Botanical pest goes under spotlight at HEATH seminar

Farmers, land wardens, archaeologists, ecologists and farm specialists were all brought together earlier in the week for the latest ‘Good Practice Seminar’ organised by the HEATH Project.

Held at the Centre of Pendeen on Tuesday July 29, the HEATH Project’s ‘bracken management’ seminar attracted more than thirty attendees and proved to be a great success in delivering useful tips and guidance on how to keep the moorland fern at bay.

Bracken is a large, robust fern that has come to dominate the Penwith moors in recent years. Historically, it used to be harvested and managed in order to prevent it taking over the moors, but nowadays this rarely happens. Dense bracken makes accessibility to the countryside difficult and harbours a tick that can pass Lymes disease to humans. It is also known to cause serious problems for livestock if they consume too much and has been suggested as a cause of some cancers in humans.

Discussing these issues and providing advice on containing and reducing bracken, speakers at the seminar included Ann Reynolds from the Historic Environment Service (HES); Gerald Babcock, an invasive plant control specialist; and Steve Clarke from Natural England. After the seminar the group were invited to Lanyon Farm for a demonstration of bracken control methods and a guided tour of the site by farm owner Steve Bone.

Steve Clarke, Landscapes for Biodiversity Projects Manager at the HEATH Project, says: “At low levels bracken can be beneficial by providing shade for plants like violets and bluebells, cover for birds, even food for some insects. But, too much bracken can be really damaging to our heathland diversity, swamping the heathers and other interesting plants, and driving out birds and insects that rely on the open heath, many of which used to be widespread on Penwith. It is therefore very encouraging to see so many people interested in tackling this issue attend the workshop”.

Discussing the archaeological concerns of bracken growth and spread, Ann Reynolds, Senior Archaeologist (Countryside Advice) at HES, says: “Bracken can cause serious damage to archaeological sites. During the summer months it smoothers features so visitors are unaware of the presence of some sites and cannot gain a full appreciation of others as part of the wider historic landscape. The most damaging aspect of bracken however is the root system, which forms dense rhizome mats that have been proven to actively disturb and destroy below ground remains. As such, it is important that the spread of bracken on archaeological sites is sensitively controlled and managed”.

The next and final seminar will be on September 18 at the Centre of Pendeen and will be reviewing heathland as a profitable landscape with presentations by Rob Poole from Penwith District Council and John Foster, Penwith Farm Business Advisor. For further information, please contact Jenna Palmer at the HEATH Project on 01872 245066 or jenna.palmer@naturalengland.org.uk