Abbotts Hall Farm

Coastal Realignment

The Blackwater estuary is one of the largest estuaries in East Anglia, covering almost 4,400 ha and is of national and international importance for nature conservation. One of the main threats to the estuary is 'coastal squeeze' due to sea-level rise. On the Essex coast sea level is rising by around 6mm/year due to the combined effects of global warming and the settling of the land mass in the south-east due isostatic adjustment of the earth's tectonic plates. The man-made seawalls were constructed to reclaim land and subsequently protect it from flooding. 'Coastal squeeze' is the result of the sea pinning the saltmarsh against the seawall and causing erosion. Over the last 25 years up to 40% of Essex saltmarsh has been lost in this way.

The coastal realignment project at Abbotts Hall Farm was designed to allow for the regeneration of saltmarsh on the Essex coast. The seawall was breached in October 2002 but already the results have confounded both experts and critics alike. The scheme works by allowing salt water back onto land originally reclaimed by the construction of the seawall over three hundred years ago. Two counter walls have been constructed at either end of the site to protect neighbouring land but elsewhere

the land rises gently away from the seawall naturally checking the incoming tide without building new sea defenses. This has allowed the creation of 200 acres of mudflat, pioneer saltmarsh and coastal grassland.

A saltmarsh is formed by the accretion of silt over time, which provides a seed bed for the colonization of salt tolerant, or halophytic plants. The breaching of the sea wall was carefully timed to precede the October spring tides allowing each tide to float in enormous numbers of seeds from the existing marsh outside the breached sea wall. By mid-summer the fields that were last year growing barley and which this year still bear its stubble were carpeted with thousands of new saltmarsh seedlings.

This new vegetation is dominated by marsh samphire, annual sea blit), and lesser sea spurrey. Other signs of marine life include shore crabs, common jellyfish, lugworms and common shrimp. Fish species include herring, sand smelt, three spined stickleback and common goby. Birds seen feeding on the marsh include redshank, oystercatcher, little tern and shelduck.

Arable Farming and Wildlife

Over much of Essex wildlife has been finding it more and more difficult to keep a foothold on the modern arable farm. Autumn sown crops, loss of winter stubble and more effective use of herbicides and insecticides have probably all contributed to the demise of wildlife which was once commonplace. Farmland birds such as the skylark, grey partridge and corn bunting have all experienced massive population declines. The Trust is aiming to improve the lot of wildlife on the farm while continuing to grow food as economically as possible to maintain profitability.

The creation of important new coastal habitats has reduced the arable area of the farm although we have been able to take on additional farmland adjacent to Abbotts Hall. We are currently cropping almost 500 acres. Before the Trust purchased the farm the main cropping regime for over 30 years was dominated by growing wheat. In 2001 and 2002 the Trust farmed it in a similar way to understand how conventional farming worked and to obtain baseline data on the farm’s wildlife. We are now taking steps to improve the diversity of crops. In 2003/2004 the Trust will be growing clover (To convert 14 ha for organic production) as well as the usual winter barley (10.45 ha), spring barley 16.2 ha), oil seed rape (14.76 ha), spring beans (8.37 ha). winter wheat (90.19 ha) and winter and spring oats (21 ha). The oats will be grown under Conservation Grade. The Trust has registered with the Conservation Guild and a contract signed with European Oats Millers who supply oats to Jordans. Latest: OSR and winter wheat and barley all now sown (13/11) . 2004 contract received from European Oat Millers requesting 30 acres of spring oats and 21.5 acres of winter wheat .

One of the ways in which we are trying to improve conditions for wildlife on the farm is via the Countryside Stewardship Scheme. The scheme objectives are generally to improve and extend wildlife habitats, restore neglected land or features and create new habitats and landscape. It aims to encourage appropriate management such as grazing and hay cutting, to reduce fertilizers and pesticide use. We have used the scheme to help carry out hedge coppicing, hedge planting, installing 2 and 6 metre field margins and creating beetle banks. This is also the scheme which provides payments to re-create inter-tidal habitats on former arable land. We have also just entered into a 5 year Organic trial. The Trust agreed to convert 38 acres of arable land to organic to assess the environmental impacts of organic over conventional farming. For the first two years clover will build fertility, followed by wheat, beans and then wheat. The Trust has registered with the Soil Association and has secured funding through DEFRA's Organic Farming Scheme.

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