Soil – checking the foundations

by Rob

“The soil is the great connector of lives, the source and destination of all”

Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture

 

This week we finally moved onto Hogchester Farmland.  The very next day we began the wild flower meadows project.   Dorset Wildlife Trust conservationist Nick Grey and Soil Scientist Mark Kibblewhite (PhD)  came to take soil samples and dig pits to assess the soil depth and type and quality.

Mark KibbleWhite (left) and Nick Grey (right)

The principal tools of a soil scientist are familiar to all – a spade and pocket knife.  But the world those simple tools revel is the most complex biological ecosystem on the planet bar none.   The soil beneath our feet is poorly understood even today and our investigative tools seemed rudimentary.  Never-the-less, in a couple of hours I leant simple techniques for assessing clay and sand content.  If  it rolls easily into a turd and holds its shape you have a good amount of clay, if you wet it, smooth it and it shines then you have a lot of clay.   Sand can be felt by rubbing through the finger tips but like a blind person trying to read brail for the first time I found that information was hard to grasp.   We investigated top soil depth, stone types, compaction, drainage and root depth.    We also took a tradition ‘W’ series of soils samples to be sent away for biochemical analysis.   This will give an indication of fertility and pH.

photo taken last summer of the view across the two fields

The soil in our two fields is all of a type with some degree of variation between our pits due to land slippage and the gentle movement of the topsoil over time.  The soil is ‘young’ showing no stratification typical of more mature sites.   It is a clay sandy loamy soil or some other combination of those words (forgive me Mike),  and the depth varies from 15cm to over 30cm.  There is some compaction due to sheep grazing over 10s of years.  The drainage varied a lot from poor at the bottom of the hill to pretty good at the top.   This was reflected in a variation in the sword from top to bottom.   Mike’s assessment was that some of the soil would be ideal for tress, some for meadows and some was good enough to grow some potatoes in! – but that is not our mission.

It seems we can stick with our plan to sow these two fields as meadows this year. The basic analysis shows that there is a good amount of variations across the meadows that gives rise to a wide diversity of micro habitats.   We will sow a broad range of seed and leave nature to sort out what should be growing where.   The meadows, if carefully managed, will also ease the compaction problem as new roots open up the soil.  “let the biology do that hard work for you”.

A big thank you Nick and Mike.   Your enthusiasm is infectious and I learnt a great deal.

 

Hogchester Becomes A Charitable Trust

by Chantal

Hogchester now has official charitable status through Giving Works. Hogchester Conservation Trust has been set up in order to help us more effectively meet the goals for the site and to protect the land’s future in the long term.

Summer Foxgloves at Hogchester Conservation Trust

What The Trust Will Do

Through the restoration of wildflower meadows and wider conservation work we plan to establish Hogchester as a nature reserve of local distinction and recognised within government frame works. Thereafter to make the site available to the local community and also to visitors to West Dorset.   From a conservation perspective the aim is to develop a site of ‘scientific interest’ within 10 years and a site of ‘special scientific interest’ (SSSI) within 20 years.   If achieved the heritage of Hogchester’s land would be afforded legal protected for all time and the site could persist as a habitat rich environment for nature.  We hope Hogchester will provide a haven of beauty and tranquility for people to connect with nature and themselves.

Hogchester As A Family Home

So how does this fit in with the fact that Hogchester is also our family home?

The physical layout of Hogchester farm provides a simple way in which the separation between our family and the trust can be made. In the centre of the land there is a triangle of land that contains the farmhouse, holiday cottage, farm buildings (such as my studio), and a small paddock (eventual home to the incoming chickens and pygmy goats). All the land area outside of this has been designated as the area of conservation and can be invested in using charitable means.

Sharing Hogchester

People holidaying at Hogchester Cottage will be able to enjoy the conservation areas as a part of their holiday and 20% of all rental income will go straight to the trust.

Alongside this our initial plans to enable others to experience the conservation site include:

• Open days
• Engaging with local conservationists and relevant community groups on the land
• Engaging with local schools of which our children will be a part
• Artist residency scheme

To find out more visit www.hogchester.com or follow us on Instagram and Facebook

GivingWorks is a UK registered charity set up to encourage both individuals and businesses to get involved in philanthropy. The organisation offers a range of support services which allow philanthropists to ‘give’ more effectively.

