16th September 2011 -- Saxtead has completed its part of the Suffolk Hedgerow Survey and the maps look beautiful!

15^th September 2011

Dear Louisa and Valerie,

Saxtead hedgerow survey completion    

 Very many thanks for handing over the recently completed survey for Saxtead yesterday when I visited your home to help complete the admin and mapping for the survey.

As promised, I have now completed my audit of all the survey forms and the statistical analysis of the results. The colour coded map of course is spot on as we finished that off together yesterday but I did manage to get it colour photo copied for you last evening and sent via 1^st class mail, so it should arrive in time for your presentation to the PC on Tuesday 20^th.

It has to be said that in this case, we have an excellent model of how the survey forms should be completed. It is necessary to record that the survey only started in May 2010 and a great achievement made by Val and others to have surveyed 86 landscape hedgerows and another 7 field boundaries without hedges. There was also another 1 without access, thus making a total of 94 field boundaries completing the survey in exactly 4 months to the day.

The audit found everything in order with a few exceptions mainly due to species totals needing adjustment as some trees had not been counted. None of these affected the colour coding on the master map of course as we did that after the checks had been made.

It was surprising not to see any veteran trees in the hedgerows (though some were noted in outlying fields), the 9 Buckthorn records in h/r no.13, 17, 23, 24, 26, 27, 33, 74 and 74b would have been rewarding for the surveyor and the local Brimstone population. Bearing in mind that veterans are in hedgerows, some would have been almost certainly boundary markers and therefore indicate great age of the hedgerow network in the parish. Almost as good a guide are your records for high counts of species rich hedgerows as there were 15 species in h/r no. 24, 47 and 73, and 16 species in h/r no’s 29, 40 and 68, 17 species in h/r no.43, 18 species in h/r no.74, 19 species in h/r no.74b and a magnificent 21 species in h/r no. 25. There were also 12 records of hedgerows with Midland Hawthorn which although not uncommon, are frequently missed by surveyors. The Black Poplar in h/r no. 13 is an important record and needs to be noted by the Black Poplar survey project.

The accuracy of the mid point grid references was checked on a sample basis and were consistently accurate and where a dozen or so had not been done, we managed to calculate them on the record forms. The colour coding illustrates clearly the high ratio of species rich hedgerows at a single glance which speaks volumes for the parish and the wildlife supported by the hedgerow network.

I have come to expect high ratios of species rich hedgerows on Clayland, in the order of 48% to 65% and your 83.7% far excels at the top of the range for the peer group but more about that later.

Before going on to the statistics I should also mention that your very high species counts must have been great for the surveyors, all of which illustrates the SCC rating that Saxtead has a density of hedgerows of 6.59 kms per square km in an area of 488 hectares. This is a high proportion in fact the 12^th highest in the top quartile (in a range of 1 to 9) in the county and I would imagine that in spring and summer Saxtead must have a really beautiful landscape and superb variety of flora and fauna especially.

I have made a statistical analysis in two forms, firstly to compare your parish results for species richness (which is what the survey is mostly concerned with), against a theoretical “average parish” (calculated from surveys throughout Suffolk from a sample of 264 parishes with a total of 33168 hedgerows so far, as follows:

Saxtead Parish

Species group: No of Hedgerows; %age (“County Norm” %)

4 and less species: 4 = 4.6% (16.7%)

5,6 and 7 species: 10 = 11.6% (31.5%)

8 and more species: 72 = 83.7% (51.7%)

Total surveyed: 86 hedges

From the above, there would appear to be variations of –12.1%, -19.9 and +32.0% which only goes to show how great the hedgerow status and distribution is in your parish. This is no great issue as there is no such thing as an ‘average parish’ but it does give a ballpark figure as what to expect when the more significant comparisons are made with the totals of the peer group in which Saxtead is classified. We are fortunate in that Saxtead is classified in one Landscape Character Assessment (CLA) type, namely Plateau Clayland (PC). The master map endorses the density and species richness of hedgerows that can be expected in a parish so close to the top for the county.

More recently, I have needed to produce statistics also for the Landscape Character Assessment (LCA) types which for Saxtead are as follows:

Species richness 4 and - 5,6 and 7 8 and +

Saxtead stats 4.6% 11.6% 83.7%

Plateau Clayland LCA 8.7% 28.6% 62.7%

From these figures, Saxtead continues to compare well with its peer group consisting of 27 parish results from 4527 hedgerows. The low and mid ratios are well below the peer group figures with the result that the species rich ratio burgeons ahead by 27.0% and in overall terms is a clear demonstration that clay supports species richness of hedgerows and although there is absolutely no intention to run a league table of any sort, the figures for Saxtead speak volumes for themselves. Such words as ‘good’, ‘bad’, ‘well’ and ‘poorly’ are not in our vocabulary but the figures bare witness for the hedgerow network, its conservation over history in the parish and the benefit from clay based soils.

Whilst on this subject it is also seen that the distribution of hedgerows is pretty concentrated in parts of the parish and this may suggest that a, there has been little removal of hedgerows in parts during the Whitehall Agricultural Policy days of the 60’s and 70’s and b, that there may still be some examples of the old feudal system of field boundaries prior to the Enclosures Act of the mid 18^th century. In other areas of the parish, the field sizes become much larger and your village historian could find the answers to this maybe, from the 1830 tithe map and early OS maps in the late 1890’s which are available on the Internet and [not showing the hedgerows] at least show the field structure.

One factor, which springs to mind, knowing how well Clayland supports species rich hedgerows, just compare this with Estate Sandlands at 30.0% and Plateau Estate Farmlands at 25.7% and you may see how different LCA types affect the species richness of hedgerows and how fortunate your parish is.

I am not running statistics on the ‘no hedge’ count but your parish is about average and your 7 (some 17.5% of all boundaries) may be an indicator of where planting, gap filling and re-planting could be usefully employed and the data from the survey will show which species are most likely to survive and hence, those that may not. Likewise, should landowners be interested in enriching some of their low count ratio hedgerows, the species record would help in deciding which species to plant and by exception those to be avoided. This of course is not obligatory nor part of the mandate from the client but is one example of the spin off which can be obtained from the Project raw data

Finally, on a more personal level, I really must give you my congratulations and deepest appreciation for such an excellent survey and considerable effort on your own part and members of the team who kindly and generously gave their time for the parish. Would you please pass on my congratulations and gratitude to Lisa Hewson, Phil Jones, Mary, Debbie Sharman, Anita Beamish and David Brooks. You have all made a good job, done well and can now rest on your laurels in the certain knowledge that you have made an indelible, permanent and unequivocal contribution to the heritage and inheritance for future generations of the landscape hedgerows in your parish. This has been a great personal achievement and your community should be justly proud of your endeavours, as indeed I am also. If you agree, I should also ask you to give a copy of this report to the PC clerk and/or chair.

Yours sincerely, Guy Ackers, Chairman, Suffolk Hedgerow Survey

 

11 June 2011 -- Wild About Saxtead organised a celebration of Saxtead's beautiful and ecologically important wildflower meadows, held with help from Martha Meek of the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. Children and parents alike enjoyed following the wildflower trail and putting the common names to the different plants in bloom; we found lots of insects as part of our bug hunt, and the younger children enjoyed decorating their butterflies and badger masks - the sun even shone for our picnic! Thanks again for your support.  Photos of the Wildflower Day 2011 are in the gallery.