Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23

(Summary Version)

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Produced April 2019

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Unit 3, Tannery Court Business Centre, Knight Road, Strood, Rochester, Kent ME2 2JH www.plantlife.org.uk/ranscombe email: [email protected] Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RanscombeFarm Follow us on Twitter at @Ranscombe_Farm

Plantlife International - The Wild Plant Conservation Charity is a charitable company limited by guarantee. Registered in England and Wales, Charity Number: 1059559. Registered in Scotland, Charity Number: SC038951 Registered Company Number: 3166339. Registered in England and Wales

CONTENTS

1. Introduction ...... 2 2. Site Description ...... 3 2.1. Site general description – location, size, boundaries, tenure ...... 3 2.2. Ranscombe’s importance for biodiversity ...... 5 Plants ...... 5 Plants of conservation importance at Ranscombe Farm Reserve ...... 6 Animals ...... 7 Habitats ...... 9 Arable farmland ...... 9 Grassland ...... 9 Woodland ...... 10 Interfaces between habitats ...... 11 2.3. Ranscombe’s landscape and historical importance ...... 12 Landscape ...... 12 Archaeological and historical features ...... 12 Land-use history ...... 13 2.4. Ranscombe’s importance for people ...... 14 Public use – access provision, visitor numbers ...... 14 Visitor Appeal and Suitability for Access ...... 14 Access Provision ...... 15 Visitor Facilities ...... 16 Delivering management of the site ...... 17 3. Aims and Action Plan ...... 18 3.1. Vision and aims ...... 18 3.2. Action for biodiversity, landscape and heritage ...... 19 Arable farmland ...... 19 Grassland - grazing ...... 19 Grassland - cutting ...... 20 Woodland – coppicing and open space ...... 21 Woodland – veteran trees ...... 22 Control of invasive plants ...... 22 Other activities supporting biodiversity and landscape ...... 22 Monitoring wildlife and assessing success ...... 23 Supporting archaeological studies ...... 23 3.3. Action to create a welcoming place ...... 24 Improving visitor facilities ...... 24 Improving access for all ...... 24 3.4. Action to keep the site well-maintained, clean, safe and secure ...... 25 Site safety ...... 25 Cleanliness, litter and dog-fouling ...... 25 3.5. Action to involve the community ...... 26 Activities on site ...... 26 Opportunities for volunteering ...... 26 Interpretation and keeping in touch ...... 27 3.6. Managing the Process ...... 27

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 1 of 27

1. Introduction Ranscombe Farm Reserve is Plantlife’s flagship nature reserve and its largest nature reserve in England. The third iteration of the reserve management plan runs from 2018 to 2023, and is a large and technical document with provides a detailed description and analysis of the site’s biological and cultural interest and its importance as accessible open space serving the people of the Medway Towns and beyond.

This Summary Management Plan has been prepared in order to provide a non-technical and shortened version of the full management plan. It is intended to be more accessible and readable than the full plan, while still covering all the relevant detail. Electronic copies of the full management are available on request, using the contact details on page 2 of this document.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 2 of 27

2. Site Description

2.1. Site general description – location, size, boundaries, tenure

Ranscombe Farm Reserve is a large protected site which serves both to conserve some of the UK’s most important wildlife and to provide extensive public access to the countryside. The site is of national importance for its arable habitats and woodland, and is particularly important for rare wild plants associated with arable farmland, for which the site is of international significance. Further details of the site’s designated conservation status are available as an appendix.

Situated to the west of the Medway Towns, it measures some 260 hectares (640 acres) in extent, and is bounded to the east by the High Speed Rail Link and the built-up part of Strood, and to the south by the Chatham-Victoria mainline railway and the village of Cuxton. To the west it abuts the National Trust’s holding of Cobham Wood and Mausoleum.

Approximately 130 ha (321 acres) of the site is woodland, of which the majority is ancient woodland, though most of the woodland at Mill Hill dates from the mid-19th Century, while two small blocks on the eastern edge of the site consist of woodland planting associated with the construction of the High Speed Rail Link in the 1990s.

Around 90 ha (222 acres) of the site is arable farmland, which is managed commercially by a tenant farmer.

38 ha (94 acres) of the site consists of grassland, some 14ha of which is in the lease held by the tenant farmer, while 23 is seasonally grazed by the farmer under a grazing licence.

The site is in the freehold of Medway Council and Plantlife. The Medway land is leased to Plantlife, who are responsible for the management of the whole site. Details of land tenure are available as an appendix.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 3 of 27

Figure 1. Aerial image of Ranscombe Farm Reserve (outlined red), with key place-names.

Cobham Wood & Mausoleum (National Trust) Cobham Woods Strood

Head Barn Birch Wood The Plotlands Wood

Kitchen Magpie Field Clary Shaw Field

Merrals Brockles Field Shaw Mill Hill

The Main Knock entrance

Cuxton

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 4 of 27

2.2. Ranscombe’s importance for biodiversity

Plants Ranscombe has for many years been known as a site of major importance for rare and threatened wild flowers, especially those wild flowers associated with arable farmland. Twelve species of wild flowers found at Ranscombe are included on the UK ‘Red List’ because they are under threat of extinction. Of these, eight are plants mainly associated with the arable farmland, including ground-pine, broad-leaved cudweed, narrow-fruited cornsalad, fine-leaved fumitory and prickly poppy. Others, associated with grassland and woodland, include fly orchid, man orchid and lady orchid.

A further twenty-five species are listed as ‘near- threatened’ or included on other schedules of rare or threatened species, such as the Kent Rare Plant Figure 2. Man orchid Register. These include arable farmland plants such as blue pimpernel, corncockle, corn-mint and rough mallow, but also a good number of plants associated with grassland such as harebell, clustered bellflower and burnet rose.

