Contractors to help members maintain their meadows / grassland
We are aware that members may need help with managing their meadows, boundaries, gates etc or may want a pond or access created. We have prepared a list of contractors and would encourage anyone who knows of any contractor who may be of use to inform us, so that we can add their name to this list. In particular, we would like to hear of anyone who can deal with small scale haymaking, sickle bar mowing or who have small “flying flocks” for grazing. Please do contact us if a contractor is no longer operating, so we can remove them from the list.
Dean Meadows Group would like to emphasise that individuals must make their own arrangements with paid contractors as we cannot take responsibility for other people’s arrangements and work.
For each section, we have also indicated where you might find general advice and guidance from different charities and environmental organisations via their websites. For Dean Meadows Group members, additional advice can be sought from our committee members as indicated.
HAYMAKING/GRAZING
| Mark Sealey (Flaxley) | 07970 369987 | Haymaking, Agricultural Contractor, large machinery |
| Ben Ensor (Flaxley) | 07768 267650 | Small bale hay, fencing |
| Paul Moore (Drybrook) | 07732 950619 | Small bale hay, grazing |
| Dawn Cracknell (Tidenham) | 07836 581293 | Haymaking, Agricultural Contractor, large machinery (may have access to small baler) |
| Martin Bingham (Longhope) | 07786 413179 | Anything for small fields except hedge trimming – does haymaking with small baler |
| Jeff Stephens (Westbury) | 01452 760888 07778 169412 | Agricultural services incl. small baler |
| Andy Broadman (Ellwood) | 01594 832023 | Small bale hay |
| Jasmine Jones (Flaxley) | 07774 965243 | Grazing |
| Grazing Management, Alex Crawley (St Briavels) | info@grazingmanagement.co.uk | Contract conservation grazing using ‘flying herds’ with fenceless technology, cattle, sheep, goats for land management. |
| Kate Batt (Littledean) | kate.batt@icloud.com | Conservation grazing Forest of Dean area with Herdwick sheep |
| Kate Edwards (Woolaston) | 07866 329736 kate.edwards08@hotmail.com | Conservation grazing with Shetland sheep |
The following organisations have good general advice on their websites about meadow management:
www.plantlife.org.uk – go to the Plantlife Meadows Hub
http://www.buglife.org.uk/resources/habitat-management/lowland-meadows
www.gloucestershirewildlifetrust.co.uk
www.magnificentmeadows.org.uk
For members of the Dean Meadows Group, advice on conservation grazing can be sought from our committee members Alex Crawley and Rosie Kelsall. Please contact Wendy Abbott at wendy.abbott@btinternet.com in the first instance.
FIELD MAINTENANCE, CLEARING GROWTH
| Owain Rees (Raglan) | 07838 492933 | Has an alpine tractor and 5ft flail, can do banks up to 45 degrees, thick growth, strimming and chain saw work. Also does a wood forwarding service for those with woodland and no tractor, plus log splitter |
| Joseph Rose (Lydney) | 07882 101819 | Strimming, brushcutting, light and rough mowing, chainsaw work, fencing |
| Agreco Kim Parsons (Bromyard) | 07855 321339 info@agreco.co.uk http://www.agreco.co.uk | Brush harvesting, clearance of overgrown and rough ground. Please contact to discuss project feasibility |
FENCING/HEDGING/TREE WORK/WALLING
| Joseph Rose (Lydney) | 07882 101819 | Strimming, brushcutting, light and rough mowing, chainsaw work, fencing |
| Jo Harries (Monmouth/Coleford) | 07712 438662 | Woodland management, tree work,coppicing, hedge planting, strimming, fencing |
| David Lucas (Devauden) | 01291 650750 | Forestry wood supplies, hedge laying |
| David Kenworth | 07980 861826 | Tree, fence and hedge services |
| Bruce Trantor (Devauden) | 01291 690283 | Hedge laying (contractor style) |
| Rhys Ashbridge | 07973 228514 | Tree surgery, hedge work, hedge laying |
| Nick Wilton (Blakeney) | 07977 448058 fwtree@outlook.com | Tree surgery and advice, forestry, hedge cutting, solutions for sustainable removal of large trees |
| Mark Sealey (Flaxley) | 07970 369987 | Hedge flail, agricultural contractor |
| Dawn Cracknell (Tidenham) | 07836 581293 | Hedge flail, agricultural contractor |
| Chris Hodges (Coleford) | 01594 833784 | Stone walling |
| David Mason ( Tidenham) | 07791 510880 | Stone walling |
Advice on best practice hedgerow management is available from www.hedgelink.org.uk, the national steering group for hedgerow management.
