martin Carter, Anita Page, Brian Lavers, Jackie Cooper, Caroline Aldersey, Julian Eales, Annika Rees, Emily Stephens, Steven Falk, Laure Tordjmann.

The Countryside Restoration Trust, Bird’s Farm, Haslingfield Rd, Barton, Cambridgeshire CB23 7AG Tel: 01223 262999 E-mail: info@countrysiderestorationtrust.com www.countrysiderestorationtrust.com

Did you Blink?

The Tree Bumblebee Tears at Midnight Twyford Farm CRT Open Days New Venture at Pierrepont

5 6 7 8 13 14

Regulars

Chairman’s Thoughts 4 Director’s Report 12 Fundraising News 15 Education 16 Diary Dates 17 Volunteer Page 17 Farm Diaries 18 Merchandise 20

Joining the Trust

Please help us continue our work by becoming a Friend of the Trust If you are already a Friend, subscription renewals will be sent to you automatically.

So please pass this on to anyone you think would like to join.

Title:__________ Surname: _______________________________________________________ Forename(s):___________________________________________________________________ Address:_______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ Postcode:______________________________________________________________________ Telephone:_____________________________________________________________________ E-mail:________________________________________________________________________ If you add your email address then you will be sent our monthly e-newsletters

Friend category (see box below)___________________________________________________ Subscription Rates: Individual - £20 Joint - £30 Family - £35 Concessionary (over 70) Life Member - £250

Life - £500

MAKING A DONATION Whatever you can afford will help us continue to build on the work of the CRT. I enclose a donation of £__________ I attach a cheque payable to: The Countryside Restoration Trust for the total amount of £_________

You can also pay over the phone by credit card (01223 262999) or via the website www.countrysiderestorationtrust.com

Registered charity no: 1142122 A company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales No. 7320026.

Registered office: as above.

Gift Aid Declaration

Paper sourced from FSC compliant, responsibly managed,

I understand that I must pay an amount of Income Tax/and or Capital Gains Tax for each tax year that is at least equal to the amount of tax that all the charities that I donate to will reclaim on my donations for that year. I am aware that other taxes such as VAT and Council Tax do not qualify.

Please treat all donations that I have made in the past 4 years and all future donations that I make from the date of this declaration as Gift Aid donations.

Signature:_______________________________________________________ Date:_________________ Please return to: The Countryside Restoration Trust, Haslingfield Rd, Barton, Cambridge CB23 7AG

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER Lark Summer 2014.indd 3

3

25/06/2014 13:05:15

News

The Chairman’s Thoughts Another busy year, where time seems to fly by and the amount of work that needs to be done seems to be ever increasing! There is also a lot to report - some good and some sadly not so good.

This issue of The Lark is late, and it’s my fault. There is so much to do and the older I get the busier I seem to become. In fact the whole of the CRT’s staff and volunteers all get busier – there is so much to do and the CRT’s message becomes more important, it seems, with every passing day.

First of all some good news. The barn owls of Lark Rise Farm have excelled again, for the thirteenth year running. As I write we have three nests – with – wait for it – seventeen chicks; simply astonishing. Two contain six chicks each and the other one contains five. It shows that the farm is producing abundant food in the form of mice and voles at the moment. In my view the barn owl is one of the most important “indicator” species on farmland as it needs a wide range of habitats to ensure successful feeding and breeding.

All three nests had good caches of food stored up for the next feed and one contained the tasty body of a water vole. Although it was unfortunate for “Ratty”, it confirmed the return of the water vole to the Bourn Brook after the prodigious efforts of Dr Vince Lea and his helpers to clear the local water-ways of the predatory, alien mink. Without their efforts the water vole would now almost be extinct in our neck of the woods. Instead it is making a dramatic comeback – or so it seems.

Now more good news. Last September the CRT co-operated with the British Wildlife Centre, The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) and Tresco Island, to introduce red squirrels to Tresco in the Isles of Scilly. There is inevitably a strong element of risk in trying to help wildlife; will they respond? Will disaster follow?

Is the plan sensible? There is always so much that can go wrong.

I am pleased to say that so far so good. The Scillies had one of their wildest winters for years, with huge storms. But not only have the squirrels survived, they appear to have bred and seem to be doing well.

David Mills of the British Wildlife Centre in Surrey, who supplied the squirrels; the RNAS who flew them to Tresco, and Robert Dorrien Smith, Mike Nelhams and David Thompson on Tresco all deserve our thanks. Remember, the regular helicopter may have stopped flying to the Scillies, but the boat still sails six times a week and the air service (fix winged “Islanders” and “Twin Otters” from a number of airports) is good. This year I flew with Lulu and my sister Rachael from Exeter. It was worth it – the squirrels were wonderful – so were the cuckoos, particularly on the island of St Agnes.

Sad news from Mayfields in Norfolk from our own captive breeding programme – Sarah found our female and her three kittens dead, with no warning. It was tragic, and post mortems

4

are being conducted to help us find out the reason. Sarah was devastated and she has our sympathy for this tremendous and sad shock.

At Lark Rise farm the crops and the wildlife are looking very good. At Turnastone, in Herefordshire, our new tenants Madeleine and Gareth Boaz are experiencing their first summer – and at Twyford Farm in Sussex, our new tenants Robert Felton and Elizabeth Wallis, will soon be moving in, and we wish them well. In both properties we will be needing help to monitor the wildlife and with an assortment of jobs, and so volunteers are urgently needed. If you are interested please let the office know.

Over the years I have made many comments about BBC Television’s “Countryfile” programme. Well in April we were on it. Did you see us or did you blink? It was disgraceful and I write about it elsewhere in The Lark, and have sent a report to the BBC Trust’s “Impartiality Review of Rural Affairs Coverage”.

I will not be holding my breath however. Don’t forget, if you did blink – we still have copies of the CRT’s own DVD available at £11 inc postage, available from the office. It has sold well and we have had many enthusiastic comments about it. Needless to say – it is far better than Countryfile.

The Trust’s exhibition trailer will be very busy this summer, trying to spread the message. We will be at the CLA Game Fair (18 - 20 July), Frampton Country Fair (14 Sept) and the Gransden Show (27 Sept). If you intend to visit any of the events please call in for a chat and again volunteers to help man the stand will be very welcome. While we are at the Game Fair we hope to launch our overdue “Blueprint for Farmland Wildlife Survival”. It will be unpopular in some circles, as it is based on common sense – Britain’s fastest declining commodity.

