Bentley Priory Nature Trail

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Bentley Priory is one of the best known open spaces in How to find the reserve Stanmore Common Harrow. Originally one space comprising the house and car park on Warren Bentley Priory Nature grounds of Bentley Priory, a stately mansion built in 1775 Lane with the distinguished and unorthodox Sir John Soane as architect, the two were separated when the house was Reserve occupied by the RAF and used as an operation centre during B Nature trail and information leaflet the Battle of Britain in the Second World War. Bentley A Priory house now hosts a museum describing this role. Stanmore Bentley Priory Station Geology The 66 hectares of the reserve slope southwards Nature Reserve from the edge of the Stanmore Hill ridge in the north. The C lower part is London clay but as one climbs north the clay is D overlayed by the pebbly Claygate beds with a cap of G F quaternary gravels on the ridge, creating an acid soil. When E water trickling down through the gravel reaches the clay a H number of springs emerge and form streams. Maintenance The Park is managed by voluntary wardens Map above reproduced by permission of Geographers' A-Z who work to record species and enhance the site's Map Co. Ltd. (c)Crown Copyright 2009. All rights reserved. biodiversity. Larger scale work, such as mechanical cutting Licence number 100017302. of the open areas to prevent scrub growth, is performed by The map indicates gates into the reserve: contractors. A: 5-bar gate on Common Road Dogs Bentley Priory is a nature reserve and the wildlife has B: Gate on Priory Drive C: Aylmer Drive priority. Spring Meadow is the most important bird nesting D: Embry Way E: Old Lodge Way site and all dogs should be on leash here during the months F: Bentley Way G: Masefield Avenue of April, May and June. Signs on the entrance gates will H: Track then path beside Lower Priory Farm alert dog walkers to this rule. Well trained dogs can be Buses 340 and H12 run along the A410 Uxbridge allowed to run free on the rest of the reserve and on Spring Road/Church Road, 258 along Brookshill/Common Road, Meadow July-March. However dogs must never be allowed and 142 and 615 along Stanmore Hill. to chase the resident wildlife or the cows; if you do not trust From Stanmore Station (Jubilee line) walk or take the 340 your dog, please keep it leashed at all times. bus to the junction with Old Lodge Way. Contacts: At the time of printing there is no direct access from Chief warden: Peter Peretti  020 8954 2918 Bentley Priory museum to the Nature Reserve; use gate B. Deputy Warden: Sue Kabel 07759 781592 Limited kerbside parking is available in Old Lodge Way email: [email protected] and Masefield Avenue. Gate B is a short walk from the Harrow Nature Conservation Forum www.harrowncf.org Stanmore Common car park on Warren Lane. email: [email protected] Leaflet produced by Harrow Nature Conservation Forum Post: 40 Walton Drive, HA1 4XA The development of this nature trail was the result of a joint April 2016 project between Harrow Council and Harrow Nature Conservation Forum, as part of a 2012 Green Grid initiative to improve the borough's open spaces for people Bentley Priory Nature Reserve and wildlife - and improve the connections between them. needs volunteers. If you would like The aim of the initiative, developed by Harrow Council's to help, whether at one of our Place Shaping team, was to encourage healthy living and working parties or as part of the access to nature. warden team, contact the wardens or Harrow Nature Conservation Further information from: 020 8863 5611 Forum. Web: http://www.harrow.gov.uk/ Post 4: Field maple Acer campestre grows on both sides of Post 10: In 2012 the Bentley Priory Nature Reserve Post 17: The tiny island to the left is called Scott Island, in the path. Field maple is a small tree or bush and, unlike its Management Committee was awarded a Heritage Lottery honour of Sir Walter Scott. A small gazebo stood on the relative the sycamore, is a true English native. The leaves Fund grant to clear scrub that was invading the grassland, island in the 19th century, and it was here in the summer of are very like those of sycamore, although much smaller. and this has paid for the clearance of the area to the right of 1807 that Scott wrote the epic poem Marmion. Scott made this point. The seeds of the grassland plants lie dormant in his name as a poet, but later because famous as a writer of Along this section of the path look out for coppiced the soil for many years. As soon as the scrub is cleared, they popular novels including Rob Roy and Ivanhoe. hornbeams, mainly on the left side. A coppiced tree is cut germinate and restore the lovely flower-rich meadowland. down all the way to the base, and grows out a mass of new Post 18: To the right is the magnificent Master Oak. This is young branches to form a tight bush. Coppicing allows the Here the nature trail bears to the right and crosses the first certainly 350 years old, and was therefore alive during growth of many more ground level plants than are found in of