Dorset Wildlife Trust Pays A Visit

by Chantal

Established wildlife pond at Hogchetser

We had our first visit from Dorset Wildlife Trust. A lovely guy called Nick Gray who specialises in grassland management but who is also very knowledgable in the other areas of wildlife conservation. We are delighted he has agreed to be an advisor to Hogchester’s conservation project and feel we now have a safe pair of hands to shape our uneducated enthusiasm!

Nick felt the land at Hogchester had excellent potential for wildlife habitat restoration. “The complex topography means there are multifarious habitat niches and interesting species diversity”. He pointed out that one area on the farm is already designated a Site of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI or ‘Local Wildlife Site’) –  a mosaic of wet and dry unimproved grassland, mire and wet woodland. During his visit he spotted a Woodcock and noted violets in the ground fauna.

 

Woodcock photographed by Penny Hewitt in Sheffield. In the Uk we have a traffic light system for birds. Birds in the red category are in serious decline, while birds in the green are of no concern. Woodcock are amber listed. 

 

In terms of a strategy for the wildflower meadow restoration, we are going to take soil samples to measure phosphate levels and wait for spring to see what species are already present. At that point we will determine if we can improve the meadow or if we need to create a new meadow by reseeding from scratch. We were encouraged to hear that we may be able to obtain wildflower seed of local provenance from a well managed SSSI donor site nearby.

Alongside the large scale hay meadow restoration, we discussed how we could also enhance species diversity in other more challenging pasture areas using techniques such as plug planting and small scale seed strewing.

“The Big Oak” at Hogchetser

There are many wonderfully mature trees and hedgerows at Hogchester. These, along with the well established ponds present further opportunities for wildlife habitat enhancement. Rare bats, (among them lesser horseshoes), are known to forage across the western Marshwood Vale. As bats are likely to be making use of the old sheep sheering barn I have earmarked as my future art studio, I will need to get a bat survey done and make plans for us to cohabit together!

It feels great to have some plans starting to take shape and have someone encourage us that this is both a viable and worthwhile project.

Dorset Wildlife Trust are currently offering half price membership so its a great time to join.

A New Year Awaits

by Rob

New Years Eve under an amazing star canopy, toasting marshmallows and listening to owls

Back at Hogchester – an appropriate place to see in the new year.   We received confirmation that the property title has now been registered but the place is so magical it still feels unreal.   We brought the dogs with us this time which certainly made it feel more like home.

Being checked out by our new tenants

The top meadow now has 90 pregnant Ewes that are busy nibbling back the winter growth due to the unseasonably warm weather.   They will make their across the land over the covering months keeping it ‘tidy’ for us before heading home to give birth. The land feels more at ease with some live stock on it and our dogs shown absolutely no interest in them which is very good news.

Oliver and I have spent much time in the streams. Unblocking silted up areas and opening them up to increase the flow.  Satisfyingly, as the leaves and fallen branches are cleared, the stream gurgles into life.   There are many pretty streams cris crossing the land, the main stream being named The Gwyle which joins the River Char.

We are back at work/school in Southampton today but will be driving back up to Hogchester again Friday evening. Excitingly on the Saturday we will have our first expert on the land (Dorset Wildlife Trust) giving us advice about how best to begin the wildflower meadows restoration and other conservation work.

 

 

Completion Day – Hogchester Farm

by Chantal

Today we officially completed on Hogchester Farm. I can’t quite believe we are the new owners of this very special place and that in less than four months we will begin our lives there.

The farmhouse itself is being rented out for up to 6 months but we are responsible for the 60 acres of land as of today!  We will still be living in Southampton until Easter but a local farmer will be grazing his ewes in the fields to keep the grass under control.

Hogchester site as shown in the exchange report

There is a lovely 2 bed cottage attached to the farmhouse that will eventually provide income for the maintenance of Hogchester Meadows. The cottage will be available for holiday lets from next summer but until then we will be using it for our weekend visits to Hogchester and when we move to the site in Easter our family will live in the cottage for a few months until the farmhouse is ready to move into.

Today it really does feel like the next chapter is ready to begin!

Hogchester Cottage