“Sea Meadows” is a composite name given to the playing fields between the Martello Tower and College Road. Individually they are Pump Field, Martello Fields and the Covers. They used to form the floodplain of the River Ouse which, in the past, flowed into the sea just below Seaford Head.
I am one of a small group of SNHS and On The Verge members that have assumed responsibility for this area and we have been collecting litter from the fields on a monthly basis. While doing so we have also noted the plants growing there in response to the council’s new mowing regime.
Pump Field is an educational resource for ecological fieldwork and we hope that in time it will revert to chalk downland. A hedge of natural shrubs has been planted not only to shield the ugly pump house, but also to increase biodiversity. The hedge will need care and attention as it was discovered during planting that the chalk bedrock is just a foot below the surface.
The Cliff Gardens project aims to transform the unmade and unattractive road, Cliff Gardens, into an educational garden and walkway, linking Pump and Martello Fields and echoing the popular development at Splash Point. (You can find more information and answers to some recent interview questions here)
Martello Field is constantly in use as a venue for events, but leaving the edges unmown has already increased biodiversity….as has the November bonfire!
We were surprised to find Spotted Lady’s Thumb, Cudweed, Scentless Mayweed, Common (Redstem) Stork’s-bill, Scarlet Pimpernel, Pineapple Mayweed and Pearlwort, growing on scorched earth, presumably encouraged by the ash and lack of competition from plants killed by the bonfire.
Recently we led a Botanical Ramble (A Bramble?) noting what we saw as we ambled from the Sea Meadows through Crouch Gardens en route to St Leonards Church. This was an opportunity not only to record changes in the flora of the town but also for less experienced botanists to learn a bit about our wild flowers. This was such a pleasant event that in future we aim to repeat it quarterly. The next “Bramble” starts at Cliff Road at 10a.m. on Sunday 16th July.Why not join us?
Mike Vingoe.
From the Seaford Natural History Society newsletter
