Reeves Meadows

The missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle, Reeves Meadows in Thelnetham joins together Hinderclay Fen with Suffolk Wildlife Trusts Thelnetham Middle Fen and our outlying site Carr Meadow. Purchased in August 2019 Reeves Meadows, is a really important acquisition for us, it now creates a continuous corridor of land managed for conservation from Thelnetham Ford to Hinderclay Fen.

Since we aquired the site we have held a meeting of our Conservation Advisory Group (CAG) to discuss the furture of the site. We have started to getaher together information on the site such as level surveys, soil samples, invertebrate and botainical data.

This summer was the first time we could really start to explore the site. Across the site the grassland varied significantly – the main meadow is suitable for hay, the middle part of the meadow overrun with ragwort – which is really important for a wide range of insects but may cause us headaches in the future. While the area closest to the river is half dry grassland with finer grasses, flowering plants and ant hills and half wet grassland with alder saplings happily growing happily. A walk through the long grass revealed over 100 Pyramidal Orchids, several Bee Orchids and even a few Southern Marsh Orchids.

 Pyramidal Orchid © Rowena Langston

Plans for the Future

For the next few years continue to take a hay cut from the main meadow – need to make sure the hay stays clean with no ragwort or hemlock in it otherwise the farmer will not be able to take it for hay. Sheep will graze the main meadow after the hay cut, and the middle meadow to reduce the thatch – with possibly some light grazing on the two areas by the river, for the next few years while we work out what the best management of the site is – it might be a different grazing regime, using different animals or no grazing. More surveys are required – invertebrate, botanical. Link to wider catchment projects looking at siltation affecting our sites. Access, interpretation and public enjoyment.

Access 

There are two public footpaths which cross the site one runs from Church Lane and the other from Thelnetham Church both head into Hinderclay Fen and the Angles Way (permissive path) runs across Reeves Meadows joining Hinderclay Fen and Thelnetham Middle Fen together. Signs will be put up on site when the sheep are due to be grazing just reminding people to keep their dogs on a lead and under control.

Read more

As they are produced, survey reports on the wildlife, landscape and soils of the meadow will be made available in our Archive.

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