Ranscombe is particularly important for broad-leaved cudweed, a very rare plant of arable farmland with only 7 or 8 remaining locations in the UK; Ranscombe probably has at least 95% of the entire UK population of this species. In addition, Ranscombe is probably the last remaining reliable native site for corncockle, a species still officially listed as extinct in the wild in Britain. At a Kent level, the site is also important for hairy lady’s-mantle, which is the only native lady’s-mantle species which still occurs in Kent, and which has its only Kent site in the woodland at Ranscombe.

Overall, more than 400 plant taxa (species, subspecies and hybrids) have been recorded at Ranscombe. This includes eleven orchid species which, in addition to those listed above, include white helleborine, bird’s-nest orchid, early purple orchid and bee orchid. Some species have particularly large populations at Ranscombe – in addition to the exceptional population of broad- leaved cudweed, the population of narrow-fruited cornsalad is high at around 30,000 plants in some years, while the population of fly orchids (around 100 plants) is also significant. For two plant species, Ranscombe was the first known UK location: these are meadow clary (first recorded in the 1690s) and rough mallow (first recorded in the 1790s). The box Figure 3. Broad-leaved cudweed on the following page details those species of conservation importance.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 5 of 27

Plants of conservation importance at Ranscombe Farm Reserve Over 400 taxa of higher plants have been recorded from Ranscombe Farm. Of these, 38 have some kind of national or local nature conservation status. These are:

UK Red Data List status Endangered (RDB 2) Man Orchid Aceras anthropophorum Ground-pine Ajuga chamaepitys Broad-leaved Cudweed Filago pyramidata Field Gromwell Lithospermum arvense Lady Orchid Orchis purpurea Narrow-fruited Cornsalad Valerianella dentata

UK Red Data List status Vulnerable (RDB 3) Stinking Chamomile Anthemis cotula Rye Brome Bromus secalinus White Helleborine Cephalanthera damasonium Fine-leaved fumitory Fumaria parviflora Fly Orchid Ophrys insectifera Prickly Poppy Papaver argemone

UK Red Data List status Near Threatened Dwarf Spurge Euphorbia exigua Common Cudweed Filago vulgaris Meadow Clary Salvia pratensis Field Woundwort Stachys arvensis Wild Pansy Viola tricolor (no recent records)

Nationally Scarce Blue Pimpernel Anagallis arvensis subsp. foemina Stinking Hellebore Helleborus foetidus White Mullein Verbascum lychnitis

England Red Data List status Vulnerable Chicory Cichorium intybus

England Red Data List Near status Threatened Quaking-grass Briza media Harebell Campanula rotundifolia Carline-thistle Carlina vulgaris Wild Strawberry Fragaria vesca Common rock-rose Helianthemum nummularium Field Scabious Knautia arvensis Corn-mint Mentha arvensis Hoary Plantain Plantago media Sanicle Sanicula europaea

Listed on Kent Rare Plant Register Corncockle Agrostemma githago Hairy Lady’s-mantle Alchemilla filicaulis subsp. vestita Clustered Bellflower Campanula glomerata Rough Mallow Malva setigera Cornfield Knotgrass Polygonum rurivagum Trailing Tormentil Potentilla anglica Hoary Cinquefoil Potentilla argentea (probably a temporarily established population) Burnet Rose Rosa spinosissima

Two species for which the site is nationally important currently have no national conservation status. These are:  Corncockle Agrostemma githago, considered extinct in the wild in the UK, and for which Ranscombe may be the only native site.  Rough Mallow Malva setigera, which is generally considered a neophyte (a plant arriving in the UK after 1500), although some consider it to be native at its Ranscombe site.

In addition, Ranscombe has recently become a trial site for the reintroduction of Interrupted Brome Bromus interruptus, currently listed as Extinct in the Wild.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 6 of 27

Animals Ranscombe’s insect records are very far from comprehensive, with some groups (particularly butterflies, moths, bees and wasps) well recorded and others (for example, beetles and flies) very poorly recorded.

More than 300 moth species have been recorded on the reserve. 16 of these were listed on the s41 list of species of conservation concern, though all but one (liquorice piercer, a micromoth which feeds on wild liquorice) are common or widespread, at least in the south of the UK, and were presumably included because of wider general decline. liquorice piercer, which feeds on wild liquorice and has been recorded in Brockles Field, is described on the UK Moths website (ukmoths.org.uk) as 'A very local species, occurring only in some southern counties in England, and apparently on the decline'. One species, Kent knot-horn, is listed as vulnerable in the most recent (1994) British Red Data List, and a second, the toadflax brocade, as Rare.

Hymenoptera have become increasingly well recorded at Ranscombe over the last five years, and there are now records for 112 aculeate species. Of these, two are s41 species of principle importance in England: the brown-banded carder bee Bombus humilis and the five-banded digger wasp Cerceris quinquefasciata. Records also include the mining bee Andrena niveata, considered very rare, and the rare mining bees Lasioglossum pauperatum and Lasioglossum semilucens. The assemblage of solitary bees and wasps at Ranscombe appears to be significant.

170 species of fly have been recorded since 2000. Of these, the most significant are the tachinid fly Freraea gagatea, which is a Figure 4. Brown-banded carder bee Nationally Rare endoparasite of ground beetles, and for which the 2016 record from Ranscombe was the first Kent record; the hornet robber-fly Asilus crabroniformis, Britains largest fly and a s41 species associated with animal dung, and regularly recorded in small numbers at the reserve; Blaesoxipha plumicornis a locally frequent fleshfly; and the large hornet-mimic hoverfly Volucella inanis, a species which is also locally frequent in North Kent.

Nine species of grasshoppers and bush-crickets have been recorded. These include the nationally scarce rufous grasshopper Gomphocerippus rufus, which has been found on the chalk grassland at Mill Hill and above Kitchen Field. The nationally scarce tawny cockroach Ectobius pallidus, has been recorded in Brockles Field and above Kitchen Field.

