Dear Friend of Ballard Water Meadow,
Welcome to the latest Newsletter from the Friends of Ballard Water Meadow.
Firstly, thank you to all our members who have continued to support us during the year and a big welcome to those recently joining the group. We would not be able to do any of the work we do in Ballard Meadow and Woodland, for both our local communities – wildlife and people, without this support and generosity.
Despite the frosts in December, and heavy and persistent rainfall our volunteer work parties (Fridays and Sundays 09.30-12.30) have achieved an enormous amount of work this autumn and winter. Thanks go to all of you who have braved some (often) inclement weather to cut, stack, drag, burn and plant in the woodland. We’ve also begun the rotational clearing the ever-encroaching bramble and small shrubs for the streamside in the meadow (see below).
The Committee hopes that as many of you as possible will take a few moments this spring to visit the site and see what’s been achieved. It won’t be long before the spring flowers poke their heads through the ground.
Conservation Management Work
Our new coppice compartment (W12) was cleared of bramble and smaller shrubs during December and January. When conditions were right, the material cleared was burnt so we enjoyed a few pow-wows around the bonfires. This area had been marked with stakes to show where we’d be planting around 150 new hazel saplings, which we did during February.
Our last task in this compartment, until we return to do more work here in 10 years’ time, was to have our now traditional breakfast bonfire in early March, marking the end of the conservation management work season.
It is the very nature of meadows that they crave to be woodland. Initially, if left unmanaged or as a legacy of inappropriate management, bramble and small woody shrubs begin to colonise. Before long, scrub and then woodland develops. At Ballard Meadow, the bramble creeps in from the edges and soon, as it becomes too dense, livestock won’t touch it, allowing it to become very well established. So, we have to keep it in check. Each year we intervene by clearing bramble and woody material from the edges of two selected compartments and remove any large obstacles. This takes place in winter and this year we have focused our attention on two compartments next to the stream, compartments M6 and M8.
We have been supported in this clearance work by Paul Brockman BEM and students from Ringwood School. They have helped coppice the hazel growing against the stream as part of their woodland management training. We won’t be touching the small area of ground between the stream and the new fence, so the cut material is stacked here to allow to rot away naturally. These habitat heaps and stacked timber (wood-walls) will provide additional, undisturbed habitat for wildlife.
We do this to allow meadow plants to recolonise the areas cleared. By disturbing the ground, long-lived seed will be exposed and there will be a fresh flush of meadow plants. Our plan is to control any invasive Hemlock Water-dropwort in May and June, then cut and clear all the spring and early summer growth in these two sections sometime in late July.
There is still a large amount of old timber stacked against the edges of the gravel path through the woodland. This is mainly holly, cut a few years ago. We are gradually taking this out, cutting it into shorter lengths and stacking it on our woodland compartment boundaries, providing a more useful habitat for fungi to colonise and invertebrates to overwinter. The path edges will then be mown annually, creating a narrow woodland ride edge and encouraging a variety of wildflowers.
Although not strictly within the boundary of the Ballard Meadow and Woodland site, the small patch of scrub and woody vegetation (Willow, Sycamore and bramble) at the entrance to the wood at the end of Hazelwood Avenue, has been cleared and the arisings burnt or taken away by the Town Council. We are hoping that this area will be cut and cleared annually and we await the spring and summer to see what develops in this location.
Recording
December, January and February are quiet months for the recording of wildlife. Casual observations of birds and plants are noted, but most species are dormant until we get to late February. Then things begin to stir, frogspawn is laid in the ditch and a few plants (Lesser Celandine for example) come into flower early. However, the stream survey, looking at the chemicals present in the water and noting any active invertebrates, continues throughout the year, when there is water in the stream. Recently, Caddis Fly larvae have been found still active in their watery and, after all the torrential rain, seemingly hostile home.
We know very little about our nocturnal wildlife in the meadow and woodland. We’re delighted to begin a recording programme using a trail camera, strategically placed, to see if we can capture images of bats, foxes, deer etc, that we don’t normally encounter. Similarly, we have not recorded any moths on the site, but we hope to rectify this by using a moth-trap on occasions during the late evenings in summer. We are in receipt of a grant from the Hampshire Biological Information Centre(HBIC) to purchase a device, so we’ll advertise in advance when we’ll be working. All results will be published in due course.
Liaison
In December the FBWM hosted a visit by members of the Tiptoe Green management committee.
Treasurer and Membership Secretary’s Update
At the AGM I advised members that due to a change in the law our current bank HSBC were now charging for every transaction on our account. To eliminate this expenditure the account has now successfully been changed to a Treasurer’s Account operated by Lloyds Bank. This is specifically for a small “Not for Profit Group” and has no bank charges. The savings will be over £100.00 per year.
New Account details
Lloyds Bank: Sort Code: 30-99-50 Account Number: 49697068
Membership renewal is due from 1st April 2023 , and I will shortly be writing to members. The membership fee is to remain at £5.00 per annum. Lloyds will take over the collection of existing direct debits/standing orders and existing BACs instructions.
I am very pleased to inform members that earlier in the year we received a generous donation from New Milton Friends Group for £200.00 to fund our current Hazel replanting programme.
In February we received an amazing donation from the New Forest Crematorium (Westerleigh Group), for £2,500.00 to fund our tree-planting programmes well into the future.
The Friends of Ballard Water Meadow are grateful to all our members for membership subscriptions, renewals, generous donations and to the organizations for their generous donations.
From The Friends of Ballard Water Meadow, a Huge Thank You.
As a “Not for Profit Group” all monies received go towards funding our ongoing work to benefit wildlife.
Any questions/ queries regarding membership please contact me: Pam Petherbridge
pampetherbridge8@gmail.com 07484 830772. Postal address for membership renewal by cheque to: 1 Oakwood Court, Osborne Road, New Milton BH25 6AB.
*Please do not send any cash*
Community Engagement
We’re continuing with our monthly “What to Look For” posters but decided to do something a bit different for February. So, for each of the four weeks, we introduced a different part of the team that work so hard to conserve Ballard: The Recorders, The Management, The Fundraisers and of course The Workers! Who knew there were so many people and hours involved!
Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook or Instagram!
Coming-up and Dates for the Diary
For the last few years, we have joined with Plantlife and celebrated our glorious meadows. Meadow Day this year will be Saturday 24 June 2023 and you’re all very welcome to join us. We’ll be serving refreshments, there will be guided walks and other activities. Please keep an eye-out for local advertising and all are welcome.
There will be celebration event at our workbase in Ballard Meadow on Sunday 1 October 2023. All the membership are invited, to say once again a big “thank you” to all the members who support us throughout the year. Refreshments will be provided and further details will follow in due course.
We have an Annual General Meeting in October. The Crematorium has kindly offered us space to hold the meeting there, as in 2022, and will take place on Thursday 26 October 2023 at 6.30pm. This is an open meeting for the local community and all our Friends of Ballard Water Meadow members and their guests are invited
Acknowledgements
The Friends of Ballard Water Meadow cannot work in isolation. We are grateful for all the support and the many positive comments from members and the wider local community. In particular, we’d like to thank New Milton Town Council (helping with the physical management, on-site repairs as well as providing our necessary insurance), Paul Brockman BEM and students from Ringwood School. The New Forest Crematorium, New Milton Friends Group, Cllr Geoff Blunden and the Hampshire Biodiversity Information Centre (Hampshire County Council) all gave generous donations for which many thanks.
Bob Lord
Chairman
Friends of Ballard Water Meadow
March 2023
