Our local NE adviser has told us that this year farmers in the Marden area will be allocating yet more land to conservation as part of the national Nature Recovery project – possibly more than any other area in Kent.
This will include grassland being restored to encourage wildflowers and insects, and the birds that depend on them; large swathes of arable land will be growing plants to produce pollen and nectar to help restore insects; more fields will have crops to provide seed for birds in winter, and turtle doves in spring. In addition, some woodland is being allowed to expand naturally, and other areas put aside to develop into scrub – possibly one the richest habitats for plants and animals.
Wedged between two Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) – Marden Meadow and the River Beult – it will create a substantial contribution to wildlife in Kent.