Common frog is known to occur on the site and to spawn in pools in Cobham Woods, such as wheel ruts. common toad has been recorded on the site. palmate newt and great crested newt are also recorded for Cobham Woods, with records of breeding spawning by both species in the pond close to one of the rides on the plateau in the north-west corner of the reserve. 100 juveniles of great crested newt were recorded in the pond in 2008, though none have been seen since, and the pond has not held water for some years. Both viviparous lizard and slow- worm occur on the site. A species risk assessment by Kent Reptile and Amphibian Group

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 7 of 27

suggests a high likelihood of grass snake being present, and that it is likely that adder is present.

Since 2012, around 50 bird species have been recorded on or over the reserve. Of these, 9 species are included on the 2016 Red List of birds of Conservation Concern, including turtle dove (though the only recent recorded was a singing male in june 2016), marsh tit, skylark (around ten territories held in 2016), song thrush, mistle thrush, house sparrow, linnet, lesser redpoll (probably winter only) and yellowhammer (though only a single male seen in spring 2016). In general, the site supports a range of the more common and widespread species associated with woodland and farmland.

16 species of terrestrial mammal have been recorded from the site, of which the most notable are hazel dormouse and harvest mouse. badgers are common, with a number of sets in the various areas of woodland. a herd of fallow deer is known to be present in Cobham Woods.

Figure 5. Harvest mouse

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 8 of 27

Habitats For plans showing the site’s geology and the habitats described in this section, an appendix is available on request.

Arable farmland The greatest botanical interest on the site is associated with arable farmland, particularly margins and block of arable land on chalk soils managed specifically for conservation. The richest parts of the reserve are Kitchen Field, where the arable forms part of Cobham Woods SSSI, and Longhoes Field, along with parts of the south-facing arable margin in the Southern Valley. Of the notable plant species listed above, 18 are partly or wholly associated with arable farmland, and Plantlife recognise a large part of the site as an Important Arable Plant Area of international importance. The arable land is also important for animal species, supporting an important bee and wasp fauna; breeding and wintering skylarks, breeding and wintering linnets, and wintering meadow pipits; and harvest mice.

Figure 6. Arable vegetation in Longhoes

Grassland Of the site’s notable plant species, 18 are partly or wholly associated with grassland or with open, grassy vegetation in woodland. Although there are fewer Red-listed plants species associated with grassland, it is nonetheless an important assemblage, particularly at county level. The richest grassland areas, botanically, are the small areas of relict chalk grassland above Kitchen Field and at the south-eastern end of Mill Hill. Brockles Field is relatively diverse, but supports fewer plant species of conservation importance. Grassland is also important for the reserve's fauna, with skylark breeding in Brockles Field and Twenty Acre. Important invertebrates associated with grassland include small blue butterfly, rufous grasshopper, tawny cockroach and brown-banded carder bee. hornet robber fly has been recorded where grassland is being grazed by cattle. the liquorice piercer moth has only been found (to date) on its host plant in open grassland, and not in shadier, woodland ride habitats.

Unimproved chalk grassland occurs as small patches at Mill Hill and at the edge of Cobham Wood above Kitchen Field, These areas support plants including man orchid, common rockrose Helianthemum nummularium, dwarf thistle Cirsium acaule, and other chalk grassland indicators. Notable is the presence of species such as rough mallow (above Kitchen Field only) man orchid, clustered bellflower Campanula glomerata (a plant of very limited distribution in Kent) and burnet rose Rosa spinosissima (another rare plant in Kent).

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 9 of 27

Figure 7. Chalk grassland at Mill

Woodland Twelve of the reserve's plant species of conservation concern are partly or wholly associated with woodland and scrub habitats. One, white helleborine, is associated with deep, shady woodland, though more are associated with scrub and woodland edges (fly orchid, meadow clary, stinking hellebore and sanicle) or open woodland and partially shaded rides (man orchid, wild strawberry, hairy lady's-mantle, trailing tormentil). Lady orchid is at home in scrub and in coppice woodland, while rough mallow favours the disturbed edge of woodland or scrub, and white mullein is generally associated with ground disturbance in coppice woodland.

Woodland and scrub is likely to be significant for invertebrates, particularly beetles and bugs, as these are noted in the SSSI citation. However, there is insufficient recent information to fully assess this. Of the fifteen Red- and Amber-listed birds with recent records, eight are associated with woodland, at least for nesting, if not for both nesting and foraging; these are turtle dove, marsh tit, song thrush, mistle thrush, lesser redpoll, stock dove, tawny owl, dunnock, bullfinch, treecreeper and woodcock. Dormice have been recorded from locations across the reserve and are likely to occur throughout the wooded habitats on the site.

The woodland in the north of reserve has in the past been heavily modified through restocking with sweet chestnut. This restocking may date back as far as the early to mid-18th Century. Late 20th restocking has also occurred in Birch Wood, where areas of mid-20th Century coniferous plantation were replaced in 1992 with an area of around 7ha of mixed broad-leaved plantation.

Much of the woodland lies on clay-with-flints or sandy soils, and consists of Oak-Bracken- Bramble woodland (National Vegetation Classification community W10). However, on chalkier soils in the southern half of the reserve, the woodland can be considered as Ash-Field Maple- Dog’s Mercury woodland (W8). In small areas in Mill Hill Wood, regeneration of beech (from trees planted in the 19th Century) and Yew suggests that parts could be considered to be developing as Beech and Yew Woodland (probably conforming to NVC community W12 Beech-Dog’s Mercury woodland).