The transcript of our Twentieth Birthday event at the Royal Geographical Society is proving slightly more difficult for technical reasons. We are hoping something can be done by the next edition of The Lark, but we will have to wait and see.

In the mean time I hope you have a good summer – our swallows this year are absolutely wonderful.

Robin Page

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER

Lark Summer 2014.indd 4

25/06/2014 13:05:16

Photographs © Julian Eales

News

Did you blink?

Did you blink or did you see us on Countryfile? Well it finally happened. After all these years of totally ignoring the achievements of the CRT on BBC One’s “Flagship” countryside programme, the CRT received an invitation to appear on Countryfile. The end product was a disgrace; I was on for all of one minute and thirty seconds and as a result I have sent a report to “ The BBC Trust Impartiality Review of Rural Affairs Coverage” and I am also endeavouring to get a meeting with the Director General of the BBC, although some people have said: “Robin do nothing, or you’ll never get on Countryfile again”. After much discussion, I decided to take the matter further. Why should people with power and control get away with it?

Countryfile approached us out of the blue and wanted to find out four things for its programme: “Why farmland birds have declined?”

“Are they still in decline or are the agri-environment measures working?”

“What is being done to stop the decline?”

“What methods does the CRT favour?”

We thought that these questions would result in the programme showing the wonderful mosaic of crops on Lark Rise Farm that helps us to produce an amazing variety of birds, animals, insects and wildflowers, while producing high quality food. We could show how at Lark Rise wildlife is on the increase, while on the average British farm it is struggling. I even flagged up the forthcoming “Countryfile” programme in my Daily Telegraph column. I needn’t have bothered.

When the camera crew arrived – and they were all very pleasant – it immediately became clear that all they were interested in was our view of “predation”; in other words we were going to be depicted as a single issue charity, which as you all know is utter nonsense.

I tried to put over the CRT’s view – this is what happened.

The film-crew was shown the mosaic of different crops the CRT and its exceptional tenant Tim Scott use to give wildlife a variety of options for feeding, breeding and shelter. This was not included – evidently not suitable for the programme.

When it became clear that “predation” was their only interest I pointed out some startling figures based on facts produced by Professor Ian Newton in his outstanding book “The Sparrowhawk”. Sparrowhawks in Britain eat around 2,166 tons of wild bird meat a year. This is the equivalent of 88 million sparrows. This was omitted – evidently not suited for a

programme about bird decline.

In 1976 presenter Tom Heap lived just three miles from Lark Rise Farm as the crow flies. I told him that if he had walked over to Lark Rise Farm then, in the breeding season, he would have seen many lapwing adults with their chicks. Now, although the methods of husbandry in the fields are virtually unchanged there are no breeding lapwings because of the astonishing increase in predators, particularly foxes, badgers, crows and magpies. This was omitted – evidently considered unsuitable for a programme about farmland bird decline.

There was much more – but time and space are valuable – so most of the rest has gone to the BBC Review – although I have to say that an internal BBC Review does not fill me with a great deal of hope.

And now a question. If I was asked about predation, why wasn’t the RSPB representative who appeared in the same programme asked about the RSPB’s take on predation. That should have included the 273 foxes shot on 26 of its reserves last year. The Society also has interesting figures to show the high level of badger predation of skylark nests. This was also not mentioned.

Sadly it seemed to be a programme at almost Blue Peter level with an agenda that isolated the CRT – it was a disgrace. The reaction from some of the many viewers who saw the programme was interesting.

“It was an insult to the CRT....There was no mention of what it (the CRT) actually does. It was a disgrace”. - A CRT supporter.

“Robin I read your piece in the Telegraph and turned on in great anticipation only to see no questions about what you do, but a short cut of you criticising predators, suited their agenda perfectly I would say.” – A BBC employee.

“Robin, I saw it and thought what a waste of time, though what you said was brilliant, but they just didn’t show what was being achieved” – An MP. “Well done on Countryfile tonight. About time someone told the real truth about wildlife unbalance” – East Anglian farmer not known to the CRT. “Robin – you were stitched up. Don’t criticise them or you’ll be black-listed for another twenty years” – CRT supporter and farmer.

So there you have it – warts and all. We are inviting Countryfile back again to see if they can do better; we wait and see.

Robin Page THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER

Lark Summer 2014.indd 5

5

25/06/2014 13:05:16

Wildlife

The Tree Bumblebee In 2001, a new species of Bumblebee was recorded in the UK; Bombus hypnorum or the Tree Bumblebee. Since that first Wiltshire record, it has spread rapidly and increased in numbers quite spectacularly, such that in the southern half of Britain it is now one of the more common species in gardens and the general countryside. In Europe, it is found across a very wide area, including Scandinavian regions north of Britain, so it is unlikely that its arrival is attributable to climate change, but rather it is perhaps a late colonist which failed to get here when the continental land bridge was still present. Perhaps this species is less able to cross the channel than other species, and arrived as an importation among plants or such like. However it got here, it found a countryside ideal for it and has now spread as far as southern Scotland.

Fortunately for those interested in charting its progress, this is a very distinctive bee species which is unlikely to be confused with any other resident species. It is the only species which is divided into 3 equal sized blocks of colour and the only species to combine the colours ginger (thorax), black (middle) and white (tail). This colour pattern is shown by all three caste members – queens, males and workers, and there are no lookalike ‘Cuckoo Bees’ such as are found to parasitise some species of bumblebee. The other unusual feature of this species is its tendency to nest high up in holes; it would naturally select holes in trees, but it takes very readily to small hole nest boxes and crevices in buildings etc.

Our other species tend to nest close to or under the ground, in old mouse nests or heaps of vegetation and are rarely found, but the tree bee is quite conspicuous in its nesting habits. Perhaps because of this exposed nest site choice, it also seems to be more aggressive than other species, and is often encountered by humans, leading to a higher risk of bee stings than with our ‘traditional’ bees!

