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Taking action for nature one step at a time

Green Farm by Paul Lane

Julie reads up on Monkwood's history and reflects on a future with green corridors and plenty of wildlife...

As I get older I find history more interesting. In fact I have been reading the history of Monkwood recently, which was researched by the Wichenford history group. I’m sure I hated history at school, all full of dust and old things, but now I find that looking back is just as exciting as looking forward. Dom’s blog last month gave us a fantastic insight into what the future may be like at Monkwood with bison and ponies and beavers; a really positive news story that we can dream about when sometimes nature seems to be getting a raw deal.

What I learnt from my recent reading was that Monkwood was part of a parcel of land given to the Bishop of Worcester in AD 757 by the King of Mercia. The King was Beorhtwulf (bright wolf) but it seems it's not the Beowulf of the fabulous Anglo Saxon poem, which is far too long to tell here. It puts Monckewood firmly in the ownership of the church until 1546 when it was surrendered to Henry VIII. We probably know what happened to a lot of woodland at this time as Henry invested heavily in the country’s naval fleet and needed vast amounts of timber. By the time we reach 1870, approximately just 5% of England was covered in woodland. Monkwood was roughly the same size then as it is now but, hopefully, in the future it will be part of Dom’s vision of the West Midlands National Park in 150 years.

Man planting a sapling in a hedgerow in the sunshine

Hedge planting by Katrina Martin/2020VISION

We are looking to current and future generations to ensure beautiful and valuable nature reserves like Monkwood survive and flourish. Organisations like the Wildlife Trusts are urging people to act now and to act locally, to find ways to help improve areas for wildlife and to be proactive. We are aiming at one in four people taking action for nature. Imagine how much we would achieve if this was the case.

The project at Monkwood, to recreate historic habitats such as orchards and wood pasture as well as restoring several of the meadows to their former glory, needs to be part of this acton for nature.  The additional land at Green Farm offers a wonderful opportunity to connect Monkwood to other sites of high value for wildlife in the area.

Part of my role has led to meetings with head teachers at local primary schools to discuss how the Trust can best support them in encouraging young people to enjoy nature and to believe in the importance of natural spaces for all of us. We know that nature makes us feel better, we know that getting outside helps our mental health so it needs to be part of daily life. But how to get a generation born into computers, gaming and virtual reality, outdoors? I’ll let you know how I get on! A positive is that the 9th Worcester Scouts group have been out to Monkwood as part of their Naturalist Activity Badge. It was lovely to see them one rainy evening walking the routes of Monkwood and Green Farm looking for litter and being careful not to tread on flora and fauna off the paths.

There is already so much good stuff going on in the local villages. Some, for example. have had access to Natural Networks advice and funding, which is a partnership between Worcestershire Wildlife Trust and Worcestershire County. It aims to help create and enhance wildlife corridors across the county. Once registered, the programme team offers advice and grants, in a two-stage process, to projects that aim to restore wildlife-rich habitats. Areas in Martley and Hallow have used this support to develop areas for wildlife that will enhance habitats and create pockets of green space that maybe over time will be joined together by wildlife corridors. Hopefully we can all benefit from these wonderful achievements by people acting now and locally.

Many many years ago I found a lovely quote that stuck in my head and it is still important today...

Whatever befalls the earth befalls the sons of the earth. Man did not weave the web of life; he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself. Where is the thicket? Gone. Where is the eagle? Gone. And what is it to say goodbye to the swift pony and the hunt? The end of living and the beginning of survival.

Some of you may recognise this. It is attributed to Chief Seattle who gave a speech in 1854 to The Big Chief at Washington. It has definitely influenced my life and career because I knew when I read it that I needed to do something positive to help the earth, so that we can get back the ponies and the bison and the beavers.

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