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 10 of 27

Although not as rich in old growth as the adjacent Cobham Park, the woodland at Ranscombe includes 25 ancient trees and around 390 other veteran trees. Together with Cobham Park, Ashenbank Wood and Shorne Wood Country Park, Ranscombe subsequently forms part of a very significant agglomeration of ancient and veteran trees, which may be of national or international significance. The ancient and veteran trees at Ranscombe consist of a number of species, including pedunculate oak, sweet chestnut, hornbeam, beech, ash, field maple and yew. however, the large number of ancient and veteran hornbeams, which include a number of large pollards, as well as some smaller standard trees, may be of particular significance.

Figure 8. Cobham Woods (photo: Bob Gibbons / Plantlife)

Interfaces between habitats The places where different habitats meet and grade into each other can be extremely important for wildlife, with some species being dependent on these ‘ecotones’. for example, the interface between open, regularly disturbed, arable fields and adjacent grassland and scrub is important for plants including ground-pine and rough mallow, harvest mice, birds such as linnet and yellowhammer, and species of invertebrates.

Bare and disturbed ground within woodland and grassland is also important. Both rough mallow and common cudweed occur on disturbed ground within ancient woodland blocks, while white mullein is primarily associated with ground disturbance arising from coppicing and other, similar woodland work. Hairy lady’s-mantle and trailing tormentil are both found on low, open, grassy areas within woodland. Ground-pine has been found on disturbed ground in grassland at Brockles Field, while meadow clary requires patches of bare ground for germination.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 11 of 27

2.3. Ranscombe’s landscape and historical importance

Landscape Almost all of Ranscombe Farm lies within Kent Downs AONB Landscape Character area 6 Medway - Birling to Cuxton; Wouldham to Aylesford. The key characteristics of this area relevant to Ranscombe Farm Reserve are its wooded upper scarps; wide views across the river, river corridor settlements and south towards the greensand ridge; rolling, intensively cultivated fields; swathes of dense mixed woodland and mosaic of unimproved grassland and scrub. At Ranscombe, the folds in the landscape create in some places a sense of intimacy, and in others a sense of open space, with extensive views of the surrounding landscape: from some locations, views include the built environment of the adjacent Medway Towns; from others, views are of uninterrupted countryside. The following design guidance (from the Kent Downs AONB Landscape Design Handbook) is relevant: conserve and manage the woodland and shaws on the scarp; restore occasional wooded shaws to define large blocks of arable farmland; consider opportunities for arable field margins/or conversion of arable to pasture; and create a wooded edge to urban development.

Archaeological and historical features There are no Scheduled Ancient Monuments on the site, though the Historic Environment Register currently lists three features at Ranscombe: ring ditch crop-marks in Brockles Field, chalk pits close to the North Downs Way, and Palaeolithic finds close to the current farm buildings.

However, the site does contain a number of features or archaeological and/or historical interest. Perhaps most significant are the significant finds of Mesolithic worked flints, including some complete tools and a large number of substantial refitting groups, on the southern slopes of Cobham Woods, suggesting seasonal occupation of the site in a period around 6,000 to 8,000 years ago. There are also finds of later, Neolithic worked flints from field walking in Kitchen Field.

The current Ranscombe Farm Cottages, which are on the site of a settlement dating to around 1150AD, and there is evidence of early cultivation in the form of lynchets on sloping valley sides, for example as at Mill Hill. There is also evidence of vanished Medieval habitations, most notably an apparently Medieval well on the eastern edge of Kitchen Field, from which pottery dating to Figure 9. Mesolithic hand-axe or adze around 1200AD has been excavated. from Cobham Woods (photo: Dave May) The current pattern of tracks and field boundaries appears to have remained mostly unchanged for

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 12 of 27

several centuries since at least the early 1600s, making them historical features in their own right.

Land-use history The existing landscape layout of Ranscombe Farm was already in place 400 years ago, and it is likely that by that time the site had already been farmed for hundreds of years. Farming was in the past more mixed, with hop gardens and orchards present as late as the 1960s, and is now almost entirely arable. Field sizes were also historically smaller, though the overall layout has remained largely unchanged. The farmland has been managed by the current tenant, and his father before him, since the late 1980s.

The historic balance of cultivated and grazed land is not clear, though areas are likely to have changed over time. Brockles Field, for example, appears to have been cultivated, at least in part, from at least the middle of the 20th Century until the early 1990s, when it was put into set-aside. A steeply sloping pasture in the south-east of the site was sown to grass in the late 1980s; previous to that it was in arable cultivation.

The ancient woodlands on the site appear to have been in coppice rotation for many years. Cobham Woods was almost entirely replanted with Sweet Chestnut at some time in its past, perhaps around the end of the 1700s, and has undoubtedly been managed as coppice since that time. This woodland once formed part of the Cobham Hall Estate, and the western part (Birch Wood) was once included in the landscaped park: most of the remaining large parkland trees in this area were probably felled and removed in the 1960s.

There has been other planting. Part of Mill Hill Wood and much of Birch Wood were planted with conifers during the 20th Century. These trees have now gone, those at Mill Hill in 2010, and those in Birch Wood in 1992. The plantation area in Birch Wood was subsequently replanted with a mix of broad-leaved trees.

Since 2005, an active programme of woodland coppicing has been re-established. In addition, works to widen and improve the conservation value of woodland rides has also been carried out.

What is now Mill Hill Wood was much more open until at least the first half of the 19th Century. A map of the late 18th Century shows the area much open, though by the end of the 19th Century, the area of woodland was much as we see today, though with a large, open area (the site of the recently cleared Pines) and a much larger area of grassland at the eastern end: a photograph of 1909 shows this area to have been much more extensive, and grazed, at that time.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 13 of 27

2.4. Ranscombe’s importance for people

Public use – access provision, visitor numbers The audience development plan for the 2010-14 Heritage Lottery Fund project noted that’ “Although footpaths are well worn, day time use appears to be very light and consists mainly of dog walkers … Current numbers of users not known and will be difficult to ascertain, as the site is large with several entrances … analysis suggests the main users currently are the immediate local resident walkers and ramblers. Since the official launch in September 2005 and subsequent newspaper and local television articles, the visitor numbers appear to have increased, mostly from the less immediate area and these visitor numbers are travelling by car and using the main car park entrance.”

