Great Bardfield Parish Council
'ESSEX VILLAGE OF THE YEAR 2009'
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Great Bardfield Parish Council
'ESSEX VILLAGE OF THE YEAR 2009'
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Conservation of the Oxlip in Great Bardfield Over the years, and more especially in recent issues of the Bardfield Times, much has been written about the Oxlip, Primula elatior. Few villages or towns in the British Isles have the distinction to be associated with their very own native plant. In our village we have the eminent Victorian botanist Henry Doubleday (today better known for his association with the organic gardening movement) to thank for the prestigious title, "Bardfield Oxlip". In the 1840s he first recognised the Oxlip as a true species and not simply the result of chance hybridity between Primroses and Cowslips. Doubleday observed that whilst the Primrose was largely absent within the Bardfield parish boundaries, the Oxlip grew in profusion in the meadows and damp woods, so could not have arisen spontaneously.
In his celebrated book Flora Britannica (1996), Richard Mabey gives a fairly detailed account of Doubleday's "Bardfield Oxlip" but goes on to state that "Alas, it no longer grows in Great Bardfield, or in many of its previous haunts". Fortunately for us this statement is untrue, albeit the number of sites and plants within the heart of the parish is very small indeed, and barely more than could be counted on one hand. How tragic it would be, even to say careless, if we the custodians of the village were to lose part of our heritage. How shameful to admit that we had lost the very essence of our identity, the village emblem!
With support from the community we could step back from this brink of ignominy and redress the balance. Over the past couple of years a few villagers have helped Ray Tabor, Chairman of the Essex Wildlife Trust, to survey the number and distribution of Oxlips in our locality. Elsie James and Peter and Janet Morris have been particularly helpful in guiding us back to the sites where Oxlips once grew in abundance in their childhood. Of those sites revisited only one could be described as rich in Oxlips, a welcome relic of bygone days and a joy to behold in the early spring. A few isolated plants still occur in gardens close to the river, some as survivors from an earlier wealth and others as cultivated introductions.
Well, what of the future? Now that the survey is complete it is clear that a planned recovery programme is needed if the Oxlip is to prosper once again in our parish. A project to reintroduce seed-raised plants of known biological origin back into some suitable locations is currently being initiated and managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust. With support from the community the funding necessary will be forthcoming I am sure. We have both an excellent case and the ability to update the community of our progress at regular intervals through the parish magazine. Two possible sites have already been earmarked as suitable candidates where trials might begin: on parish land at Piper's meadow in Bridge Street, and on a water meadow at Great Lodge Farm courtesy of Alan Jordan. By its very nature the reintroduction of plants back into the wild is neither a rapid nor simple process. Plants take a minimum of eighteen months to flower from seed and nearer five years before they are strong enough to prosper and compete in a rich grassland sward. However with enthusiasm and determination, accompanied by sound management techniques, success can be achieved and we can renew our heritage. Don't let apathy kill our Oxlip, support our campaign.
For the scientific record the Bardfield Oxlip, Primula elatior, is one of five species of Primula native to the UK. Those Oxlips found in the vicinity of Great Bardfield conform to the typical description of the plant. Although rare in the UK, being restricted to a few sites in Eastern England, the Oxlip has a wide global distribution, ranging from S. Sweden down into Italy and Spain and across continental Europe into Siberia. In the eastern counties (Essex, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire) it is a resident of ancient coppice woodland and occasionally damp meadows. In appearance the Oxlip most closely resembles its later flowering cousin the Cowslip, Primula veris, and two closely related hybrids of the Primrose, Primula vulgaris:- P. x tomassinii (Primrose x Cowslip) and P. x digenea (Oxlip x Primrose). The latter two hybrids are best described as "yellow polyanthus primulas" and are not easy to distinguish from the true Oxlip without previous experience. Because of this tendency towards hybrid promiscuity within the group the identity of the Oxlip still continues to be the subject of some confusion, despite Henry Doubleday's efforts. Where the Oxlip and Primrose occur together there is the added potential danger of the Oxlip becoming extinct through constant hybridization, and the subsequent dilution of its genetic identity from the continuous inflow of genes from the more common Primrose. It is therefore vitally important that only Oxlips of known genetic origin and purity are reintroduced into the wild, minimizing the risks of contamination from unknown sources. Plants raised from seed of garden origin are not suitable for this purpose and are best kept in the garden where they belong. Fortunately, in the wild the Oxlip does not hybridize naturally with the Cowslip, as they are too genetically dissimilar, and so further perceived complications in this respect do not arise. Doug Joyce On behalf of Great Bardfield Parish Council and the Essex Wildlife Trust. |
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clerk@greatbardfield-pc.gov.uk
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