Sally Rankin organised a visit to Kings Barn Farm near Medmenham on Sunday 16 June. Owners Susan and John Phillips very kindly led the group round the farm, showing how it is being managed to benefit wildlife. The walk started in the grassy field opposite the farm buildings. Yellow-rattle has been introduced to the field, to reduce the vigour of the grass and encourage other species. The field has a number of different grasses, including Crested Dog’s-tail and False Oat-grass – the latter had some specimens with their flower heads blackened by the fungus Ergot. Later in the summer, grasshoppers are abundant in this field. Other flowers here included Ragged-Robin and Sainfoin. Flowers on the bank at the top of the field included Bladder Campion and Common Gromwell. A Small Heath butterfly and several Straw Dot moths were noted in this field.
The next field appeared white from a distance – it was covered by a sea of Oxeye Daisies. It had been harrowed and sprayed in 2011, before being sown with a wild flower mixture. Other flowers here included Grass Vetchling and Field Madder. At the side of the field was a strip which had not been reseeded. Long-stalked Crane’s-bill flowers were seen here, together with both pink and white versions of the Hedgerow Crane’s-bill. A number of scrapes had been created in this field, to generate sheltered habitat for butterflies. One was unfenced, and here the rabbits had been at work, eating the Horseshoe and Kidney Vetch plants. The next scrape was protected by wire netting and an electric fence. Here Common Rock-rose and Horseshoe and Kidney Vetch were flourishing. There were also several plants of the scarlet-flowered Pheasant’s-eye. A Common Blue butterfly and Yellow Shell and Cinnabar moths were seen here.
Next the walk moved into the woodland. Ash was the dominant tree on the chalk at the bottom of the woods, with Dog’s-mercury, Hairy St John’s-wort, Spurge-laurel and Wood Spurge. Higher up, the vegetation changed abruptly to Bracken, Bluebells and oak trees, marking the transition to the layer above the chalk. The top of the wood was dark, below tall Beech trees. A clearing near the top had Marjoram and Common Milkwort and a Dark Bush-cricket was spotted. At the side of the clearing were thickets of old Box bushes. The path then dropped down to a clearing in the valley below, where there were Adder’s-tongue ferns and a number of Twayblades. A gall on a Ground-ivy plant was tentatively identified as Liposthenes glechomae. A Beautiful Golden Y moth posed obligingly while its picture was taken by a number of photographers. The path then emerged onto a chalk bank, where there were Harebells, a single White Helleborine in flower, Quaking-grass and Marjoram. On the far side of the field was an area with several hundred spikes of Adder’s-tongue ferns.
Pictures by Chris Ash, Rob Stallard and Jan Haseler
RDNHS trip to Kings Barn Farm, Medmenham, 16-06-13, SU813850
Plant species observed:
Meadows:
| Anthyllis vulneraria | Kidney Vetch |
| Brachipodium pinnatum | Tor-grass |
| Cirsium vulgare | Spear Thistle |
| Cynosurus cristatus | Crested Dog’s-tail |
| Dipsacus fullonum | Teasel |
| Geranium columbinum | Long-stalked Crane’s-bill |
| Geranium pyrenaicum | Hedgerow Crane’s-bill (pink and white) |
| Geum urbanum | Wood Avens |
| Glechoma hederacea | Ground-ivy |
| Hypericum perforatum | Perforate St John’s-wort |
| Lathyrus nissolia | Grass Vetchling |
| Leucanthemum vulgare | Oxeye Daisy |
| Lychnis flos-cuculi | Ragged-Robin |
| Myosotis arvensis | Field Forget-me-not |
| Onobrychis viciifolia | Sainfoin |
| Origanum vulgare (leaves) | Marjoram |
| Plantago media | Hoary Plantain |
| Potentilla anserine | Silverweed |
| Potentilla reptans | Creeping Cinquefoil |
