December 2015

The winter so far has been so warm that plants are in flower that should not appear for several weeks yet. A few daffodils have bloomed under the Caucasian Wing-Nut tree and in the West Meadow, although strangely not all that many snowdrops anywhere – although they can shoot up seemingly at a day's notice. The Persian Ironwood Tree was showing a few crimson flowers that usually appear in February or March.

 

We have been busy getting the reserve up to scratch for the spring open weekends and hope we will see you then. Of course the way the weather is it might be snowing by that time!  We still find it difficult at times agreeing whether to show the historic garden features or to concentrate on the nature reserve aspects. At the end of the old boating lake, for instance, was Ellen Willmott's bog garden.  Although it is higher than the lake bed it does flood from time to time and shows islands that were within it, whereas the lake never does contain water even in the heaviest rain. We have cut down some trees to show it as it was, albeit without the flowers that once grew there.

 

The hedge along the boundary with the north meadow is growing very well and soon should provide shelter for all sorts of wildlife. The silver birches planted near Post 6, by the bamboos, are doing well too. I am hoping that the Magnolia obovata seedling planted in the Walled Garden near its mother will flower this year, although I am told that since it is only about ten years old it could be several years yet before it does.

 

When you visit it is easy to come in to the Walled Garden and walk round it and out of the other side without noticing or visiting the new Information Room. If you haven't seen it yet please let yourself in and look round. During open weekends the door will normally be open (except in the rain) but at other times it is shut but not locked.

November 2015

Oh well, summer is over and winter approaching, but Warley Place still attracts many appreciative visitors and will do through the coldest months and before you know it our spring open weekends will be upon us again.

 

We are having yet another think about how we might be able to improve the visitors' experience during these open weekends. One of the things is perhaps to change the name, as it infers that the reserve is not open at other times. Safety is always a consideration and to that end some of the paths have had a material applied to make the surface less slippery. Some people have said it makes them less natural looking and this is true, but at times some of them were getting quite dangerous and the natural remedies we applied did not seem to last.

 

The biggest problem for us and visitors alike is the restricted car parking. We have made a few minor improvements which have allowed us to squeeze a few additional cars in, but a significant change could only be made by encroaching on the meadow itself. That is something we would be very reluctant to allow just for a few weeks each year.

 

You may have noticed that the additional path across the walled garden, reported in our last news, is complete and visitors can walk along it. We are not restoring Warley Place in the same way as Heligan was but occasionally we find that an original feature can be reinstated without spoiling the natural look or the site's function as a nature reserve. You may have noticed that the Pleasaunce, the area in front of the conservatory, is lighter than it was because some of the trees have been cut down. This was done after consultation with the local council, (as the area is subject to a tree preservation order) who felt it was good forestry management, but it also makes it more like its original use as an open area with a few specimen trees and surrounded by shrubs. It was originally a lawn but whether grass will grow again or not who knows. Similarly additional rockeries have been uncovered so that visitors can see what they were like, but we will not be planting anything in them. We will see what grows naturally, which is what we did with the other rockery in that area and which now includes some interesting flora.

 

We have been looking further at the maintenance of the brickwork and have spoken to various conservational bodies about the best way of doing it. A few volunteers will probably go on a historic brick restoration course to make sure it is done appropriately.

 

Regular visitors will have perhaps always been puzzled by the band of blind daffodils stretching across the daffodil bank. We have been unable to find a definite reason for this but one of those suggested was that they are too close together. An area across this strip was selected and the daffodils all dug up. They were replanted further apart and we will see what the result is next spring. A further reason could be the lack of water in the early spring but why it should affect this strip more than anywhere else would be hard to understand. However if it is particularly dry we may water part of this strip to see if that makes any difference.

 

Finally, apologies for the long gap between this news item and the previous one, due to the writer being out of action for a few months.

 

John C

June 2015

Most of the spring flowers have died down to await another season, but there is still plenty to see at Warley Place.

 

The Foxgloves are showing plenty of cover and should be at their best over the next week or two, i.e. around mid-June. They, and the rhododendrons, are providing most of the colour at the moment but there is still a lot more to see if you take your time when walking round.