many wet spots then continues down The Greensward. If Charles II's reign; it may well be much older. From this mature woodland, while the tight bush-like coppice stands the ground just ahead is too boggy for your footwear, you point, bear left and follow the path beside the brick dam. are perfect for nesting birds including blackbird, robin, should instead bear left at this point. The path will lead you Post 19: You can now see that Summerhouse Lake is wren, dunnock and blackcap. back to Deer Path. artificial, formed at the time of the Marquis of Abercorn by Post 5: You are now entering Heriots Wood, a larger Post 11: As we descend The damming the valley of the Stanburn that falls away to the expanse of ancient woodland dominated by hornbeam. Greensward, the soil becomes southeast. The small tree by the post is an elm Ulmus Older hornbeam trees often develop an interesting pattern less acid, and the composition procera. Elm leaves are often highly assymetric at the base. on their bark, ridges crossing and recrossing to form of the grassland flora changes Dutch Elm Disease kills any plants that grow larger than diamond patterns. See if you can find examples here or as subtly. Look out for the blue these small trees here, but elm is still common as a woody you walk on up the path. flower spikes of bugle Ajuga shrub in this area of the reserve. From here, go over the stile reptans (see illustration at and turn left along the track. To the left a second number 5 marker post sits in a shallow right) and the tiny white ditch. This is a parish boundary and probably predates the Post 20: At this point one path bears right into Mase Field, flowers of lesser stitchwort Marquis of Abercorn. On our side of the ditch we are in but we keep straight on into Stanburn Wood. In spring this Stellaria graminea. Lesser Great Stanmore; Harrow Weald lies the on other side. area of woodland is lovely with the white flowers of wood stitchwort, which flowers from anemone, the yellow flowers of lesser celandine, and the Post 6: The metal fence on the right encloses a private deer May through August, has five blue dog violet. park with fallow deer. The deer are descendants of the herd petals, but each is so deeply introduced by the Marquis of Abercorn. They love to be fed divided that at first glance one Post 21: Just ahead is a second number 21 marker post, but carrots, apples and other vegetables - but please do not give would say that the flower has the ground between can be extremely boggy. The second them bread, which will make them ill. ten petals. Later in the year post marks another of Sir John Kelk's plantings: an oriental (June through September) look plane Platanus orientalis, native to southeastern Europe. It Post 7: Not many plants for birds foot trefoil Lotus bears lovely large, deeply cut palmate leaves. A hybrid can grow in the dry, corniculatus; the flowers are between this species and the American sycamore Platanus shady environment of the like those of peas and when occidentalis generated the London plane which graces many forest floor in high fully open are bright yellow, streets in central London. Bear right through the squeeze summer. Two that can, but as they open the petals are stile and then bear left at the arrow post. enchanters nightshade tinged bright orange, giving Bugle by Marian Sartin. Circaea lutetiana and Post 22: The tree in the angle between the two streams is an the plant its alternative name of bacon and egg plant. wood avens Geum alder Alnus glutinosa. Alders love wet places, although they urbanum, grow to the left As you proceed beyond post 11, look out for the arrow post can tolerate dryer locations and are often planted as street of the path here. that directs you to the right and off The Greensward. trees. They bear characteristic dark fruits that resemble pine Enchanters nightshade cones. From here the trail crosses the Stanburn on the Post 12: This pine grove is one of three planted by Sir John bears a spike of delicate remains of a dam dating from the Marquis of Abercorn's Kelk, an eminent Victorian engineer who bought Bentley little white flowers (see time. Keep to the centre to remove any danger of falling, Priory house and the estate in 1863. The pine needles form a illustration at right) while and take care that small children do not slip. lovely soft carpet underfoot. From here, the nature trail runs wood avens bears simple straight ahead and descends towards Summerhouse Lake, Post 23: The tree nearer the stream, with two boles, is a yellow flowers like a which soon comes into sight in front of you. pendunculate oak, the species we have seen many of. But buttercup, and later the tree with three boles on the other side is a sessile oak characteristic balls of Post 13: Look for a second number 13 marker post ahead Quercus petraea. This is named sessile because it bears its seeds each with a hook to and to the left. This marks a sweet chestnut tree Castanea acorns closely apposed to the twig. The leaves of the two catch onto the fur of sativa, probably another planting by Sir John Kelk. In a Enchanters nightshade by oak species are