| Prunella vulgaris | Selfheal |
| Reseda luteola | Weld |
| Rhinanthus minor | Yellow Rattle |
| Rumex acetosa | Common Sorrel |
| Sanguisorba minor | Salad Burnet |
| Sherardia arvensis | Field Madder |
| Silene latifolia | White Campion |
| Trifolium pratense | Red Clover |
| Verbascum nigrum | Dark Mullein |
| Veronica arvensis | Wall Speedwell |
| Veronica chamaedrys | Germander Speedwell |
1st Chalk Scrape:
| Anagallis arvensis | Scarlet Pimpernel |
| Campanula patula | Spreading Bellflower |
| Fumaria officinalis | Common Fumitory |
| Senecio vulgaris | Groundsel |
| Solanum nigrum | Black Nightshade |
2nd Chalk Scrape:
| Adonis annua | Pheasant’s-eye |
| Arenaria serpyllifolia | Thyme-leaved Sandwort |
| Campanula rotundifolia | Harebell |
| Clematis vitalba | Traveller’s joy |
| Geranium dissectum | Cut-leaved Crane’s-bill |
| Helianthemum nummularium | Common Rock-rose |
| Hippocrepis comosa | Horseshoe Vetch |
| Reseda lutea | Wild Mignonette |
Wood:
| Ajuga reptans | Bugle |
| Alliaria petiolata | Garlic Mustard |
| Brachypodium sylvaticum | False Brome |
| Buxus sempervirens | Box |
| Cirsium arvense | Creeping Thistle |
| Cornus sanguineus | Dogwood |
| Daphne laureola | Spurge-laurel |
| Digitalis purpurea | Foxglove |
| Euonymus europaeus | Spindle |
| Eupatorium cannabinum | Hemp-agrimony (leaves) |
| Euphorbia amygdaloides | Wood Spurge |
| Fagus sylvatica | Beech |
| Heracleum sphondylium | Hogweed |
| Hyacinthoides non-scripta | Bluebell (in fruit) |
| Hypericum hirsutum | Hairy St John’s-wort |
| Hypericum tetrapterum | Square-stalked St John’s-wort |
| Ilex aquifolia | Holly (seedling) |
| Lamiastrum galeobdolon | Yellow Archangel |
| Listera ovate | Common Twayblade |
| Lysimachia nummularia | Creeping Jenny |
| Mercurialis perennis | Dog’s Mercury |
| Primula vulgaris | Primrose (leaves) |
| Rumex sanguineus | Wood Dock |
| Pteridium aquilinum | Bracken |
| Scrophularia nodosa | Common Figwort |
| Veronica serpyllifolia | Thyme-leaved Speedwell |
Chalk hill:
| Briza media | Quaking-grass |
| Cephalanthera damasonium | White Helleborine |
| Cerastium fontanum | Common Mouse-ear |
| Convolvulus arvensis | Field Bindweed |
| Deschampsia cespitosa | Tufted Hair-grass |
| Linum catharticum | Fairy Flax |
| Ophioglossum vulgatum | Adder’s-tongue |
| Pilosella officinarum | Mouse-ear Hawkweed |
| Polygala vulgaris | Common Milkwort |
| Thymus polytrichus | Wild Thyme |
| Trisetum flavescens | Yellow Oat-grass |
Plant list by Reneé Grayer
Grasses and Sedges
| Dactylis glomerata | Cocksfoot |
| Agrostis capillaris | Common Bent |
| Cynosurus cristatus | Crested Dog’s-tail |
| Arrhenatherum elatius | False Oat-grass |
| Brachypodium sylvaticum | False Tor Grass |
| Festuca rubra | Fescue, Red |
| Festuca ovina | Fescue, Sheep’s |
| Festuca arundinacea | Fescue, Tall |
| Poa trivialis | Meadow-grass Rough |
| Poa pratensis | Meadow-grass Smooth |
| Poa nemoralis | Meadow-grass Wood |
| Lolium perenne | Perennial Ryegrass |
| Briza media | Quaking Grass |
| Phleum bertolonii | Small Timothy |
| Bromus hordeaceus | Soft Brome |
| Anisantha sterilis | Sterile Brome |
| Anthoxanthum odoratum | Sweet Vernal Grass |
| Bromus erectus | Upright Brome |
| Trisetum flavescens | Yellow Oat Grass |
| Holcus lanatus | Yorkshire Fog |
| Carex spicata | Spiked Sedge |
| Carex sylvatica | Wood Sedge |
| Carex flacca | Glaucous Sedge |
| Luzula campestris | Field Wood-rush |
Grass list by Sandra Parkinson
Butterflies and moths
| Polyommatus icarus | Common Blue |
| Maniola jurtina | Meadow Brown |
| Coenonympha pamphilus | Small Heath |
| Camptogramma bilineata | Yellow Shell |
| Tyria jacobaeae | Cinnabar |
| Autographa pulchrina | Beautiful Golden Y |
| Rivula sericealis | Straw Dot |