Display of bluebells graphic illustration of Icart success
AN amazing display of bluebells has bloomed at Icart to the excitement of those supporting a habitat restoration project.
It is in its second year with the aim of supporting a wide range of plants, insects and birds. Bracken and scrub were cleared in 2018 at the start of the project.
La Societe Guernesiaise’s Julia Henney was overjoyed to see the space flourishing and thriving.
‘Those bluebells look so impressive and really fantastic,’ she said.
‘It’s incredible – this is the largest restoration project that we’ve seen on the island and it’s so necessary that a project like this is happening as there’s really species-rich delicate coastal grasslands and because of the loss of grazing.’
The aim is for La Societe’s conservation herd of Guernsey steers, which Miss Henney manages, to graze the field each autumn.
That could not be done last year but the plan is to do so this year from around September.
‘We haven’t actually grazed it yet,’ she said. ‘We were meant to last autumn but there were some problems – we can never go on plans because it all depends on weather and the cattle grazing earlier.
‘So actually that wonderful display of flowers that you can see at the moment that is purely the result of the people who initially removed the scrub.
‘It’s just produced space and light for those bluebells to get to bloom and the cattle grazing is all about maintaining it, keeping the bracken, gorse and scrub down and encouraging the grasses and other wildflowers to come through.’
There is no public access to the field to allow the habitat to flourish, but you can walk around it.
Miss Henney urged people not to allow their dogs to enter the field and to stick to the path.
The restoration project is supported by La Societe and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and aims to restore the States-owned field to a locally rare dry grassland habitat, which will support a wide range of plants, insects and birds.
Icart headland has pockets of coastal heathland habitat, which are of international importance as it is one of the scarcest habitats found in Guernsey, and it may also establish at the field.
