Introduction
This is an ancient grassland which, unlike the majority of land around the Peterborough area, has not been subject to modern agricultural methods of farming. The reserve consists of three fields, in the largest of which can be seen the broad medieval ridge and furrow which would have been created by ox-plough. Since then it has not had artificial fertilisers or sprays and so retains the range of wildflowers typical of ancient meadows.
The site is managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire
Habitats
Lowland Hay Meadow
The s-shaped ridge and furrow present on this site with ridges about 10 metres wide was once a common feature of grasslands on the midlands clay soils. They are understood to be the result of medieval ploughing using teams of 8 oxen in order to improve the drainage of these wet soils. The likelihood is that they were last cultivated prior to the Black Death ( circa 1349).
This ancient history and continuity as grassland is the reason for their exceptional range of meadow and pasture plants.
Hedges
The meadows are surrounded by old outgrown hedgerows which provide good nesting and feeding for a range of farmland birds.
Ponds
Dew ponds dug in each field originally for watering livestock, are now breeding grounds for great crested newts, dragonflies and damselflies.
Key species
Meadow plants
The medieval ridge-and-furrow and the many ant hills provide different microhabitats for plants, including cowslip, green-winged orchid, saw-wort, pepper saxifrage, sulphur clover and dyer’s greenweed.
More damp loving plants favour the furrows such as devil’s bit scabious meadowsweet, dropwort and lady’s smock.
Breeding birds
The surrounding mature hedgerows and veteran trees provide nesting habitats for many birds including turtle dove, blackcap and whitethroat and food for winter visitors such as fieldfare and redwing.
Great crested newt
This is the largest and rarest newt found in the UK. The historical dew ponds provide good breeding habitat while the long grass of the meadows provide good foraging areas.
Further info
Cambridgeshire NNRs:
https://www.wildlifebcn.org/nature-reserves/upwood-meadows
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