These wild flowers, and many others, grow on beautiful Perham Down, near Tidworth, but they are in danger of being crowded out by vigorously growing scrub. So, to keep the scrub at bay, the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust is calling for volunteers to come to Perham Down on Thursday 26th January from 10.30am to 3.30pm to do a bit of scrub bashing.
“This type of habitat, with its tightly cropped and closed sward, is so rich with wildlife that it is the grassland equivalent to rainforests. Yet more and more of it is disappearing under the plough or beneath developments,” says the Trust’s Nicky Warden, who is the Salisbury Plain Communities Wildlife Officer.
“What’s left of it needs to be looked after. If we leave the hawthorn bushes to spread over the Down they would gradually shade out the rarer chalk downland plants. By clearing the bushes, or scrub, you are helping this summer’s flowers and butterflies to prosper,” she says.
The green hairstreak uses common birds foot trefoil to feed from nectar and for laying its eggs. Perham Down is an area of Ministry of Defence land that is usually off-limits to the public, so this would be an intriguing glimpse at a little known area. And volunteers will be invited back in the summer to go on a guided walk so that they can admire the Down when it is awash with flowers and buzzing with insect life. Some of the more unusual butterflies that live on the Down include the Grizzled Skipper, Green Hairstreak, Chalkhill Blue, and Dark Green Fritillary. Please wear old clothing and outdoor shoes or boots and bring waterproofs. All tools will be supplied. Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided but you will need to bring a packed lunch with you. This event has been organised as part of the Salisbury Plain Community Wildlife and Heritage Project at the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, and funded through the European Programme ‘Sustain the Plain’.
For more info contact Nicky Warden on (01722) 792015 or email NicolaW@wiltshirewildlife.org if you would like to attend. Details of where to meet will be supplied on booking.
