Wildlife Words: What can you do to help create a healthier landscape?

Many of us probably don’t think about our local farmers on a regular basis (except when we’re stuck behind a tractor on a country road!), but they are the heart of our rural landscape, growing food, managing hedgerows, as well as supporting wildlife across the countryside. Agricultural land accounts for 71% of land nationally and 74% in Oxfordshire. And so, inevitably, the way farmland is managed will have a huge impact on the biodiversity that land can support. Farmers are now joining forces in the form of farmer clusters (or farmer-led groups) to care for the landscape, creating space for wildlife and healthier soils, wetlands, and habitats.

These groups facilitate collaborations between farmers and landowners to deliver landscape-scale conservation projects. They also act as support systems by giving guidance and enabling the sharing of experiences and knowledge. Vitally, farmer clusters are designed to be farmer-led, meaning that members play a key role in the decision-making as well as giving them a sense of ownership.

The Clumps and Ridgeway Farmer Clusters 

At Wild Oxfordshire, we are proud to facilitate two Farmer Clusters: The Clumps Farmer Cluster, a group of 14 farms located around the Wittenham Clumps, and the Ridgeway Farmer Cluster, a membership of 15 farms. Wild Oxfordshire is supporting these clusters to deliver workshops and events that meet the specific needs of local farmers. Workshops have covered a broad range of topics from soil health and hedgerow management to understanding changes in government grants and farm diversification. The clusters are also delivering on-the-ground projects, including the Ridgeway Dew Pond Project, restoring dew ponds on the Chalk Downland. Clumps Farmer Cluster has also installed signs to help walkers understand what they can do to look after the countryside. Both clusters are collaborating with neighbouring clusters to further our impact. Ridgeway Farmer Cluster is one of five clusters working together to support farmland birds and manage deer populations across the North Wessex Downs. In addition, we have been awarded funding from the Rothschild Foundation, which will support long-term development and project delivery.

How you can help 

A farmer yourself? For more information visit farmerclusters.com.

But you don’t have to be a farmer to support the countryside and your local farmers:

• Follow the countryside code – leave gates and property as you find them, follow local signs and keep to marked paths.
• Take your litter home, bag up dog poo, do not light fires and only have BBQs where signs allow them. Always keep dogs in sight and on leads around livestock and during the bird breeding season.
• Visit your local farm shop and submit any wildlife sightings to Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre.
• Buy local food where possible at farm shops and local markets.

Wildlife Oxfordshire