Over the last year, it has been possible to obtain quantitative data from two automatic footfall counters, and these suggest that the site receives in excess of 50,000 visits a year. Dog-walking probably remains the most frequent use of the site, though family groups are often met at weekends, and off-road cycling is a popular use of the site. On weekends in spring and summer, the small car-park is often full to capacity.

Further information is contained within two appendices, one giving demographic information, and one which is the evaluation report from a Lottery-funded project completed in 2014.

Visitor Appeal and Suitability for Access Ranscombe Farm Reserve has a strong visitor appeal, and attracts a steady stream of visitors for informal recreation throughout the year. Access appears in particular to focus on three key areas:  Great Wood is accessed from Albatross Avenue in Strood, and is used by walkers, dog- walkers, and, to a lesser extent, cyclists. The main access route from the Albatross Avenue entrance (the ‘Town Road’) leads to Cobham Park and the Darnley Mausoleum, and this is a popular destination for visitors.  Mill Hill and the southern valley are easily access from Cuxton, and a provide a series of short, circular routes which are much used by dog-walkers and by family groups.  The main car-park on Sundridge Hill is much used by dog-walkers.

No extensive visitor surveys have been undertaken, but features of the site likely to appeal to visitors include its rural feel and relative tranquillity, the extensive network of paths (in excess of 16km total length), and the views obtainable from a number of high points within the site.

The site’s size and undulating land-form, together with the extent and layout of the site’s woodlands, means that it is likely to be possible to accommodate substantially higher visitor numbers without losing a sense of tranquillity and isolation. However, access does present some potential conflicts:  Within the site is a settlement of seven private dwellings. Although existing access routes do not run close to these dwellings, there is nonetheless potential for trespassing (both deliberate and inadvertent) and the conflict which can arise from this.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 14 of 27

 The main entrance into the site also serves as the entrance track for the private dwellings, and there is therefore a regular movement of cars and other vehicles; the track is narrow with blind bends.  The site is actively managed as a farm and working woodland, which means that tracks and paths are used by heavy vehicles at different times throughout the year. As well as posing a potential hazard to visitors, this also leads to some paths becoming muddy and churned-up when vehicle use is high.  Conflicts with farm management can also occur where visitors and/or their dogs come into contact with livestock, and where people and/or dogs walk through growing crops.

Access Provision There are more than 16km (10 miles) of paths (including public footpaths and permissive paths) on the site. These include a stretch of the North Downs Way long-distance path. All paths open to the public are waymarked, but only short sections have been surfaced. These include a short section of the North Downs Way where it passes through the site, and the Town Road. Paths can therefore become muddy and slippery, and, because of the nature of the landscape, some paths are steep, and some of the shorter, steeper stretches have steps.

There are no stiles on the site, and entrances to the site or internal fences are fitted with kissing gates or squeeze gates.

There are around 11 points at which visitors can enter the site. Of these, seven are more-or-less directly from residential roads. There is one car-park for the site, at the main entrance on Sundridge Hill; this has space for 10 cars and a height barrier at 6’6”. At Albatross Avenue there is a council-owned car-park which has a larger capacity, but which is outside the site; access from this car park is via a public footpath which crosses private land not maintained by Plantlife.

Permissive shared-use routes for horses, cyclists and walkers have been established on some of the existing tracks and paths, to provide access along the Town Road to Figure 10. A kissing-gate at Kitchen Field link with the Darnley Trail, to link the Town Road and the Darnley trail to Bush Road, and to provide a loop of around 3km around the part of Cobham Woods in Ranscombe Farm Reserve.

Further information on access is contained in an appendix giving details of access to and within the reserve, including locations of transport links, such as rail and bus stops. Access for people with disabilities is difficult, largely due to the terrain, but a Disability Access Report has been prepared and may be obtained as an appendix to this document.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 15 of 27

Visitor Facilities Visitor facilities are currently limited to  A visitor car-park for ten vehicles at the entrance on Sundridge Hill (though visitors can also use the council car-park next to Knights Place Recreation Ground off Albatross Avenue in Strood).  Large welcome signs and information panels at the major entrances on Sundridge Hill and from Albatross Avenue.  An information panel inside the entrance from Whiteleaves Rise in Cuxton.  Smaller welcome signs on entrances from Cuxton.  Information panels giving information about the reserve and about the Darnley Trail, as well as a small number of signs explaining aspects of site management.  Leaflet dispensers (removed during winter) at the entrance on Sundridge Hill.  A certain amount of seating along footpaths through the reserve.  A litter and dog waste bin at the main entrance on Sundridge Hill; this is emptied by Ranscombe staff.

Figure 11. Bench at Longhoes

In addition, dedicated space is available for schools to use for Forest Schools and bush-craft activities, with shared equipment also available.

Communication with visitors and with the wider community is maintained through the use of:  Noticeboards at four major entrances.  Provision of leaflets giving suggested walking routes and providing information on the site’s wildlife interest.  A regular of programme of events advertised online and through locally-distributed leaflet.  Dedicated web pages on the Plantlife website (www.plantlife.org.uk/ranscombe).  Ranscombe Farm Reserve Facebook page and Twitter feed.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 16 of 27

Delivering management of the site Two staff work at Ranscombe Farm Reserve, and are equipped with branded clothing with the Plantlife logo. The site vehicle is also branded and bears contact details for the reserve. Contact details for the Ranscombe Farm Office are given on boards at the major entrances on Sundridge Hill and from Albatross Avenue.

