Advice please on whether to roll and mow humpy bumpy anthill strewn grassland

[Alice]

I am part of a small group managing a 21 acre field belonging to where I work. The others look to me for guidance which is a scary responsibility.
The field used to be rented out to local farmers to graze livestock, but the fences became too dilapidated and so we have not been able to rent it out for about 5 years. Apart from the grazing, nothing much has happened in the field for about 50 years, so it is full of all sorts of diverse habitats, about 50 species of flowers, and also a great many huge anthills.
Now the grazing has stopped gradually bramble and gorse is trying to take over and so it needs some sort of management.
A local farmer has offered to bring in his massive tractor, roll the centre of the field to flatten the humps to make it possible to mow. He will then mow in the autumn, and repeat next year, by which time he reckons it will be in good enough shape to let other local farmers take the hay each year. So this will deal with the brambles, and keep the grassland. Hopefully it will allow the species present to flourish.
However, I worry about the loss of structure, and the compression of the soil. The anthills currently provide niches for small mammals, and I have seen whitethroat and stonechats as well as kestrels and owls.
So the big question: should I let him roll and mow? If I don't, how can we control the growth of the vigorous bramble etc.?
Sorry for long post - took some explaining!

[Steve Pollard]

Alice - you are faced with squaring two of the most fundamental questions that every meadow owner has decide on - what you want your meadow to be and how can the meadow be managed? Obviously it would best to keep the ant hills, but mowing solves the management problem. When you say he'd roll the centre of the field - are the anthills just in the centre, or is it only the centre that is cutable? What are your other options? If the field is currently being foraged by kestrels and owls you could keep it as rough grassland, and have the encroaching scrub flailed (though, of course you'd have to pay for this) or you could do it by hand. For minimal management, you could also have a mosaic of scrub and rough grassland. Alternatively, Ewhurst is near the Surrey Hills AONB - if the field is within that area you may be able to get funding through the Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) scheme to have the field fenced, so that grazing can be resumed (so you can have a meadow and the anthills).

[Chapplecroft]

I have little information to impart but just wanted to comment on your suggestion of getting a FiPL grant for fencing. The Blackdown Hills AONB simply won't entertain grants for fencing - at least not as the fundamental part of the project. I'm not even allow to have an application form! I have found them very tricky to deal with and very hard to pin down but they have said very firmly that fipl is there for more "interesting projects" instead of items that could secure funding through more standard government schemes.

a 21 acre field is a significant size and not much smaller than my holding so you may get the same reaction but then maybe Surrey Hills will make more sense!

[Sam]

Just a thought- you could contact No Fence to see if there are any conservation graziers in your area using their GPS collars. You don't need physical fencing as they're used in conjunction with an app where you can draw a virtual fence on your phone. I graze 8 jersey cows with them and have brought back an overgrown scrubby meadow the same size as yours with judicious grazing at certain times of year. No need for tractors! You can use the collars on sheep and goats too. I believe FIPL are giving grants for the cattle collars. Sadly I'm too far away to help. We need a database of nationwide conservation graziers for these wonderful meadows!

[Jon Valters]

Hi Alice,

Your grassland sounds amazing - and with the large anthill mounds might it not be ancient grassland? I'm sure that has special protection over a certain acreage. I think it would be such a shame to let this farmer anywhere near it! However I know how difficult these things can be. Have you spoken to the Surrey Wildlife Trust to see if they can help? This is just the sort of site they should be looking out for. The other possibility is speaking to Plantlife to see if they know of a good and experienced botanist/ecologist who could look at the site, advise and support you. They would know of any grants available. Is there any chance that your company would pay for a survey and help - I'm sure it would be tax deductable! If you wanted any further help and are short of time I would be willing to do some further research for you. My number is 01566 784196

[Alice]

Thank you so much for all your thoughtful and helpful replies! It looks to me as though the consensus is not to let the roller in.

Unfortunately the field is not ancient grassland because we have evidence from the 1842 tithe map that it was at that time divided into smaller pieces, about half marked as arable.

Thank you for all your excellent ideas - I'm planning to follow them up and do more thinking before taking action!

[Jane W]

A quick thought Alice, about fencing. A 21 acre field is very large to fence, I'm guessing expensive too...but would it be affordable/possible to have a smaller area of 'mobile' fencing? Something you could move around and keep a much smaller number of animals, but move them around onto bits that needed grazing? I noticed here that my neighbours use electric fencing which they seem to be able to move around. They have quite large heavy horses and it seems to work to keep them in.
Just a thought, I don't know enough about it to make any further comment, but others on this forum will know whether its a viable idea or not.
Good luck!

[Alice]

Thank you Jane, that sounds like a sensible suggestion, but actually this was tried a few years ago by Surrey Wildlife Trust, using electric fencing. Inevitably the cattle got out from time to time and because no one was living on site and SWT are miles away, they found it impossible to keep dashing out to sort out the fencing! But just fencing part of the field might be an option.

[newinvention]

You don't say whether the anthills are over the whole acreage or not? Is it possible to keep a good number of them intact and if you really have to roll the rest? You'd then create a mix of habitats? No doubt the owls & kestrels like the longer, tussocky unmanaged grass? We have anthills in our 11 acre field - they take up around 1.5 acres and some grow at the margins. Obviously you cannot mow them or you destroy them. They bring lots of biodiversity and floral interest in themselves and I would be loathe to lose them were the field mine - they are not very common these days since farmers for obvious reasons want flat ground. You have already indicated the field is good for nature. However, anthilly ground does need grazing or eventually long grass will shade them out (yellow meadow ants build their mounds for solar heating) and the more delicate spring ephemeral plants that like to colonise the tops of anthills will be outgrown too. We let our anthill tumps grow grass/flowers in the spring/summer, then after the main hay meadow is mown, we scythe the anthill area and rake off the arisings. We then have sheep on from around Sept to Dec and again in the spring (this year in late March). They keep the sward down. Cattle are better though if you can get them. The anthills look good this year - helped by a slow (cool) spring. I would aim for a mix of habitats and hold on to your anthills if at all possible, or at least some/most of them.

[Stephen Powles]

Hi Alice, I too have some wonderful ant hills. A great pleasure. I am very much with others who suggest a mosaic of habitat types. Hopefully with your field, part of the mosaic can include an area managed with anthills being given priority.