We’ve been seeing hypnorum at Lark Rise for 3-4 years now, but for the first time a nest has appeared in a blue tit box right outside Robin’s office! So far, just some annoyed buzzing from the box and disappointment for the blue tits has resulted from this occupation and we are very pleased to have this addition to our biodiversity. There is a chance that this new bee species

6

will cause problems for small hole-nesting birds like blue tits but time will tell. It’s very interesting that this bee can clearly find enough food out there for a rapid expansion at a time when many other species are struggling and even going extinct. This suggests that hypnorum has different requirements to other species; the dwindling species tend to require very large areas of natural flower-rich habitat to complete their lifecycle, but hypnorum can thrive in gardens. It also emerges very early in the year unlike the declining species, so can take advantage of the increasingly early seasons; frequently, hypnorum produces two generations in a year, unlike most other bumblebees in Britain, so numbers of queens going into hibernation for the winter are generally very high.

This year, we started our first serious attempt at monitoring bumblebees at Lark Rise, with a fixed transect route which will be walked every month of the flight period.

Data from this will feed into a national survey organised by the Bumblebee Conservation Trust so it will help us understand our own bees as well as help point to changes occurring across the country.

We’ve already recorded 7 species on the transect route, including hypnorum, after just a couple of trial Tree bumblebee photo © Steven Falk visits in May lead by bee expert Trevor Grange. Apart from the nice easy hypnorum many bee species are tricky to identify; there are several similar-looking species and considerable variation within a species (with males and workers looking different to queens, and cuckoo species looking like their hosts, for example). Add to that the fact that the bees don’t sit still like butterflies, and can quickly buzz off before you get a proper look at them, and you have quite a challenge! But they are such an important component of our countryside that it is good to put the effort in and find out which parts of our farm are of prime importance to the bees, and why. In May, the big areas of hay meadows were relatively poor for bees, with very few plants in flower and high exposure to the wind; hedgerows with white deadnettle in the herb layer, and the stream banks with comfrey, were far more important. As the clovers and knapweeds start to flower in the meadows, and the numbers of worker bees increase, we may well see a rise in the importance of the meadows. - Vince Lea

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER

Lark Summer 2014.indd 6

25/06/2014 13:05:17

Photographs © Anita Page

Wildlife

Tears at Midnight

Every year, accompanied by my wife Lulu, we travel many miles spreading the message of the CRT. Here is my report of a recent trip to Kent, made relevant by the CRT’s close connections with Africa – Sir Laurens van der Post and Elspeth Huxley were founding Trustees, writer and African traveller Brian Jackman is our Dorset Patron, and of course David Shepherd is our overall Patron.

I will remember the full moon of June 13th 2014, Friday 13th, for a long time – and the two events do not clash again until August 2049, when my interest in Planet Earth will be over. I had been speaking at a packed Tenterden Town Hall in Kent, trying to spread the missionary message of the Countryside Restoration Trust, and Lulu had been helping me sell books and gain new members. We arrived home just before midnight when foolishly I checked my emails. An image appeared on the screen; what an image – an elephant with half its head hacked off and its body rotting in the bush; I had to fight back tears. I called Lulu – she wept. The elephant was Satao, Kenya’s largest “Tusker”, an elephant that we had made a special journey to see in February this year. Then, there were only 20 giant Tuskers left on the whole continent of Africa with just twelve surviving in Kenya – now with Satao’s death only eleven remain.

After numerous incredible trips to Africa our visit to search for this remarkable tusker provided us with an astonishing and moving encounter. I first saw Satao from the air, in a small plane piloted by Richard Moller of the Tsavo Trust. We then saw the amazing bull elephant close up in the bush. He was an old, wise elephant with two enormous tusks, each one weighing up to 120 pounds. As he walked slowly forwards the tusks made furrows in the soil. Insects flew to avoid his giant strides and European swallows and Carmine bee-eaters hunted around him. It was a

deep and emotional experience connecting us to a time when the world was young – something that will live with us for the rest of our lives.

Our Kenyan guide, Anthony Cheffings, who spoke at the CRT’s 20th birthday celebration at the RGS last year, had never seen such an elephant before. His words were simple: “What a privilege”.

I had hoped to share the privilege with others by leading a group to Kenya next February but now Satao is dead, killed by a poisoned arrow, his face shattered and his tusks gone for trinkets and carvings to be sold in China or Vietnam. Some will argue that the rural African is poor, that poaching is inevitable.

Yes, there are people in Kenya surviving at subsistence level, but there are also traditional people who still respect their culture and their wildlife.

It is the same in Britain too. I have a field of ten acres I could sell for development – and I know the ropes. It could give me millions of pounds, yet I will not sell. I want to continue seeing my cows grazing with the swallows now flying around them – the elephants in Africa can wait for their return in the autumn.

We live in a world in which greed, arrogance and ignorance seem to rule.

In Britain we have no cause for smugness or boasting about how we regard wildlife. As I speak thousands of acres of Green Belt are being plundered for development and the wishes of ordinary people are being ignored.

As I look out of my study window the farmyard swallows are flying with their first broods of young. In my mind I see them flying around Satao again. Once more I am fighting back tears.

Robin Page

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER Lark Summer 2014.indd 7

7

25/06/2014 13:05:25

PLANS FOR

TWYFORD

Twyford Farm is a wonderful addition to the Countryside Restoration Trust. Here we discuss the future plans for the farm.

8

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER

Lark Summer 2014.indd 8

25/06/2014 13:05:27

Photographs © Caroline Aldersey

Good news from Twyford Farm, the wonderful farm left to the CRT by the remarkable Alison Mountain, in Sussex, has its first tenants – Robert Felton and Elizabeth Wallis – Bob and Liz. It was a difficult choice as the range and quality of the people who were anxious to take on the exciting challenge of Twyford was quite extraordinary. Bob and Liz were chosen because they were both as excited at the opportunities Twyford offers as we are. They have considerable farming and wildlife experience and we look forward to a positive and rewarding time with them.

It will be a challenge of course, to run things in a way that Alison would have appreciated and there will be changes – but the overall main aim will be to keep Twyford as the beautiful and productive place that served Alison so well for many years.

Of course Twyford will want both wildlife monitors and “volunteers”, so if you are interested, please let the office know as soon as possible.

At the moment builders are due in the farmhouse to get it up to scratch. Alison was a very hardy and traditional lady but we think even she would have appreciated a bit more warmth in winter.

Please note that Bob and Liz are keen to do bed and breakfast at Twyford, for both people and horses and all CRT members who fancy a few days of peace and relaxation on the edge of Ashdown forest are assured of a warm welcome. All the bedrooms are en-suite giving both comfort and privacy.

