Nature enhancement is a key part of our ongoing work to conserve and enhance the Suffolk & Essex Coast & Heaths National Landscape. 

Here is a round-up from all of our nature enhancement projects and volunteer work parties for November 2024.

For more information about any of our nature enhancement work, you can email [email protected].

1 Knodishall Common

In partnership with Knodishall Parish Council, the volunteers helped to create habitat piles with burnt stands of gorse.  Virtually the whole common was set alight by arsonists around 3 years ago so the work the volunteers carried out will help make good use of the parched gorse for wildlife.

Gorse does respond very well to burning however, and lots of new shoots of gorse are regenerating! I’m sure there will be a grateful hedgehog or two that will make good use of the habitat piles.

2 Bawdsey

I took the time out to go and have a look at hedge saplings that were planted last winter in  Bawdsey. Various sections were planted out (entire new stretches and gapping up of existing hedges). This project is part of a trial to determine the success rate of planting out hedges without any protection.

There are many potential benefits to planting hedges without protection including cost, no use of plastic or other materials and if grazing isn’t too intensive then the expectation is when the hedge matures it will be bushier and thicker at the base which will be more beneficial for nesting birds and other wildlife.

3 Trimley Marshes

In keeping with last year, we carried out two volunteer work party days at Trimley Marshes. We continued with the fantastic long term woodland management project. There is a long band of plantation woodland planted 10 or so years ago to block out noise and pollution from the busy port immediately alongside the reserve.

The work involves removing inappropriate species that were planted in the plantation including non-native poplar species and holm oak. The thinning work will help to allow light through the canopy to encourage wildflowers and native scrub species including hawthorn and wild rose. Dead hedging with the brash will help to reduce deer grazing pressure too.

4 Sighting of the Month – Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus)

It was very nice to have some excellent sightings of Marsh Harrier at Trimley Marshes Nature Reserve in November.

5 Upcoming Tasks

06.12.24	Tiger Hill – Assington	Scrub and grassland management
13.12.24	Sizewell	Fencing and dead hedging to protect tree saplings from deer
20.12.24	Tiger Hill – Assington	Tree planting
10.01.25	Gallows Field – Dunwich	Hedge planting
17.01.25	Tiger Hill – Assington	Hedge planting
24.01.25	Gallows Field – Dunwich	Hedge planting
31.01.25	Tiger Hill – Assington	Hedge planting