In delivering management on the site, the staff are supported by a group of volunteers which undertakes practical management work and meets each week; a volunteer team which carries our daily livestock checks; and a volunteer group which meets monthly during spring and summer and which helps with survey and monitoring of plants and other wildlife.

Safety on site is maintained by site staff, under the Plantlife Health and Safety Policy, which is available as an appendix, and using detailed risk assessments for all activities. Regular health and safety meetings are held at Ranscombe and with the wider Plantlife team. Annual tree safety inspections are carried out, and other maintenance issues are addressed as they arise.

Anti-social behaviour is primarily limited to occasional fly-tipping in the main car-park, which is dealt with by staff as it arises, and some off-road motorcycling, which we have been attempting to limit through provision more secure gating and through liaison with the Securing the Landscape PCSO.

Use of pesticides by Plantlife as site managers is limited to the use of glyphosate to kill stumps of cut trees where required. However, a large part of the reserve is tenanted by a commercial farmer who uses herbicides and pesticides where necessary for the production of a commercial crop.

Peat-based composts are not used.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 17 of 27

3. Aims and Action Plan

3.1. Vision and aims

Plantlife has developed a detailed vision for Ranscombe Farm Reserve, which takes into account its importance for wild plants and other wildlife, and its value to local people and the wider community. This vision and associated aims are set out here.

Vision Plantlife's vision for Ranscombe Farm Reserve is that it will not only be the best arable plant site in Britain, but that it will also be one of the best known and most influential nature reserves in England, valued for its wildlife-richness, the quality of the visitor experience, and the positive impact which it has on the lives of local people and the conservation of wild plants in the surrounding landscape.

Aims  Ranscombe Farm Reserve will be a place where the conservation and public enjoyment of wildlife, especially wild plants, comes first, but where the incorporation so far as possible of commercial management provides a real-world economic backdrop and a basis for promoting our conservation management principles and practices.  Ranscombe Farm will be the best arable plant site in Britain and will be a powerful influence in making arable flowers a relatively common part of the arable landscape across the UK.  Innovative management across arable, grassland and woodland habitats will make Ranscombe reserve one of the richest sites for wild flowers in the UK and will enhance the overall plant species-richness. The populations of key plant species such as Corncockle, Rough Mallow, Broad-leaved Cudweed, Narrow-fruited Cornsalad, Ground- pine, Field Gromwell, Fly Orchid, Meadow Clary, Man Orchid, Lady Orchid and others will have increased. Joint projects with other land management organisations will maintain and enhance a contiguous area of importance for wood-pasture and veteran trees.  A wide-ranging outreach programme based at Ranscombe will take advantage of its position close to major centres of population, and will bring people and plants together, supporting public engagement at the reserve, providing support for the reserve itself, widening Plantlife's influence, providing opportunities to showcase management work and training and developing new botanists.  Visitors to Ranscombe will enjoy a high quality experience and the visual impact of management work will be a consideration at all times. We will retain and establish wide views across the surrounding landscape and produce extensive and colourful stands of wild flowers alongside paths and near the most important site entrances.  Experts will be able to find interesting and notable plants in well managed habitats, and it will be a key destination for land management professionals wishing to learn more about arable plant conservation, while all visitors will be able to enjoy easy access and the spectacle of wild plants in an attractive landscape.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 18 of 27

 Plantlife members will find the reserve a powerful advertisement for the organisation's effectiveness. For local people, there will be opportunities to enjoy wild plants on a day- to-day basis through individual exploration, formal teaching and training, volunteering and practical activities.  Facilities to host regular on-site events, visits by land-managers and decision-makers will be in place. Partnerships will be a key delivery route for the Ranscombe vision both on and off-site and the reserve and its management will have a powerful influence on plant conservation at a landscape scale beyond its immediate boundaries and across the UK.

A five-year action plan has been drawn up to encompass both the maintenance of the existing wildlife, landscape and cultural features of the site and progress towards the aims of the vision. This is set out below in summary form; the detailed action plan from the full Ranscombe Management Plan – which includes maps and plans showing the locations of proposed works – is available as an appendix.

3.2. Action for biodiversity, landscape and heritage

Arable farmland Arable farmland will remain a significant element of the reserve, which will continue to incorporate a working farmed landscape: where possible, we will achieve our conservation objectives through normal economic farmland management. The priority will be to maintain and enhance populations of naturally occurring plant species, though we may exceptionally consider deliberate reintroductions of species which previously formed part of the local flora.

We will expand the area of arable cultivated for arable plant conservation to cover almost the entire Southern Valley of the reserve.

We will carry out a targeted programme of work to expand the populations of the following key species: broad-leaved cudweed, interrupted brome, rough mallow, ground-pine and fine- leaved fumitory. This will include creating cultivated fallows on chalk soils in the Clary Field and, subject to permissions, in Brockles Field.

We will explore potential methods to control unwanted weed species in arable fields managed for wild plants, including rotating conservation arable blocks with sown ley, a conventionally sown crop, or an obviously artificial seed mix; and, in Kitchen Field by grazing the arable land following harvest/topping in the autumn, but Figure 12. Targeted arable cultivation prior to cultivation. with pedestrian rotavator

Grassland - grazing A network of grazed grassland areas will comprise Brockles Field, the Clary Field, Kitchen Field grassland and The Knock. Timing of grazing will be (subject to also meeting Countryside Stewardship or other requirements) as follows: Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 19 of 27

 Brockles Field: rotational within Brockles. Potentially year-round, provided that between May and August grazing is removed or restricted to part of the field only, in order to encourage flowering.  Clary Field: graze between late August and March only, in order to produce short sward with some bare ground to encourage germination of meadow clary.  Kitchen Field grassland: September and October only, to avoid damage to man orchid population.  The Knock: of limited conservation interest, and therefore potentially usable at any time of year.

