The land

The land comprised two fields totalling 10 acres just north of Roborough village in north Devon. 

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The six acre West Field was typical semi-improved, grazing land with Italian rye grass and foxtail grasses predominating.  Within the field, there were almost no flowering plants and very little plant diversity.  The ground was typical, heavy, red Devon soil and the field sloped gently from South to North. The field margins were Devon bank hedgerows, some of which dated back at least 800 years to mediaeval times. In other words, this was a typical, Devon, grazed field.

 

The East Field was four acres and of a much heavier clay.  Ditches brought water in from above, and some regeneration of hawthorn and willow had already occurred.  There was a pond in the centre, and the land around it had been cut for livestock bedding for several years.  Because of the clay, the field was wet and had quite a lot of soft rush (Juncus effusus) growing in it. The pond already had large numbers of frogs, newts, a moorhen family and lots of dragonflies and damselflies.