Protecting Nature

Working with Nature

Balancing the need to make the parkland pay and the need to care for wildlife is tricky!

We use as few chemicals as possible to kill weeds and pests, which protects rodents and insects. Having more prey means that predators like barn owls and buzzards can be healthy too.

We treat trouble spots or cut vegetation instead of using chemical sprays. ‘Topping’ grass in small patches with a high blade protects animals. The patches of nettles and thistles we leave feed insects and small birds. These more expensive methods let our wildlife flourish.

Our buildings have wide eaves, and cuts in the brickwork. Rare swallows and house martins nest there, which help to manage our insect populations! Bats are also often seen at dusk.

A carefully balanced and complex ecosystem, the estate today remains much as it has for centuries.