Information on the B&B can be obtained directly from Bob and Liz. We understand that our Chairman and our Director and their wives are planning to spend a few days at Twyford in the autumn – so book up as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Don’t forget too, that through, and around the farm there are numerous footpaths and bridleways – excellent during all the seasons of the year.

Also in the area, and well worth a visit, is the British Wildlife Centre that was so important in producing the squirrels for the red squirrel introduction on Tresco.

For the rest of the Twyford news it is best to hand over directly to Bob and Liz themselves (see page 10).

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER Lark Summer 2014.indd 9

9

25/06/2014 13:05:30

The new Twyford tenants

The New Twyford Tenants As the new tenants of Twyford Farm, we’re really excited about the wealth of possibilities this stunning property offers.

Located in the beautiful Ashdown Forest, and within the High Weald area of outstanding natural beauty, the farm includes a lovely farmhouse in a truly magical location.

We plan to set up and manage the property as Twyford Farmhouse B&B and Farm, providing an experience which other guest houses in the area cannot offer and demonstrating that farming can co-exist and benefit from a countryside rich in wildlife.

We’ve both got farming and the countryside in the blood, Liz having trained at Seale Hayne Agricultural College and Bob at Plumpton Agricultural College just down the road from Twyford! We have a lifetimes experience in many aspects of livestock farming and propose to continue this tradition at Twyford with our pedigree flock of Charollais

10

sheep breeding rams for sale plus a flock of commercial ewes to produce top quality Charollais cross fat lambs. We intend to lamb some of our ewes at Christmas to produce lambs for the Easter market and the remainder in the spring. We shall also run some beef cattle to utilise the variety of pastures.

In the course of improving the grassland we intend to sow some wildflower and nectar mixes making good use of field margins.

The house and its impressive location lends itself perfectly to use as a B&B guesthouse for visitors exploring the many attractions of the surrounding area. As well as this the beautifully preserved stabling block opens up an opportunity for guests to bring their own horses and ride the many forest trails.

With previous experience of catering for shoots and functions and a love of entertaining, we relish the challenge of developing the current accommodation to a very high

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER

Lark Summer 2014.indd 10

25/06/2014 13:05:33

standard and create a ‘home from home’ environment which is comfortable and welcoming.

And the farm’s potential doesn’t end there! There are more than 80 acres of woodland including some beautiful specimen trees which we intend to manage as mixed deciduous woodland; two picturesque fishing lakes and we will be exploring the possibility of educational visits for the public and schools.

We can’t wait to get started – we’re already developing a website to promote the farm and B&B which will go live soon. In the meantime, for more information, email us at bobfelton@farming.co.uk We look forward to meeting some of you at our open day on the 6th September where you will get the opportunity to see this beautiful property for yourself.

Bob Felton and Liz Wallis

We are in the early stages of evaluating the wildlife at the latest CRT property, Twyford Farm. It has the huge benefit of being situated on the edge of an important wildlife area, the Ashdown Forest, and is itself very well wooded, so woodland wildlife is likely to be the main feature of note.

This part of Sussex has a very wide range of wildlife associated with the open nature of an ancient forest; this was a royal hunting ground. In the past the forest was managed to provide open ground (in this area, often of heathy character) and lightly wooded land where the chase could be had.

The species which thrive in this habitat tend to be woodland-edge and clearing species, plus those associated with ancient trees. While some of the specialist species, such as rare beetles and moths, bats and fungi, may not be readily observed and monitored, the habitat also supports some obvious species that could be useful indicators of the health of the habitat at Twyford, and whose numbers could be used to guide the effectiveness of our wildlife-friendly management.

There are several important butterflies in the area, such as the majestic Purple Emperor and the delicate Wood White.

Bird life is thought to include the very rare Honey Buzzard, which requires a large area of natural habitat to support such a big bird that depends on a curious diet of wasp grubs and frogs (among other things). Although as big as a Buzzard, Honey Buzzards are not nearly such rapacious predators and need large numbers of small prey items to be successful. The insects, amphibians and reptiles they prey on need a lot of mixed habitat with open sunny areas, ponds and trees.

At the smaller end of the scale, there is a chance of species such as Lesser-spotted Woodpecker, Nightjar and Hawfinch.

True to its hunting heritage, the area is important for deer, although nowadays they are often more nuisance than asset, as the lack of hunting and the absence of predators, means deer populations are growing beyond the numbers that can be sustained, leading to excessive damage to trees and reducing the quality of the shrub layer which many birds depend on. So far, the only surveys done have been by local botanists, and reports have been very encouraging.

If anyone living in the area would like to help us extend our knowledge of the wildlife on this site, please contact me on vincelea@btinternet.com or via the office at Barton.

Vince Lea

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER Lark Summer 2014.indd 11

Photographs © Caroline Aldersey

WILDLIFE AT TWYFORD

11

25/06/2014 13:05:37

Trust News

Director’s Report I can’t believe we are almost halfway through 2014 already. I used to scoff in my younger days when told that time passes more quickly as you get older.

Sadly it does appear to be true! We are now well into the Events and Open Day season with the Exhibition Trailer being put to good use.

With the success of our Festival of Farming, Food and Wildlife at Lark Rise in the past couple of years, we have decided to try and replicate the format at our other properties, over the course of the next couple of years.

With that in mind Mayfields held its first ever Festival of Farming, Food and Wildlife at the end of April. With the added attraction of lambing and red squirrels, and stallholders with local produce and crafts, around 350 people attended the event.

Unfortunately the weather wasn’t kind with it being rather cold and wet. Given that on previous Open Days there had never been more than 100 people attending, we can count it as being a success and the foundations are in place to build on next year.

The following day Pierrepont held their Open Day with a similar number of people attending. For various reasons this turned out to be a more low key event than last year. However, we are already making plans for 2015 when Pierrepont will also host a Festival of Farming, Food and Wildlife.

Margaret Wood holds it’s annual Open Day when the bluebells are in full bloom. In an attempt to raise the profile this year’s event was re-branded as a Bluebell Festival. Around 50 people visited the wood on 10 May and enjoyed the spectacular carpet of blue. We are confident that with additional promotion we can build on that success for next year.

