The vibrant green changes to a dark green once the growth halts ...............
.......and soon afterwards more obvious colour changes indicate that it is dying back.
Eventually this leads to bronzing, starting witha few plants and soon affecting all.
We then get the attractive golds and oranges that are welcome winter attractions when much else has lost its colour.
This notice shows that SRWT are once again treating Blacka as farm land or grouse moor land where only approved plants and trees are allowed to survive.
They can do this because they have found a way of accessing public money to do so. There are the usual phrases about 'precious heathland' and 'internationally threatened' (Putin gets everywhere these days) all contributing to a flaky justification for poisoning native plantlife on the part of a wildlife trust that claims they are protecting the wild character of the land! We're also familiar with statements to the effect that the Asulox spray 'is not usually harmful' (note the 'usually' - would that mean e.g. only 1 in 10 people?)
I saw two notices, one of which was actually inside the sheep enclosure. Approaching the spraying area from Blacka Hill I saw no notice. Doubtless the soft fruit would have also received its share of the weedkiller
If you browse and eat as you walk you may not see the notice until too late. These are certainly not organic! And the spray will not have enhanced nutritional value.
The use of Asulam (Asulox is the brand name) is banned by the EU but Natural England has gained a special one year dispensation for 'Emergency' use under very strict conditions. It would be interesting to know the criteria for an emergency applied by the local NE branch to allow this.
There are clear directions for when and how you apply Asulam spray, available on the manufacturers website:
"Asulox, they tell us, is not approved .... for application via weedwipers or driftsprayers"
As SRWT's notice tells us a tractor will be used and I guess that means a weedwiper.
" Do not cut the bracken or admit livestock for at
least 14 days after treatment"
Cows were wandering around not far from the sprayed area
this morning. In previous years I've seen cows grazing in the precise area of
spraying the same day.
Spraying should be done when bracken is vigorously growing before senescence."Senescence in bracken can be identified with the start of the fronds turning darker green, becoming glossy and hard to the touch with subsequent bronzing"
Bracken on Blacka has been dark green and glossy for
several weeks and showing clear signs of yellowing and bronzing.
In all their management practices SRWT are going against the spirit of minimal management on a natural site where the default should be to allow natural processes to follow their own course. Persecuting trees, including mature birch, oak, holly and pine has allowed bracken to have a free run when the presence of these trees had been clearly demonstrated as controlling bracken naturally. This has been crazy intervention and inexcusable intrusion. They are correcting what they call an invasive species which they have themselves encouraged. The invasive species that we should be worried about here is man, in the form of obsessive management.
It also shows once again that SRWT and other local managers are little different in essentials to those who manage grouse moors for shooting. An interesting article from 2012 relates to Scotland but is worth reading as are the comments below:
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