subtly different (see illustration below). passing animals (see Stephen Bolsover good year, trees in England produce nuts large enough to be illustration below). worth harvesting and roasting, but in most years the nuts are Go ahead and through a fence into Hornbeam Wood. A best left for squirrels. boardwalk on the left leads back to Old Lodge Meadow. Post 8: The majestic oak tree on the right of the path is a turkey oak Quercus cerris. At this point you turn right and follow the path around the Oak leaves from Bentley Priory The acorns are borne in a hairy cup like a lake. In winter, listen for feeding flocks of siskin high in the bird's nest. As you continue up notice a trees, feeding on the seeds in pine and alder cones. In spring clump of mistletoe Viscum album at the top look out for woodland flowers including primroses Primula of a hawthorn bush. Mistletoe can grow on vulgaris, wood anemone Anemone nemorosa and the yellow a number of trees, but hawthorn is a buttercup-like flowers of lesser celandine Ranunculus relatively unusual host. At the signpost, ficaria (see below). Ramsons or wild garlic Allium ursinum turn left onto the metalled Weald Path. has pretty white flowers and is easily recognised by its garlic smell. Post 9: The metal fence to the right is the Wood avens boundary of what was the RAF land. by Stephen Bentley Priory house lies within, but is The sessile Bolsover difficult to see behind the screen of trees. oak has no auricles. Wood The pedunclate The open land here is acid grassland, full of bright flowers anemone and oak has rounded in spring and summer. Look out especially for tormentil lobes called It has longer Potentilla erecta, a member of the rose family with masses lesser auricles at the leaf stalks of small yellow flowers. Unusually for the rose family, celandine. leaf base. (petioles). Image by tormentil flowers have four, rather than five, petals. Later in Pedunculate oak Sessile Oak the year (July, August and September) look for the yellow Steve daisy-like flowers of ragwort Senecio jacobaea, the blue Bolsover Post 24: You are now back in Old Lodge Meadow. In April, pom-poms of devils-bit scabious Succisa pratensis (see May and June look for the violet-pink blooms of cuckoo illustration below), and harebell Campanula rotundifolia, flower Cardamine pratensis. Like all crucifers, the four the Scottish bluebell. Just ahead is a patch of gorse Ulex flower petals are arranged in a simple symmetric cross. At europaeus, another plant that likes acid, well-drained soils. the same time of year look It flowers all year round so whatever the season you should for the orange-tip butterfly, be able to find flowers somewhere on it. Post 14: To the left you can see a marshy area at the head of the lake. This is home to a number of wetland plants whose caterpillars feed on including marsh marigold or kingcup Caltha palustris, a cuckoo-flower. Males are member of the buttercup family with broad simple leaves. unmistakable, with orange The bright yellow flowers appear in April through June. tips to their forewings, while females are all white. Herons can often be seen here hunting for frogs. In winter, a Later in the year look for lucky observer will see a kingfisher perched on a post or the purple flowers of stump at the water's edge. These lovely birds regularly common knapweed overwinter around the lake but are wary and surprisingly Centaurea nigra (see Devils-bit difficult to spot. illustration at left). scabious. Post 15: This short ride connects the open ground of Spring Knapweed Knapweed flowers are Image by Meadow to the west with Summerhouse Lake. It is kept by Rosemary typical thistle-shaped, but Steve open to provide a flyway for bats. Bats flying above Etheridge unlike thistles the plant Bolsover Bentley Priory or nesting in holes in old trees include itself is not prickly. Daubenton's, noctule, pipistrelle, soprano pipistrelle and Post 25: This is Boot Pond, so called because of its shape. From here on a clear day we have a glorious view right natterer's. In December 2014 the “toe” of the pond was closed off across London to Box Hill and Leith Hill, 50 km away (see from the remainder to form a shallow pond from which fish illustration below). At this point you leave the metalled path Post 16: This mound and another ten metres to the south are excluded. The hope is that this will allow amphibians, and descend the grassy ride called The Greensward. (with the arrow post on top) are all that remain of two ice houses. Before the invention of electric refrigerators, ice especially newts, to breed. ill y Skyline l le H was cut from the lake and stored in the half-buried il l From here it is a short walk back to the Old Lodge Way gate a th H i from post 9 buildings. The ice would last well into the summer and V e and the end of the trail. We hope you have enjoyed it. Please x e o l L could then be carried up to the house at the top of the hill as send any comments, photographs, and notes about B o M needed. In late April through May this area of the woodland interesting species seen to [email protected]. is a carpet of bluebells.