MEADOW RESTORATION
The following organisations have good general advice on their websites about meadow restoration and recreation:
www.plantlife.org.uk – go to the Plantlife Meadows Hub
www.magnificentmeadows.org.uk
For Dean Meadows Group members, advice on meadow restoration can be sought from committee members Chris Parsons, Rosie Kelsall and Liz Powell. Please contact Wendy Abbott at wendy.abbott@btinternet.com in the first instance.
| Emorsgate Seeds ( Nr Bath ) | enquiries@emorsgateseeds.com 01553 829028 (10-4pm Mon – Fri). | Offer advice over the phone or by email |
| Liz Powell (Longhope) | liz@ecohabwildflowers.com | Wildflower seeds and plugs. Ecologist with special interest in meadow restoration and seed harvesting |
| Haydn Brookes (Longhope) | haydn.brookes@hotmail.com | Ecologist with a special interest in meadow restoration, seed harvest and bats |
| Agreco Kim Parsons (Bromyard) | 07855 321339 info@agreco.co.uk http://www.agreco.co.uk | Wildflower meadow creation, maintenance and harvesting. Flail collecting, sward lifting, over seeding etc. Please contact to discuss project feasibility |
FRUIT TREES
For local advice, contact the Gloucestershire Orchard Trust who can advise on all matters to do with orchards, local varieties of fruit trees, and who can supply these trees locally.
http://www.glosorchards.org
https://glosorchards.org/home/fruitvarieties/nurseries-stocking-local-varieties/
Frank P Matthews has a nursery based in Worcestershire and a tree shop in Tenbury, Wells, supplying good quality British grown stock with a large range of fruit trees. Deliveries available. sales@fpmatthews.co.uk or treeshop@fpmatthews.co.uk Tel : 01584 812800.
Keepers Nursery is a national supplier who provide good quality stock, have a large range of fruit trees and sells some Gloucestershire varieties. www.keepers-nursery.co.uk sales@keepers.nursery.co.uk
SCYTHING
The Scythe Association of Britain and Ireland can provide a wealth of information and contacts.www.scytheassocation.org
| Beth Tilston (Blakeney) | bethtilston@googlemail.com | Runs local scything courses |
For members of the Dean Meadows Group, advice can be sought from committee member Beth Tilston, Please contact Wendy Abbott at wendy.abbott@btinternet.com in the first instance.
TOOL HIRE
| Brandon Tool Hire (Gloucester) | 01452 416666 | Sickle bar/finger bar mower – the machine needs to be booked in advance. Other mowers available |
| Ermin Plant Hire (Ross) | 01989 566729 | Tough flail mower. No sickle bar/finger bar mowers |
LOCAL PROVENANCE WILDFLOWER SEED
We advocate only using local seed for use in meadows, fields and grasslands. Collecting seed from other group members is easy to do, either on a plant by plant basis, or by sweeping a meadow with a butterfly net when seeds are ripe. Collecting seed from meadows does require the owner’s permission. Hay meadow seed can often be collected from the bottom of feeders when local wild flower meadow hay is fed to livestock.
| Emorsgate Seeds ( Nr Bath ) | http://www.wildseed.co.uk enquiries@emorsgateseeds.com 01553 829028 (10-4pm Mon – Fri). | Harvests some seed from Bath, Somerset, Wiltshire, Welsh Marches. Sell annual and wildflower mixes, and individual plant species seed |
| Ecohab Wildflowers (West Gloucestershire) | www.ecohabwildflowers.co.uk liz@ecohabwildflowers.co.uk | Harvests seed from Gloucestershire (FoD, Cotswolds, Severn Vale), Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, Oxfordshire |
See also Plantlife’s guide to seed buying with recommended suppliers by region: http://www.meadows.plantlife.org.uk/making-meadows/sowing-seed/buying-wild-flower-seed/
For Dean Meadows Group members, advice can be sought from committee members Chris Parsons and Liz Powell. Please contact Wendy Abbott at wendy.abbott@btinternet.com in the first instance.
Dean Meadows Group 