mowing patterns for heaths

You basically want to have a variety of Heather ages or heights in order to sustain diversity.  Getting to the diversity from a uniform heath can be tricky.  You cannot efficiently do totally random cuts.

And this can be particularly difficult the achieve, using a large mower.

You also want to avoid drawing attention to what you are doing and definitely do not want to encourage people to use the works as shortcuts or off piste tracks.  

You may also want to hide the "brutality" of a close mow, where it looks as if you are getting rid of the Heather.

Our first attempt to do some hidden cuts was on the plateau, where we cut a large v shape in the middle, at carefully calculated angles, so that from the visitors tracks you could not see down either of the straight lines.  As a once off it works reasonably well, but designing subsequent cuts in the following years is difficult and increasingly so.  The process involves some inefficiency at the corners.  there are some risks that the straight cuts may be attractive for use in short cuts.

The next plans for breaking up the age profile will be based on spirals.  These are

- easy to continuously cut

- have little visibility from any angle

- act as a guide for the next years cut

- cannot be used as a shortcut track

- provide uniform corridors to safety, albeit quite long.  Animals don't have to leave the security of a certain height of Heather, to get away.  Though it could be relatively long.

Novel

M

Note that firebreaks are necessarily going to have a simpler straighter construction, for ease of use.

tree pipits?

Not sure what is happening, but I am seeing / hearing very few tree pipits this year.

Are they just too busy finding food?

M

siskins and redpolls

There are a good number of these two species around the reserve and singing.  I assume some are nesting, though difficult to prove.

M

car park erosion

It looks as if visitors are having a problem with the erosion at the entrance, with quite a steep step up to the main road.  This is probably caused by drivers spinning their wheels to ensure they get up the step, since this is mostly on the left side as you exit.

I have put a cone on that side to push drivers over to the other side where it will be easier, and with less likelihood of grounding.

Situation is being discussed with conservators , who own the car park land.

M

sitting by the kissing gate

Made the felled birch by the kissing gate safe for the long term.

The trunk was made temporarily safe last week,  but it was still sitting on four points, two of which would have only lasted a year or so.  So this week we reduced the total weight by cutting off usable firewood logs, and the getting the main trunk on the ground.

This was quite an interesting task, as cutting a load bearing branch is hazardous to tools and body.  We built a temporary support structure with the new logs, then carefully cut out the supporting branches, and finally toppled the support structure from a safe angle and distance.  Then turned it over with the remaining branch, which basically now stops the trunk rolling.

We then moved the remaining trunk using the logs as rollers, stopping the trunk digging into the ground, and a felling lever   Moved it away from the steps of the kissing gate, and round into the hollow parallel with the fence.  Nowhere now for it to go.

This makes a nice long seat for weary travellers, and we had our first visitor formally open the seat.  A quick group photo of the team, and back for coffee.

People may wonder how it was all done.  A couple of large bow saws, a felling lever and lots of grey matter.

Thanks to the team.

M