Habitat Restoration

Helping our local wildlife means looking after their habitats. This can include ongoing maintenance such as the work Yaxley Countryside Volunteers does in the Community Orchard, enhancing habitats with planting spring bulbs as at Pound Lane and restoring the ancient hedgerows in the Recreation Ground.

There are many hedgerows that used to surround the fields in and around Yaxley. Over time many were lost due to modern farming methods or swallowed up by development but some remain as property boundaries and fragments of hedgerow like those still found in the Recreation Ground. These hedgerows are at least two hundred years old and remain a visible reminder of past field patterns.

Hedgerows had a practical purpose for marking boundaries and for the control of farm animals. They are also a wonderful habitat for wildlife. Traditionally hedges were planted with hawthorn – quick to grow and an effective barrier to animals. Over time other types of trees and shrubs would become part of a hedge and as diversity increases so does their value for wildlife. Hedges provide food, places to nest and cover for hibernation in winter. Many thousands of miles of hedgerow were removed from our landscape after WW2 as farm machinery got bigger and so did the fields.

YCV and the Parish Council are working together to restore some sections of hedgerow by replanting the gaps with a mixture of hawthorn and other native species such as holly and hazel. At the moment they are fenced off to protect the young saplings from being eaten by deer. As they grow and become established over the next few years we will eventually be able to remove the fencing.

As well as the restored hedgerows you can also find Willow Pond in the Rec. This is an important breeding site for local amphibians – in particular for frogs. By the time you are reading this there may well be frog spawn in the pond. It is important that the spawn is undisturbed so that it can develop into tadpoles. We would ask that users of the Rec don’t throw things into the pond and keep dogs out of the water.

If you would like to help us please do get in touch:

secretary@ ycv.org