Grasslands
Our meadows and pastures support a rich variety of wildlife. We are restoring wildflower and structural diversity across all our grasslands through haymaking and grazing.
We plan our grazing and haymaking to encourage diversity in our grasslands, taking inspiration from historic practices that allowed wildlife to thrive. An estimated 97% of species-rich grasslands have been lost from England in the last century as a result of over-fertilising and insensitive mechanisation. Grasslands of different types are essential habitat for rare plants, butterflies and other invertebrates, small mammals, and ground-nesting birds.
Grassland habitats
Our meadows are managed to encourage biodiversity and support pollinators throughout the year. By removing nutrients from the soil through traditional cutting and clearing methods, we create the ideal conditions for wildflowers to thrive and for the sward to become rich in species.
Our meadows are home to a range of indicator species that reflect their ecological value and long history, including dyer’s greenweed, yellow rattle, adder’s tongue fern and waxcap fungi. These plants and fungi are signs of ancient, species-rich grasslands and are vital for supporting a wide range of wildlife.
To ensure a continuous supply of nectar for bees, butterflies, and other pollinators, we stagger our cutting schedule, with an early cut in late June and a later cut in late July-August. This approach helps maintain flowering plants across the season, supporting pollinators when they need it most.
Hay making: Each year, we cut hay from our meadows as part of our traditional land management. This process helps remove nutrients from the soil, reducing its fertility and creating the perfect conditions for wildflowers to flourish. The hay we produce is used to feed our cattle, and any surplus is sold to neighbouring farms — supporting both biodiversity and the local farming community.
Green haying: In areas where meadows are species-poor, we use a technique called green haying to increase plant diversity. This involves spreading freshly cut hay from a nearby species-rich meadow onto the target area. The green hay contains seeds from a wide variety of wildflowers, helping to kickstart natural regeneration and improve the ecological value of the site over time.
At Wadhurst Park, we use low-intensity grazing to manage our pastures in a way that supports biodiversity and improves habitat quality. Pasture with a varied grass structure, from short-grazed areas to tussocky patches, creates ideal conditions for invertebrates. Our grasslands support a wide range of invertebrate life from butterflies such as marbled whites, dingy skippers, grizzled skippers, and small heath to dung beetles, grasshoppers and bush-crickets.
Tussocky grassland provides cover and food for small mammals like field voles, which in turn support predators such as barn owls and kestrel. We also see meadow pipits and breeding skylarks, which rely on open grassland habitats.
In wetter grasslands, rushes and aquatic plants thrive. These habitats are valuable for wading birds, and we’re working to encourage species such as snipe and lapwing to breed within our wet grasslands.
Grazing: Grazing plays a vital role in how we manage habitats at Wadhurst Park. By carefully controlling how and where livestock graze, we open up the landscape and encourage a greater diversity of plant and animal species.
We graze a mix of animals to suit different habitats and management goals, including Sussex cattle, Hebridean sheep and a smaller number of pigs and goats.
Livestock are excluded before hay cutting to allow wildflowers to set seed. After the cut, animals return to graze the aftermath, helping control regrowth and maintain open conditions.
We use pulse grazing, moving animals between areas throughout the year to mimic natural grazing patterns and prevent overgrazing.
To encourage tussocky growth, around 15 hectares of pasture are grazed only once every three years, creating valuable habitat for invertebrates, small mammals, and ground-nesting birds.
Rest periods and extensive pasture: Some grasslands at Wadhurst Park are managed as extensive pasture, where cattle are free to roam year-round. This very low-intensity grazing allows the land to recover from previous uses, encourages the growth of scrub, and creates ideal conditions for invertebrates to flourish.
By giving the land time to rest and regenerate naturally, we support a wider range of habitats and species — contributing to the long-term ecological health of the estate.
