Our Wild Steward’s Diary - October at Maple Farm

This is a new blog series by Maple Farm’s Wild Steward, Conor McNeil. The Wild Stewards programme places young people into paid, key decision-making roles in active nature recovery projects for one year, providing them with seminar and training opportunities as well as operational support, and facilitating shared learning between the Wild Stewards and the Youngwilders core team. The programme was launched by our Charity’s partner, Youngwilders in September 2024. 

On the 16th October, I carried out my first official site visit to Maple Farm as a Wild Steward! 

The morning consisted of a valuable walk & talk with some wonderful individuals from Natural England and Surrey Wildlife Trust, instigated by SWT’s Daniel Banks. We set out to investigate the meaning behind a strong population of nightingales on the farm. This was in response to finding evidence of 5 nesting pairs back in May, during a Youngwilders Wayfinders event. A mosaic of habitats were examined and enormous hedgerows admired, all while a substantial amount of knowledge and insight was being shared! 

In the afternoon, Molly and I carried out an experimental sowing of yellow rattle. With a rusty scythe and a lack of skill wielding it, we reverted to sheering a 6x2m area. After disturbing the soil via raking, we applied half a pencil case full of seed to the bare ground. To ensure the settlement of the seeds we provided some man made poaching of the soil. Yellow rattle is semi-parasitic and will play a vital role in turning a grass field into a wildflower meadow! 

With the remaining sunlight, I proceeded to remove the tree guards used to protect a hedge put in by Youngwilders a few years back. The hedgerow whips have been very successful in their growth, therefore, it is time for them to be fully exposed to the elements!