English Heritage Reintroduces Ancient Scything Methods
To help protect one of Britain’s rarest bumblebees
English Heritage is helping to revive a centuries-old countryside tradition by recruiting a new team of volunteer scythers to help restore historic meadows and save one of Britain’s rarest bumblebees. The newly formed scything team will use this ancient skill to help care for the meadow at Muchelney Abbey in Somerset as part of a three-year project with the Bumblebee Conservation Trust to improve habitat for the Shrill Carder bee, a species that has suffered significant declines due to the loss of flower-rich grasslands.
Trained by the Exmoor National Park Authority, the scything volunteers will eventually travel between selected English Heritage sites in Somerset to trial the use of traditional cutting techniques. Historically, travelling scythers moved from meadow to meadow during the summer months, using hand tools to cut grass and hay. They were often rewarded for their work with food and drink, including bread, cheese and cider. English Heritage’s modern-day scythers will revive the practice, while helping create healthier habitats for wildlife.
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.”
As part of the project, English Heritage volunteers have also been trained by the Bumblebee Conservation Trust to carry out detailed wildlife surveys. Rather than simply recording bee numbers, volunteers will monitor the relationship between bees and the wider meadow ecosystem, including which flowers are in bloom, which plants the bees are using, how far bees travel from their nests and how the habitat changes over time. Somerset is one of only a small number of areas in Britain where the Shrill Carder bee can still be found. By improving habitat at Muchelney Abbey, the project aims to strengthen the conditions needed for this rare species to thrive.
