~ John Andrews
Where springs and seeps on the higher ground of the hills create permanently wet ground that is poor in nutrients, a distinctive and diverse collection of plants can flourish. Anyone who has seen the Ramscombe mire in late June or July will know what a spectacular show of wildflowers it puts on. But this happens only because it is fenced and the gates are closed through spring and summer preventing the livestock, sheep especially, from eating the flower heads before they open.
To date we have recorded a total of 88 different plants here, including orchids, mosses, grasses and ferns, in what is about 0.25 ha. Most are perennial plants that do not need to flower every year to survive; some are annuals that had vanished while the site was being grazed and trampled but have persisted in the seed bank and are now able to grow and bloom. One unexpected gain is a fine show of bluebells in spring though the bog asphodel in summer is even more splendid and more rare.
In autumn and winter the gates at both ends of the area are locked open so that livestock can graze the ground but their effect is slight because there are fewer beasts on the hill in winter. As a consequence, some of the smallest plants such as bog pimpernel and round-leaved sundew are being suppressed by more vigorous competitors such as the tussocky grasses; in addition, trees and shrubs are colonising and will, if not controlled, both shade and dry the ground, destroying the character of the habitat.
In June of next year our consent to enclose the site ends but our hope is that we will be able to get approval from all the relevant parties to retain the fence; we will then regulate the grazing differently, leaving the gates open in spring for as long as is necessary to knock back the purple moor-grass and the developing scrub. It will be a case of checking every week or so to ensure that the mire does not revert to the sad state it was in six years ago.
There are in total 26 mires on the hills and last summer we comissioned a professional survey to find out what uncommon plants are present in each one and, importantly, its overall condition. Of the 26 only our own Ramscombe site qualifies as in good condition, 13 are acceptable though they have some problems and 12 are in bad condition for a variety of reasons. Some are under-grazed and growing scrub including rhododendron. Some are overgrazed and trampled. Some are wallows used by stags.
This year we have looked at the ones which are in poor condition with the initial thought in mind that several ought to be fenced against summer grazing. Bearing in mind that a further 13 sites also assessed last year are in acceptable condition and considering the 26 in total as a group, rather than as existing in isolation, we concluded that all should be regarded as part of a dynamic landscape, their individual condition varying over time due to changing circumstances, notably livestock and deer numbers and distribution, in turn affected by vegetation management and, in recent years, by visitor presence. Rainfall and temperature are also factors working directly on the vegetation and on where livestock and deer feed or shelter. Since this process has largely been going on since man cleared the forest, one may assume that the mire vegetation is rather good at long term survival.
No doubt over the ages, every mire has had its good and bad times, depending on how many livestock were on the hills, what the weather was doing – this is not the first hot summer since prehistory – and other factors. The fact that their plant assemblages have survived at all is down to deep roots, long-lasting seed that will lie in the ground for decades awaiting the right moment to germinate and also to man’s use of fire, for long a crucial management tool to maintain grazing for livestock, killing colonising trees and shrubs and so, quite accidentally, giving these small flowers their chance.
A further and not insignificant consideration in managing the sites is that exclusion of grazing by fencing, as at our own Ramscombe mire, works well in the short term but leads to rank grass and scrub development unless the timing of exclusion is varied from year to year, which in turn requires fairly close attention and judgement which we are not in a position to attempt over a large number of not always easily accessible sites.
That said, there are a few sites where practical work such as removing scrub can be done and we will be talking to the Commoners about them, while the National Landscape rangers have been looking at the two sites where drainage has been affected by track repairs. And here I must say that the constructive way in which all the parties work together with shared purposes makes for good outcomes that might not be achieved otherwise. All of us who enjoy the beauty of the hills owe them a big debt.
Looking to the future, we will continue to monitor all the sites, to see if there is any substantial change in the overall condition that would merit a rethink. We are still learning how best to manage them and their plants.
If you wish to visit the Ramscombe site, park at Crowcombe Gate car park, walk across the road and go on downhill a couple of hundred yards until you come to the fence; feel free to climb in if the gates are shut. June and July are the best times for flowers but all seasons can be rewarding.
And if you would be interested in helping us monitor the condition of one of the other sites, let me know. You do not need to be a botanist and there are plenty to choose from.
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