Ancient grass cutting technique being brought back in Somerset to help save rare bees
A team of volunteer scythers will restore the meadow at Muchelney Abbey - one of the few places the shrill carder bee can still be found
A new team of volunteer scythers are being trained to help restore historic meadows and save one of Britain’s rarest bees, English Heritage has said.
The charity is helping revive the centuries-old tradition of “roaming scythers” – who would once have travelled from meadow to meadow using their hand tools to cut grass and hay, often being rewarded for their work with food and drink including bread, cheese and cider.
The newly formed scything team is using the ancient technique of grass-cutting to care for the meadow at English Heritage’s Muchelney Abbey in Somerset, one of the few areas in Britain where the shrill carder bee can still be found, as part of a project to help the struggling insect.
The three-year project with the Bumblebee Conservation Trust aims to improve habitat for the bee, which has suffered significant declines because of the loss of the flower-rich grasslands in which it thrives.
As part of the project, English Heritage volunteers have also been trained by the Trust to carry out detailed wildlife surveys, monitoring the relationship between the bees and the meadow, such as which flowers are in bloom and which plants the bees are using.
The volunteer scything team members, who have been trained by Exmoor National Park Authority, will eventually visit other selected English Heritage sites in Somerset to test out how the traditional skill can complement existing meadow management to help wildlife.
The first volunteers have been trained and are now qualified to train others, and in keeping with tradition, they will receive a “payment” of bread and cheese for their work, English Heritage said.
Volunteer and community engagement manager, Ginny Slade, said: “Scything is a wonderful example of how traditional skills can still have a role in addressing modern challenges.
“We hope to help create the diverse, flower-rich habitats that pollinators need while also preserving knowledge and skills that have shaped our landscapes for centuries.”
The meadow at Muchelney Abbey, which was once a wealthy and important monastery, is one of 100 that English Heritage pledged to create and enhance to celebrate the coronation of the King in 2023.