 

A necessary job, but one we volunteers don't look forward to, is clearing the docks from the Walled Garden. That has now been done and it does seem that they are fewer than last year, when there were fewer than the year before that, so if we persevere perhaps we will get rid of them eventually. The problem this year is that the ground is rather dry so some of the roots break off when the plant is pulled.  We seem to have defeated the bracken on the daffodil bank by dogged perseverance so maybe we will do the same to the docks. We pulled out a considerable number of stinging nettles while we were at it, and also the Tellima grandiflora that has spread from the east end of the garden.

 

You will notice that the path being revealed across the Walled Garden is nearing completion. There was a path at this position in Ellen Willmott's time but it became overgrown until it disappeared almost completely. Annabel and Michael have spent many weary hours on their hands and knees tracing the exact location and fitting the brick edging. You will be able to walk along it when it is finished – in fact we would encourage you to, because that will help to stop the weeds growing again.

 

The other rather arduous job for us was to replace – or augment – the meadow fence posts that have rotted at their base. That is an essential task because of the need to keep the cows where they belong, but can be difficult because of the tree roots. We sink new posts, well treated with preservative, next to the old ones but sooner or later this will become a problem with too many rotting posts joined together. Perhaps short concrete buttresses that we can bolt wooden posts to may be the long term answer. They are expensive and more difficult to fix, but unless our preservative-soaked wooden posts last a lot longer than those used by the fencing contractor we'll need to do something more permanent.

 

Our motorised trailer needed a new engine and some of us thought this would be a rather expensive and perhaps we should buy a mini-tractor. Richard does not like spending EWT money unnecessarily however and bought a new engine which he fitted himself, so our old tractor has been given a new life.

 

One lovely sight early in the morning was that of four fox cubs playing together. Unfortunately when they saw me get my camera out of my bag they ran for cover, but it's a good reminder that Warley Place is a Nature Reserve, not just an old garden.

 

John C

April 2015

Well the Open Weekends have come and gone. The weather wasn't particularly good but our visitors still came in large numbers and were as enthusiastic as usual so we were well pleased.

 

The snowdrops were as numerous and varied as they always are.  Some are very large, some very small, some double, most single – and with a variety of patterns on their three inner perianth segments. They have now gone, as have most of the daffodils of which we also have a significant variety. They have been superseded by bluebells on the Daffodil Bank, looking beautiful as you walk down the steps from the Terrace, and masses of few-flowered leek which from a distance look like snowdrops. We also have a significant amount of wild garlic (ramsons) and three-cornered leek.

 

You may have noticed that one strip across the Daffodil Bank is green rather than yellow, the daffodils growing blind – i.e. without flowers. If daffodils are planted too shallowly then the flower buds die in dry springs, and if they are too congested the same thing can happen. A trial dig showed them to be very close to the surface in that area and very congested, so a one metre square was dug up and bulbs replanted deeper and more widely spaced. It will be very interesting next spring to see if they flower. If they do, then the rather onerous task of digging up the whole strip and replanting may well be undertaken.

 

Another experiment we will be undertaking regards the area round the sycamore by the inner gate. It was enclosed by a rabbit-proof fence to see if the crocuses grew better, but it did not appear to make a significant difference this year compared with last. Advice has been obtained that over-fertilisation of the ground affects crocuses adversely, so this year we are going to stop the cows getting in and we will be strimming the grass by hand. The grass will be removed so the fertility will be gradually reduced and we shall see what happens.

 

You may have noticed activity as the path leads from the drive on to the Old Orchard Garden, where there is a rockery on the right hand side. Well volunteers have now stripped the surface growth from three adjacent mounds and we anticipate revealing them as similar rockeries from Ellen Willmott's day. Who knows what plants may spring up as the light shines on long buried seeds.

 

This website has been set up and maintained separately from the main Essex Wildlife Trust website. Recently a Brentwood and Billericay site (http://www.essexwt.org.uk/get-involved/local-groups/brentwood-billericay) was set up as an adjunct of the main site, and the Warley Place website will, later this year, also be included in the EWT site. The format has yet to be finally settled but when it is up and running we will let you know.