By the time you read this article we will have held our Open Day at Turnastone on 22 June. This will be the first Open Day at Turnastone for a number of years and will be a new experience for the tenants, Gareth & Madeleine Boaz. It provides an opportunity for us to meet with the locals, some of whom have been critical of our achievements to date, and explain our plans for the future. They will also be able to see the work on the restoration of the listed barn which is almost complete.

We are in a similar situation at Green Farm where some of the locals have been critical of our management of the woodland. We will invite the local residents to attend the Open Day on 10 August and explain to them our management plans for the woodland. They will have the opportunity to go on a guided walk and discuss the issues that are of concern to them.

You will have read elsewhere of the appointment of our new tenants at Twyford Farm. We are holding an Open Day on 6 September when you will have the chance to meet them and to walk around this beautiful farm.

Our annual Festival of Farming, Food and Wildlife here at Barton will be held on Sunday 28 September. The format will be much the same as previous years and will be followed by a Harvest Festival Service in the local church.

12

Awnells will complete the Open Day calendar on Saturday 11 October. This will form part of the Big Apple weekend and we plan to make it a much bigger event than in recent years.

None of the above events are possible without the sterling support and hard work from our volunteers at each of the properties. I am grateful for their co-operation and willingness to ‘muck in’ on the day.

On the subject of volunteers we are still in need of some new blood at each of the properties. The majority of our volunteers have been working enthusiastically and tirelessly for many years, and are in need of some additional help. If you can help out for just a few hours each month at any of our properties please do get in touch. If you feel you don’t have the necessary skills, training can be provided. There are a variety of tasks such as Monitoring, Conservation, or helping with the Exhibition Trailer. Quite simply the Trust can’t exist without volunteers, so please help if you can.

Our Volunteer Taster Day at Lark Rise was successful in that we attracted a couple of new volunteers. We plan to run similar days at some of the other properties in a bid to attract additional volunteers. We also need to establish volunteer groups at Mayfields, Turnastone and Twyford so these will become the priority in the coming months, with the first taster day being held at Mayfields in the summer. Details will be published on the website once arrangements are finalised.

Much is happening on the Education front, with the new pond dipping platforms in place at Mayfields, and work about to commence on the long talked about Education Centre and toilets. We hope to have that up and running by August. We have appointed Hazel Andrew as our new Education Officer at Awnells and she has some exciting plans for the future. Annika Rees our Education Officer at Pierrepont has done a superb job in making the Education Room there attractive and informative.

We have also applied for funding to build a pond dipping platform. As I write 90 local school children are spending a day at the farm.

A big thank you to all of you that donated to the “Kenny” appeal. Together you raised £18,400 THANKYOU !!

Finally a date for your diary: Those of you that enjoyed Show of Hands at our 20th Anniversary Event at the RGS, will be pleased to know that Steve Knightly has been booked for a fundraising concert at the Comberton Arts Centre on Friday 6 March 2015. Details of tickets etc will be available later in the year.

Martin Carter

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER

Lark Summer 2014.indd 12

25/06/2014 13:05:38

Trust News

CRT Open Days

The CRT with the help of our tireless volunteers and tenant farmers have hosted 3 fantastic open days at Mayfields, Pierrepont and Margaret Wood.

Mayfields Festival of Farming, Food & Wildlife

This year Mayfields Farm changed the format slightly of their open day by adding food to the agenda. This is something we started at Lark Rise Farm a couple of years ago with great success! The event at Mayfields in Norfolk was held on Saturday 26th April and was kicked off by BBC Radio’s Wally Webb.

Over 300 visitors were welcomed and enjoyed a full programme of activities including lots of lambs, sheepdog demos, sheep racing, Suffolk Punch demos, red squirrel talks, farm walks, children’s activities, entertainment from Reepham High School choir as well as local food and craft stalls.

Thanks must go out to all the volunteers and staff who helped in the preparation and on the day, as well as our fantastic tenant farmers, Sarah and Meg Jenkins. - Laure Tordjmann

Pierrepont Farm Open Day

The 2014 Open Day at Pierrepont Farm took place on Sunday 27th April. The weather was indeed Aprilly, with heavy showers causing the cows to form a column of twos to march smartly into the dairy, while there was an undignified stampede for the tea tent by the humans.

During the sunny intervals, visitors went on two walks guided by farmer Mike Clear and on self-guided walks across the fields and through the woods, watched cows in the automatic milking machines and visited the calves in their pens. They could also visit a microbrewery — unfortunately not yet in production — that has been installed in the former milking parlour made redundant when the new dairy opened in 2011 (see page 14). Pond-dippers were able to have their catches identified by Patrick Clear and the monitoring volunteers in the education room. - Rod Kebble

Bluebell Festival at Margaret Wood

Yet again we have had a wonderful display of bluebells throughout the woods.

This was very evident on the Open Day on the 10th May and much enjoyed by our visitors despite the occasional shower.

A highlight of the day was our pond dipping sessions. What an amazing quantity of little creatures we found in the pond which was relined a few years ago thanks to the generosity of Friends of the Trust. We hadn’t appreciated how quickly the pond has been colonised. With a few sweeps of the net by the children we had a tray full of strange and wonderful creatures, much to the joy of the children and adults alike.

Thanks to all who contributed to the Bluebell Festival! - John Dunn

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER Lark Summer 2014.indd 13

13

25/06/2014 13:05:41

Trust News

New Venture at Pierrepont Farm Frensham Brewery is owned and run by husband and wife team and Frensham residents Miles and Emily Stephens. Here they talk to us about beer, babies and where we can buy their signature brew ‘Forager’.

It’s great to have a new craft business based on Pierrepont Farm.

What made you approach the CRT? We were out walking our dog Buckley and on this particular route, we stumbled across a cluster of 17th century disused buildings in a beautiful location on the River Wey. After several years of contemplation about starting a small family run business close to our home in Frensham, we felt the site would be a perfect setting, where we could work symbiotically alongside the working farm.

We approached the tenant farmer and his wife, Mike and Bev Clear, shared a cuppa with them and proposed our idea. Mike showed us around some of the buildings. They then kindly gave us the contact details for Martin Carter at the CRT. It happened that Martin was visiting shortly after. We met on a freezing winter morning on the farm and shared our potential vision.

