Habitat Creation Nursery Update: April- July

Menyanthes trifoliata- Bogbean

Photograph by Sophie Carruthers

By Sophie Carruthers, Trainee Plant Nursery Manager

As you might expect, our focus has been on growing plants for Langwith. Thousands have already gone out and into the ground, giving the nursery some precious space – though we have, true to form, immediately filled it with younger plants for next year!  

So far, the main species being planted are the sedges which prefer deeper water, but we are always looking ahead so that we’re ready for future planting. Although some of our plants can be propagated very quickly, especially if you can take cuttings, some can take up to two years if grown from seed, so planning is essential.  

We’re also experimenting with using reusable root trainers for Phragmites. If successful, these will grow smaller plugs but with much deeper roots, allowing us to fit far more plants in a smaller space without compromising on their chances of survival – not to mention, they’ll be quicker and easier to plant, as they can go into a thin trench, like planting whips.  

The extra heat of the polytunnel, so welcome on those icy winter mornings, has been quite a challenge during these heatwaves. Irrigation has been more important than ever, and it isn’t unusual to find frogs, toads or newts sheltering in the cool damp between the pots.  

In addition to our Langwith work, we’ve started on our Dales to Vale River Network project. This has two sides to it: 1) To create a living library of local willows and 2) To explore options for creating pre-planted mats, made from sustainable and affordable materials, to stabilise riverbanks and help with suppression of invasive weeds, such as Himalayan balsam.  

It has also been a busy few months for visits to the nursery, as we had groups from Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust, North Yorkshire Council, Yorkshire Dales Millenium Trust and Wensleydale School. We also visited the East Keswick Wildlife Trust, who came to see us earlier in the year, and spent a wonderful day seeing some of the great work they have been doing and their new soon-to-be fen area.