 

John C

February 2015

Lots of work is being carried out behind the scenes to make sure that the reserve is as safe and presentable as possible for the coming Open Weekends – the first day being Saturday 28^th February, at 10 o'clock. Please come along, but don't forget to wear sensible footwear because, hard though we try, there are inevitably some muddy and slippery patches on the paths.

 

One of the things that is always difficult to resolve is the conflict between the site's value as a reminder of Ellen Willmott's beautiful garden and its function as a nature reserve. We often ask visitors for their views and most seem to be happy with the current balance but if you haven't commented already your thoughts would be appreciated and would be passed on by the volunteers serving on the gate when you visit.

 

We hope you will bear with us when parking your car, particularly on warm sunny Sundays. We simply can't enlarge it any more without encroaching on the meadow, but if you park as close to adjacent cars or trees as you reasonably can that will enable us to contain the maximum numbers before sending people to the overflow car park. If you are there first you will hopefully be guided to a place, but if not please park next to a tree and not in the middle of the space – again, to maximise the number of cars we can get in.

 

As I write this the snowdrops are starting to appear and should be showing well by the end of February. The daffodils are also coming through in enormous numbers but they of course will not show their full colour until a few weeks later, together with crocuses.

 

Although, except in the case of very strong winds, the reserve will be open, if the weather is very poor with continuous rain or snow then the gazebo may not have been erected and there may not be volunteers there to greet you. If you come in such conditions be VERY careful on the paths because they will be slippery, either wet with rain or covered in ice. Mobile phone reception is not good in some parts so even calling for help could be a problem if you are on your own.

 

Let's hope for some good weather.

 

John C

December 2014

As noted in our previous news, the new Information Room has been erected – but now it has information sheets for you to look at. All the photographs have been taken on site, either by volunteers or by Ellen Willmott. Richard has also made a couple of frames and included some examples of plant labels found on the site dating back to Ellen Willmott's time or, in the case of one item, possibly even further back. Do let us know what you think, and include any suggestions for improvements.

 

A photographer from the Gazette came to take details and some photographs after the opening and these may appear in the Christmas edition of the local paper.

 

Although a lot of work has been done to keep the paths safe we are aware that some areas are still slippery in the wet, so we are looking at ways of making them safer. Meanwhile, please do take care.

 

The cows have now gone, but evidence of their visit still exists so take care there too in case you tread in one. We would hate to find a cow-pat footprint in our nice new Information Room, and you wouldn't like one in your car!

 

Little green shoots are already popping up all over the place, mostly snowdrops, so we are looking forward to a good show this spring.

 

John C

November 2014

As visitors will no doubt have noticed, our new Information Room has been erected, although not yet fitted out with information. It will have large A1 sized framed posters with pictures of Warley Place as it was in Ellen Willmott's time and also information about what you can see now. This will all be done well before the open weekends in spring next year, possibly 'trial' information sheets first to see how they look. The whole project has been carried out through a kind and generous donation.

 

The area round the sycamore by the inner gate has been sealed off from rabbits and cattle, and strimmed ready for the emerging crocuses. We will be looking very carefully at how these measures affect the growth of the flowers.

 

In my last news I said that the mapping had been taken over by Brian Dawson. Sorry Bob, Brian was an old friend of mine from the past. It's Bob Dawson who is doing this work.

 

I also reported the loss of my camera. Well it's been retrieved, so I can go on photographing volunteers at work. It was used to take some of the pictures you will see in the information room, and will now take many more.

 

 Although the wet weather makes work difficult at times, we have been continuing to pull up bamboo, which sprouts all over the place, and Japanese Knotweed which appears in very few places now. We have also been cutting and splitting logs for sale, and those of us transporting them to be stored have been very thankful for the cart's change to mechanised rather than human propulsion. Even so, on soft ground a lot of pushing and grunting takes one back to those years ago when that's all we had.

 

We had some very sad news recently. Paul Carter, the owner of Warley Place, has passed away. He was a great friend to all of us and was ready to help whenever we needed it. He used to man the gate at open weekends and you would never know the place belonged to him. We will miss him very much indeed.