He asked us to send over our business plan which he then put forward to the Trustees. Jim Rees (CRT) and Mike and Bev have been extremely supportive to us, but none of this journey so far would have been feasible without Martin Carter and his enduring support. He agreed that it would be fruitful to the area and the Trust to have a small local craft business on site and what better reason to restore the Old Dairy. We couldn’t agree more!

We hear you have just had a baby! Congratulations! How are you coping with starting a new business as well?

Thank you! We did always wonder what would be first, the beer or the baby! As it happens the baby has graced us with her presence first which is probably a good thing as we would not have wanted to get started and then stop abruptly for little Miss!

So it’s worked out really well. It has not by any means been easy over the past month – but we are finally there! (Albeit a few weeks behind schedule!)

We approached the CRT originally about 18 months ago so we have had a bit of time to prepare. Although the CRT’s help

14

in planning and restoration has been tremendous, it’s been the physical graft of getting the site business ready which has been hard work, since planning was finally granted in February.

The CRT have restored the Old Dairy barn to a shell, allowing us to focus on the internal aspects. We have plumbed in the brewplant, had electricity points installed, built a fermentation room and office, installed the kit, sanitised barrels and revamped the store room in preparation. We have done most of the work ourselves with a few helping hands at points. Between us, number crunching, recipe formulation and operations have been devised and through our contacts and our website and twitter page, we have a growing collection of establishments at the ready and have also been very lucky in that various establishments have approached us directly, including a few beer festivals this summer!

When will your first brew be ready and where will it be sold?

First brew is imminent! We are busy preparing several batches for forthcoming beer festivals as well as on and off trade. The first official open weekend will be the first weekend of August (Sat 2nd – Sun 3rd) where people can come and buy from us direct. Should you like to order a cask for an event outside of our monthly open weekends, we will sell it through the Frensham Farm Shop close to Pierrepont Farm. Just drop us a line. This also goes for our beer-in-a-box (3 and 10 litre) and 2 and 4 pint containers which will be readily available (so no need to pre order).

We are looking to list our beer in The Jolly Sailor, our local hero pub and The Lamb, both locals in Farnham. The Bat and Ball (Rowledge) and The Ball and Wicket (Upper Hale) The Charterhouse Arms (Godalming) and Grayshott Social Club to name but a few! We are also currently in talks with a deli in Godalming who are interested to stock our beer in long life bags and boxes, thus making it feasible to order online.

For more information, then please visit our website www.frenshambrewery.co.uk

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER

Lark Summer 2014.indd 14

25/06/2014 13:05:41

Fundraising Fundraising News CHARITABLE TRUSTS Special thanks must go to the following Charitable Trusts who have supported our work during the first half of 2014: The Dingwall Trust Paul Bassham Charitable Trust City & University of Cambridge Masonic Charitable Trust The Oakdale Trust

SHOPPING LIST

Thank You!

Your generosity overwhelms me on a daily basis. The final total for the January education appeal, or ‘Kenny Appeal’ as it was nicknamed in the office, is £18,400.

This is a huge amount of money and Kenny is now working for us full time to educate the farmers, environmentalists and decision makers of the future.

You will spot that one of the items included with your Lark magazine is a cardboard collection box. We were asked to produce these by one member of our friends who

Have you ever wondered what we are doing in the CRT office, or what we are raising money for? Here are a few items I am currently contacting Charitable Trusts for donations towards:: likes to give us her spare change and we thought others might like it too. It should be fairly simple to put together, we hope it doesn’t need an origami expert! Maybe you could put it somewhere for your friends, relatives, neighbours and colleagues to put donations in.

Many thanks once again.

Hayley Newton P.S. I hope you have received your Letter B mailing from Robin asking for help with the Birds, Bats, Bees and Butterflies.

Pond Dipping Platform at Pierrepont: £10,000 Washroom facilities at Awnells: £5,000 Contents for the education room at Awnells: £10,000 Education Officer at Margaret Wood: £5,000 Monitoring equipment for Herefordshire: £1,000 Turning the kiln at Pierrepont into a fully operational charcoal business: £50,000

I’ve got the key of the door; Never been 21 before!

We all know the famous ditty: ‘I’ve got the key of the door, never been 21 before!’ But what exactly does it mean? And why is that relevant to the Countryside Restoration Trust as we conclude our 20th Anniversary celebrations and move into our 21st year and beyond.

Traditionally, when a person became 21, he or she would be given the key to their parents front door, meaning, for the first time, they could come and go as they pleased. The 21st birthday signified the start of an adult life and the independence it brings with it.

During the past 21 years the CRT has been extremely lucky, we have been given many ‘door keys’ by very generous people who have left us a legacy. Gifts in Wills have helped us to purchase threatened farms, increase populations of rare species

such as barn owls on our land, and educate the next generation about the important issues surrounding food, farming and the countryside. All legacies whether large or small, make a crucial contribution to our work.

Have you thought about remembering the CRT in your will? In doing so you will help us build on what we have already achieved, and encourage others to farm sensitively, protecting wildlife and preserving our countryside. It will help ensure that future generations experience a living and working countryside.

If you would like further information or would like to receive our Legacy information pack please contact the office on 01223 262999 or email hayley@ countrysiderestorationtrust.com

Are you looking for a walking or running challenge this summer? Would you like a different way to raise money for the CRT? The peak district challenge is an exciting new walking or running challenge based in the Peak District National Park.

Competitors are against the clock to try and complete one of the following challenges: • Copper (25km in 9 hours) • Bronze (50km in 12 hours) • Silver (80km in 24 hours) • Gold (90km in 24 hours) For more information please visit www.peak-district-challenge.com

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER Lark Summer 2014.indd 15

15

25/06/2014 13:05:42

Photographs © Annika Rees

Education

Summer Activities at Pierrepont Now that the sun is shining, more and more people are starting to show an interest in visiting Pierrepont. I have talked to two more schools regarding potential visits during the next academic year, and have bookings from local groups of Brownies, Explorers and a Riding club for evening tours.

After talking to a few families at this year’s open day in April, I have decided to organise some holiday activities that families can take part in during the school summer holidays as well. I am planning to run three differently themed activities, one a week for a three week period through August. Each two hour session will include a tour of the dairy followed by a series of activities related to that day’s theme. The three themes will be:

• Wildlife Safari - Families can take part in minibeast hunts, bird watching, look at pond creatures and learn how to look for evidence of other animals.