In Brockles Field, a second internal stock-fence will be erected parallel to the crest of the hill, from just north of the kissing gate entrance from Mill Hill, to just north of the kissing gate by the West Kent Downs Countryside Trust sculpted seat. This will allow better control of grazing pressure and also make it easier for visitors to use the field without encountering cattle.

Brockles Field will be linked with grassland at the Warren in the Plotlands area of the Cobham Woods SSSI managed by West Kent Downs Countryside Trust, in order to allow grazing animals to move between the two areas.

Figure 13. Cattle in Brockles Field

Grassland - cutting The grassland at Mill Hill will be managed by cutting and collecting the arisings in late August or September each year. The scrubby margins (e.g. along the railway line) should be cut on a 5-year rotation.

The grassland above Kitchen Field may be managed by cutting and collecting the arisings in September or October should it be considered that grazing will not be able to control scrub or clematis regeneration.

The grassland at Longhoes, including the car park bank, will be managed by cutting and collecting the arisings between late August and late April each year.

In Brockles Field, the Clary Field and other areas where grassland is being restored from former arable, we will accelerate the process by spreading green hay from the nearest patches of established, flower-rich grassland.

Scrub will be managed in Brockles Field by repeated topping or cutting to create an intimate mix of small areas of dense scrub and more extensive areas of scattered, low scrub within the grassland. Overall scrub cover should not exceed 10% in order to comply with Stewardship requirements.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 20 of 27

Woodland – coppicing and open space Coppicing will be continued across up to 80 ha within the areas of sweet chestnut coppice and mixed broad-leaved coppice, subject to practical constraints. The area to be cut in any given year will be determined in that year, based on a rotation of 15 to 20 years and a maximum area per year, but averaging 4-5 ha.

We will continue the programme to diversify the chestnut coppice throughout the reserve, by selective coppicing/killing of chestnut and encouragement of natural regeneration by native species across up to 7 ha of woodland. These areas will be selected on the basis of having an already higher proportion of native species in the mix or being adjacent to mixed native stands and also those featuring more mature native standards. Chestnut stumps will be treated with glyphosate-based herbicide painted directly to cut surface, and subsequent re- growth will be controlled by mechanical or hand-cutting.

We will continue the programme of active management of the c. 10 ha of open space within the woodlands over the c.10ha of woodland open space, which includes a total of up to 5000m of woodland rides up to 30m wide. Within these rides, a central herbaceous zone will be maintained by annual cutting, and a dense scrubby margin will be maintained. Where necessary, chestnut may be prevented from regenerating in the scrubby margins by treating cut stumps with glyphosate herbicide.

The edges between woodland and surrounding open habitats will be maintained as a dense, scrubby margin by cutting a total length of around 6500m on a rotation of 5-20 yrs. Where necessary, chestnut may be prevented from regenerating in the scrubby margins by treating cut stumps with glyphosate herbicide. Standard trees will be retained in the woodland edges, with the aim of around 1 tree every 50m being allowed to develop into large tree (which may mean leaving more in the shorter term).

Targeted programmes of work will aim to increase populations of Lady Orchid and fly orchid, for example, by managing scrub or carrying out short-rotation coppicing.

To support and enable more effective woodland management, up to 700m of existing unsurfaced woodland tracks will be surfaced with crushed-stone to create 3m-wide access routes for forestry vehicles. Where this surfacing is on tracks in the eastern section of Cobham Woods it will be accompanied by work alongside to channel and hold water in order to maintain and if possible extend seasonally wet conditions which currently occur within puddles and wheel-ruts.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 21 of 27

Woodland – veteran trees We will maintain and manage the most important existing veteran trees, and aim to create a new generation of future veterans, including through the promotion of new native standards by natural regeneration. This will include felling a narrow band of trees (‘haloing’) around some existing and potential veterans, and felling 30 large sweet chestnut stems along the Town Road in Cobham Woods to reduce competition with veteran hornbeam.

Figure 14. Veteran hornbeam in Cobham Woods

Control of invasive plants Annual management will be carried out to control the growth and spread of buddleia and sycamore at Mill Hill, and the small area of rhododendron in Cobham Woods is to be controlled by a visit every 2 to 3 years, when all stems are to be cut, smashed up and piled over the stumps.

Other activities supporting biodiversity and landscape The zone where open arable fields grade into scrub and woodland will be extended by establishing extra-wide margins around many fields. These will consist of a 6m wide strip to be allowed to develop as woodland edge at least for the period of this plan, with a 6m grassy strip between the wooded strip and the open field. In other places, 6m grassy strips will be established without the associated wooded strip.

We will aim to create new hedges to replace hedges lost during the 20th century. Hedges should be established using plant material obtained on site (e.g. from seed, from cuttings, or from relocated seedlings/saplings). The existing hedge between the water tank and the corner of Birch Wood should be managed as a dense but relatively narrow, A-shaped hedge, with a base up to 4m wide.

To benefit invertebrates, particularly bees and wasps, we will leave large pieces of fallen dead wood or fixed stacks of dead wood in sheltered, south-facing locations for use by nesting hymenoptera, and will identify sites where sections of short, south-facing, sheltered, bare ground can be created for ground-nesting invertebrates.

In at least five locations, Where the wood is relatively fresh, and does not have crevices or beetle holes, drill a number of holes of 2mm to 8mm diameter to the full depth of the drill bit.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 22 of 27

Future work will include look for opportunities to include work for bats and for saproxylic invertebrates in future externally-funded projects.

Monitoring wildlife and assessing success A programme of monitoring will assess changes to populations of key arable, woodland and grassland plant species, while new programmes of habitat quality monitoring will be developed and rolled out over the arable, grassland and woodland habitats (in that order of priority).

We will undertake targeted monitoring of key farmland and woodland bird species (including skylark, linnet, bullfinch and marsh tit) using the Wildlife Study Group volunteer group.

