For those of you who read my blogs on Langdyke World, you will know that I sometimes refer to the paddock next to my property. This appears as Site HO84 on the Peterborough Site Allocation proposal DPD. As documented in the current Tribune this is one of 2 sites in Helpston currently being recommended for building on in a proposed extension of the village envelope. A minimum of 10 houses has been recommended for this site.
Although this paddock is only .78 acres the natural diversity of this field is quite outstanding and in important in terms of preservation and sympathy with the aims of the John Clare Project. Up until about 5 yrs ago it had always been sporadically grazed and as far as I know has never been ploughed. Unfortunately the site has been purposely downgraded by the owner, by not cutting the grass in recent seasons. Hence the diversity of wild flowers and butterflies that were present, have been temporarily lost.
Wildflowers previously recorded include, ox-eye daisy, vipers bugloss, marsh marigold, common poppy, tufted vetch, dwarf thistle, yarrow, fleabane, meadow cranes-bill, yellow rattle, field scabious, white dead nettle, cowslip, cornflower and bittersweet.
Butterflies recorded include comma, gatekeeper, peacock, red admiral, small tortoiseshell, large and small skipper, painted lady, common and holly blue, wood white, speckled wood, ringlet, brimstone, orange tip, and small and large heath.
However this is still an important haven for birds, bats and slow worms within the village. It is fronted by 4 mature ash trees which would also be under threat from any site development. This is home to pipistrelle bats within the ivy cover and a pair of great spotted woodpeckers. A large number of birds have used the hedging on the perimeter of the field for nesting. I have recorded yellow hammer, willow warbler, song thrush, dunnock, whitethroat, linnet, pheasant and red partridge. A pair of turtle doves successfully nested here in 2008 and it is one of two important winter roost sites in the village for tree sparrows ( both species red listed as endangered species).
An opportunity to comment on this site with Peterborough Planning will begin sometime in March. So please help me in my quest to protect this precious site for our village. Some may argue that nature will find somewhere else to go but in reality this doesn’t happen and is either severely reduced or lost forever.
Trevor Valentine