• Nocturnal Animals – Participants can help me empty moth and mammal traps left out the night before and learn about the nocturnal animals we rarely see.

• Nature Crafts – Participants can create pieces of artwork made from natural objects found in the woodland.

My hope is that these activities will help to increase awareness of the farm within the local community and promote the educational resources the farm provides.

Annika Rees

Introducing our new Education Officer at Awnells My name is Hazel Andrew and I am the new Education Officer for Awnells Farm. I have lots of experience having taught primary, secondary, colleges and post education. I also keep rare breed goats, sheep and pigs.

I will be setting up a summer programme for families to come to Awnells Farm. The aim is to educate and encourage visitors to help wildlife and nature at the farm and in their own gardens.

Making bird boxes and bug houses are an example activity that will be taking place. The programme will start late July and there will

16

be something going on each week until the youngsters go back to school in September.

From September a programme for schools will start, including visits to Awnells Farm. During December there will be other seasonal activities at the farm.

Keep an eye on the CRT website for information, if you would like to email me please do so at handrew@countrysiderestorationtrust. com Hazel Andrew

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER

Lark Summer 2014.indd 16

25/06/2014 13:05:42

Diary Dates LARK RISE FARM, Barton, Cambridgeshire Butterfly Walk - 3rd August.

Batman & Robin - 8th August, 8pm - 10pm. An evening safari in search of bats, owls, badgers and moths. Booking essential on 01223 262999. £5 per adult, £2 for children.

Festival of Farming, Food & Wildlife - 28th September, 11am- 4pm.

Volunteer Conservation Days - Usually held on the first Saturday of the month. Please call the office (01223 262999) for more information.

TURNASTONE COURT FARM, Vowchurch, Herefordshire Volunteer Conservation Days - Please contact CRT Office 01223 262999 for more information.

TWYFORD FARM, Horsted Keynes, West Sussex Open Day - 6th September, 11am - 3pm.

PIERREPONT FARM, Frensham, Surrey Volunteer Monitoring Group - Please call Bill Young (01243 811563) or email bill@parmelia.me.uk for more info.

Volunteer Conservation days - Held every 2 weeks. For more info contact Brian Lavers (01276 471870 or brian. lavers@btopenworld.com) or visit www.crtinsurrey.org.uk.

GREEN FARM, Farnham, Surrey Open Day - 10th August, 11am - 3pm.

01223 262999 for more information.

MAYFIELDS, Themelthorpe, Norfolk Please call Sarah Jenkins on 01362 683337 for more information or visit www.mayfieldsfarm.co.uk All these dates and further information can also be seen on our website www.CountrysideRestorationTrust.com

Volunteers Since the last edition of the Lark we have had our first Volunteer Taster Day (VTD) on the 5th April 2014 at Lark Rise Farm. The day itself went very well and we had both conservation and wildlife monitoring activities running. Vince Lea our Wildlife Monitoring Officer conducted a guided wildlife walk and talked about the importance of wildlife monitoring to the CRT. While another team of volunteers were led in an activity to repair a bridge over the Bourn Brook.

Cambridge Wood Works (CWW) also came along for the day and brought some flat pack bird boxes (that they had prepared earlier) and bug boxes. David from CWW assisted the volunteers with the construction. He also brought a pizza chiminea with him. I made some pizza dough and brought a few toppings and the volunteers got to enjoy some freshly made pizza! This proved very popular and it looks like this might become a permanent fixture to the “Rustics” day!

During the lead up to our VTD we publicised our event locally and contacted the local media to try to raise awareness.

We were lucky enough to have ITV News Anglia come down on the day and do a piece for the evening bulletin!

We now plan to take the VTD to our other properties in the hope that we can increase overall volunteer numbers. We do not ask too much of our volunteers, it is up to them what work they do and when, However we hope to provide a safe environment for people to engage with the countryside and nature. So if you have some time or know someone that does

and would like to get out into the great outdoors please get in touch.

Kenny MacKay

Photographs © Laure Tordjmann

Photographs © Annika Rees

AWNELLS FARM, Much Marcle, Herefordshire Open Day - 11th October, 11am - 3pm.

For more info please contact CRT Office 01223 262999.

Volunteer Conservation Days - Please call Donald Davies (01989 565097) for more information.

MARGARET WOOD, Upper Denby, West Yorkshire Volunteer Conservation Days - Please contact Phil Opie (07762 642812 or jpo.92@live.co.uk) for more information.

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER Lark Summer 2014.indd 17

17

25/06/2014 13:05:44

Farm Diaries

Photographs © Julian Eales

Mayfields Farm, Norfolk

Lark Rise Farm, Cambs

Things on the farm are starting to slow down as harvests looms just around the corner. The dog roses have been out for ten days now (7th June), so harvest, according to farming folk law is 6 weeks away, it’s scary how quickly things come around again!

The bad thing on the farm is encapsulated in one word blackgrass, it’s simply everywhere. The sprays by and large do not control it anymore, and with populations up to 8,000 plants per square meter, this weed poses a massive threat to crop yields. Maybe one small crumb of consolation is the fact that most other heavy land farmers face the same problem. Having said all of this, the winter cereals do look good. The spring cereals are adequate all things considered given the very wet

The 2014 lambing season has gone reasonably smoothly. We have some good lambs on the ground, but our overall lambing percentage was lower than I would have liked, although given the cross section of breeds that we keep here it would be unreasonable to hope for a high percentage. Feed costs have been kept down, the ewes having got through the winter on liquid feed, hay and fodder beet.

Megan’s working sheepdog Nevie has produced eight beautiful pups. Their sire is an International Brace Champion.

We have high hopes for them. My young bitch Floss has won her first open sheepdog trial.

Mayfields now has two beautiful new oak pond dipping platforms. The exciting news is that the newest of our ponds is now home to a breeding colony of great crested newts. This is a protected species.

Devastatingly, our beautiful female red squirrel Widgeon has died. She had recently produced a litter of three kittens. These too, died with her. We are awaiting post mortem results. This is a huge setback for the breeding program.

Sarah Jenkins

winter. Ironically we could have had more rain post drilling because the shallow sown seeds faced poor germination with the subsequent dry spell leading to less than ideal establishment for maximum yields. Fingers crossed for a dry harvest.

