​South Petherwin Cake & Rakers
Cutting Regime
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The timing of the grass cutting is carefully planned to allow wild flowers to set seed and prevent invasive species dominating. The grass is raked and removed to reduce soil fertility. Short areas and mown paths provide access.
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The areas managed as spring meadow are chosen as they are in shade later in the year due to the trees around the south and west of the churchyard. The summer meadow areas are in full sun - they are cut earlier in the year to give later flowering species an advantage.
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Areas of short grass are determined by amenity requirements - access to graves and footpaths, while the long margins are managed on a rotational basis to provide a refuge for wildlife.
Raking
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The arisings after each cut have to be raked up to reduce the nutrient input to the soil. Wildflowers need poor soils to thrive. Because the churchyard had been neglected for so long, species such as hogweed and dock were dominating large areas - they were spreading freely and as cuttings were not removed their nutrients were being returned to the soil. Their control is ongoing but we are seeing some success with greater numbers of species like cuckoo-flower and bugle.
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Ultimately we would like to be able to dispose of the arisings off-site, but as this is not currently possible we are composting the cuttings in 'caterpillars' around the churchyard. If anyone would be prepared to take the cut please let us know!
Nesting Boxes
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We have installed a number of bird nesting boxes made by a resident of the village. We selected boxes with a variety of sizes and openings to attract a range of species, and we have an owl box waiting to be installed - the churchyard is visited by barn owls and tawny owls. The churchyard is also home to a very healthy rookery and has swallows nesting in and around the church.
We have put up roosting boxes for bats, and have added a hedgehog house (not up a tree!). We seem to have a healthy hedgehog population, so also put out dishes of water that we keep topped up as the churchyard does not have an accessible water source.
Bug House
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We are very proud of our bug house - Bugingham Palace! It may not look like much to the casual observer but it is truly a palace to a myriad of invertebrates.
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A healthy insect population is crucial to the success of the project- in fact it was the disappearance of the song of the grasshopper that instigated our whole project. We're very happy to say that song is returning.
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Without the right food plants at the right time we cannot sustain our insects. Without these insects we could not sustain our slow worms, hedgehogs and birds. Without those, the world becomes a very barren place.
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The Phone Box
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In 2019 we temporarily took over the village phone box that had recently been acquired by the Parish Council. It was a great opportunity to show what we were about.
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A very talented resident of the village, as well as our volunteers, made us some fabulous butterflies and their food plants, and the challenge was to match them up. We also had some wonderful knitted bees, so added them to some planters full of bee-friendly plants.
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We had a folder full of information for people to take away, which included wildlife activities and of course our cake recipes - not bad for 1 metre square!
BioBlitz
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In August 2021 we held a BioBlitz weekend. We had small mammal trapping, bat walk, moth traps, a treasure hunt, and of course cakes!
We recorded over 100 species, including 26 species of moth and 4 species of bat, and had a large number of participants over the course of the weekend. The data that we gathered will help us better manage the churchyard going forward.
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We are very grateful to everyone who came over the weekend, and especially to Mary and Tony Atkinson and to Dave Groves for giving up their time to help us. The new records have now been added to our species lists.
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