We will maintain a species inventory for the site, including both systematic and ad hoc collection of records across taxa groups. Records will be passed to the National Biodiversity Network and relevant recording schemes.

Supporting archaeological studies We will continue to offer support to archaeological and historical studies on the reserve where these do not conflict with other site management, and will aim to put together a dossier of archaeological and historical information as it becomes available.

Figure 15. An archaeological test pit

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 23 of 27

3.3. Action to create a welcoming place

Improving visitor facilities We will create a new visitor hub close to the site’s main entrance on Sundridge Hill, Cuxton. This will include a new car park, with capacity for 40 cars (including dedicated blue badge spaces), two compost toilets, indoor space which can be used as a base for volunteers or for public events and activities, and grassed outdoor space which can be used for public events.

We will implement a programme of access improvements, to include measures to improve access for users of wheel-chairs and mobility scooters. This will include surfaced paths leading from the new visitor hub into adjacent woodland and arable fields.

Following public consultation, a new set of way-marking posts will be installed to make navigation of the reserve easier; and new benches will be installed to provide more frequent rest-stops. The new benches will include arms and a back-rest, to cater for the widest possible range of users.

Improving access for all Safety, security, access and visual improvements will be made to the reserve's main entrance, as a priority. In particular, an alternative entrance path will be created to minimise the need for shared pedestrian/vehicle use on the entrance road. This entrance path will be designed with the minimum practical slope, in order to maximise accessibility and the potential for access by users of wheel-chairs and mobility scooters. Figure 16. Creating a new pedestrian path

We will establish a definitive network of paths which may be accessed (a) on horseback and/or (b) on by bicycle, based on our existing shared-use paths. This will be clearly signed on the ground, and routes not accessible to horses or cycles should be suitably gated or otherwise barriered off. As part of this, subject to securing external funding, we will establish a surfaced cycle route between the main entrance on the A228 and the Town Road, to link to our existing shared-use route and to the Darnley trail which leads towards Gravesend.

We will seek to secure improvements to secondary site entrances, including visual, access and security improvements. In particular, efforts will focus on the Albatross entrance, Elgin entrance, Whiteleaves entrance and Mill Hill entrance.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 24 of 27

3.4. Action to keep the site well-maintained, clean, safe and secure

Site safety Annual inspections will include a visual inspection of all trees along paths and boundaries of the site; access points; paths; and fences and gates to ensure that they are in a safe condition and fit for purpose. Record should be made of any apparent safety issues, including trees which are leaning or have dead or damaged stems or limbs; trip hazards on path; repair of structures, etc. Any necessary work should be programmed in and carried out.

Risk Assessments will be prepared and kept up-to-date for all aspects of work on site at Ranscombe Farm Reserve.

We will review at least once a year the standard form of contract used for works on the site, and ensure that it is appropriate and up-to-date, particularly in relation to health and safety requirements. Contract works shall be subject to regular inspection visits, and a written record kept of these visits and any issues encountered.

We will remove newly dumped material as soon as practical, and continue to clear currently known dumped material, including old fridges, old gas bottles, asbestos cement, remains of dumped vehicles etc.

Additional safety signage will also be put in place where established as necessary through the risk assessment process.

Cleanliness, litter and dog-fouling Graffiti will be removed within ten working days of notification where possible. Where graffiti is too extensive or difficult to deal with in house, then work with partners to remove it and bring future graffiti under control.

The litter bin at the main car park will be emptied a minimum of once a week, or more often if the bin becomes full. The car park will be litter-picked at the same time that the bin is emptied. Figure 17. Fly-tipping in the car park We will aim to develop and act upon a litter policy setting out policies and practices, including areas to be regularly litter-picked, provision of new litter-bins, recycling etc.

We will seek to deal with dog-fouling and dog behaviour problems by engaging dog walkers and other site users in developing and implementing a dog policy.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 25 of 27

3.5. Action to involve the community

Activities on site We will continue to deliver and develop outreach and public engagement activities as part of (if possible) all projects, with a continued focus on identification and conservation of wild plants, as well as other biodiversity.

The new visitor hub will be made available for other appropriate groups and activities on the reserve, including for example, running and other fitness and outdoor activity groups. We will also continue to maintain a space which can be used for Forest Schools or bush-craft and other woodland craft activities, which may include moving the existing Forest Schools area to be close to the new visitor hub.

Figure 18. Marathon runners at Ranscombe

Opportunities for volunteering We will maintain and support our existing volunteer groups, so that they can work safely and effectively and feel properly engaged in the reserve and its future. We will look to develop further volunteering opportunities, including establishing, training and maintaining a new volunteer warden group.

Figure 19. Volunteers working in Cobham Woods

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 26 of 27

Interpretation and keeping in touch We will continue to make interpretive material available on site, including leaflets, trail guides and interpretive signs addressing the site’s natural history and other heritage interest. We will additionally look for opportunities to create a Ranscombe history trail through a future externally-funded project, and produce hard-copy leaflets and/or site-based interpretation as appropriate.

We will maintain a single point of contact for the residents of Ranscombe Farm Cottages for the purposes of regular and ad hoc communications.

Figure 20. Information board

3.6. Managing the Process

We will secure approval from Natural England for this management plan, and keep a record of this. In securing approval, we will highlight where the plan proposes actions which would fall under the list of operations likely to damage the special interest of the site.

For all funded projects, ensure that delivery and reporting requirements are fully understood and are built into work programmes.

We will produce an annual report summarising achievements and delivery of work programme including species monitoring in order to track progress towards delivery of the site management objectives for access and biodiversity.

At the end of the five-year period covered by this management plan, all the action will be reviewed and their success – or otherwise – evaluated in drawing up the plan for the next five years.

Ranscombe Farm Reserve Management Plan 2018-23 (Summary Version) Page 27 of 27