Putting farming to one side, I am really enthused by the amount, and diversity of wildlife on the farm. The highlights for me are obviously the barn owls (with 17 chicks to date), but also bee orchids, yellow wagtails and grey partridge are all noteworthy. I would have commented on the number of hares, but a family of foxes have sadly decided jugged hare is their favourite dish.

Tim Scott

A very kind spring has seen abundant grass growing, allowing the cows to continue to milk very well. Silage was cut early and crops of maize and fodder beet have established well, so we are hopeful to replenish our forage stocks for next winter.

A new Jersey calf has joined the ‘Adopt a Jersey’ programme.

We have named her Vera Lynn as she was born on D-Day. If you are interested in adopting her, please contact the CRT office on 01223 262999 or info@countrysiderestorationtrust.com The show season started at the end of May with a very wet Surrey County Show. Zoe’s young calf Jellybean went along for a friend to lead and although 6 months younger than the older calves in her class she still stood in 1st place. Money Penny also took 1st place in the production class for cows that have given at least 25,000kgs of milk in their lifetime. We had a string of other placing’s with the team of 10 cows that we took to the show. Zoe then went on to come 2nd in the intermediate young handlers class. We are now planning for the Livestock Event at the NEC in July.

Mike and Bev Clear

18

Photographs © Caroline Aldersey

Pierrepont Farm, Surrey

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER

Lark Summer 2014.indd 18

25/06/2014 13:05:47

Farm Diaries

Photographs © Martin Carter

Awnells Farm, Herefordshire

Turnastone Court Farm, Herefordshire

Lambing time at Turnastone was a successful one. We lambed 400 ewes over a 2 month period and the weather on the whole was good enough to turn them out without many succumbing to the cold/wet. We have produced Charollias cross and Texel cross lambs for meat, Suffolk cross lambs for our replacement ewes and to sell as breeding ewe lambs and Welsh Mule lambs to sell as breeding ewe lambs.

After a busy lambing season it doesn’t end there. Shearing must begin! We have only managed to shear 100 so far and now the weather has taken a turn for the worse we don’t know when the rest will get done.

We have successfully planted 18 pear trees in the two

We have had 35 Traditional Hereford calves born since the beginning of March - 24 bulls and only 11 heifers. This seems to be a recurring trend as we had more bulls born last year as well!!

With regards to the orchard, sadly we are not hopeful for many apples at harvest, as a lot of the blossom did not survive the Spring’s incredibly heavy rain.

The good news is that we had a decent turn out at our Open Farm Sunday on the 8th June with around 120 visitors and a fantastic day at Countrytastic (a hands-on event with food, farming and countryside at its core aimed at children). While at the Royal 3 Counties Show, Awnells’ Street Henry won the 2nd prize for senior male and was the reserve male champion at the National Rare and Minority Breeds Show on the 15th June.

While Street Jock was the champion butchers beast! We are now planning for the Cotswold Show in Cirencester on the 5th and 6th July.

David Powell

orchards. They are of a vigorous rootstock and will hopefully start producing fruit in 5 years’ time. The orchards at Turnastone are full to capacity now so in years to come we should have two established traditional orchards, with apple, pear and plum trees.

As part of our Higher Level Stewardship Scheme we have had to exclude livestock from our woodland. We have now fenced off the woodland and the idea is to allow more trees and shrubs to become established before reinstating a light grazing regime in a couple of years’ time.

We have shut up two of our meadow fields for hay and the grass is growing extremely well.

Gareth and Madeleine Boaz

Following a fantastic display of bluebells in May – just in time for our Bluebell Festival (see page 13), the woods now look substantially different after some sunny days and quite a lot of rain.

The bracken is now the dominant plant and has quickly smothered whatever bluebells were late in blooming and also hidden the young trees until they put on sufficient growth to rise above the bracken.

Good news is that we have now made a connection with the Huddersfield Bird Club who have kindly offered to do bird surveys on the farm. The interesting point will be how their results compare with an old survey which the club have obtained from an old resident of Upper Denby who collated information many years ago.

We do hope that more people come to see the wood. Just ring myself (01777 818732) or Phil (07762 642812)and we can arrange a convenient time to show you around. If you would like to join in on our workdays that would be even better.

John Dunn

Photographs © Jackie Cooper

Margaret Wood, Yorkshire

THE COUNTRYSIDE RESTORATION TRUST NEWSLETTER Lark Summer 2014.indd 19

19

25/06/2014 13:05:57

Merchandise

C. Notelets

2 different packs each containing 10 cards with envelopes (2 of each design). £6.00 (incl P&P)

A. Polo shirt

Available in dark blue or bottle green with CRT Lark emblem in yellow. Available in small (navy only), medium, large and XL. £17.50 (incl P&P)

E. NEW 2014 Christmas Cards

Featuring 2 different designs. The cards come in a pack of 10 with white envelopes. £6.50 (incl P&P)

D. DVD

The remarkable and inspiring story of the CRT’s first 20 years, presented by Robin Page. Running time approx. 60 minutes. £11.00 (incl P&P)

G. NEW Pens

Silver triple function pen (pen, LED light and stylus), comes in its own gift box. £4.00 (incl P&P)

B. Fleece

Wonderfully warm fleece with full front zip.

Available in dark blue or bottle green featuring CRT logo embroidered in full colour. Sizes available are medium, large and XL. £29.00 (incl P&P)

F. Sweatshirt H. NEW 2015 Calendar

Slimline wall calendar with 12 stunning images to brighten your wall and plenty of space for notes. £6.50 (incl P&P)

Merchandise Order Form

Name:_____________________________________________________ Address:___________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ Postcode:__________________________ Telephone:______________ Email:_____________________________________________________ I enclose a cheque for £______________________________________ (Please make payable to The Countryside Restoration Trust) You can also pay over the phone by credit card (01223 262999).

Or order on the website www.countrysiderestorationtrust.com

Available in burgundy, emerald green, dark blue or bottle green featuring the CRT emblem in yellow. Sizes available are small, medium, large and XL. £20.00 (incl P&P)

Item (Remember size and colour)

Quantity

Price

Donation Total

Please return to: The Countryside Restoration Trust, Bird’s Farm, Haslingfield Rd, Barton, Cambridge CB23 7AG Lark Summer 2014.indd 1

25/06/2014 13:05:11