Box Farm Meadows (Stuart Fawkes reserve) () is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, notified in 1985. This was formerly known as Balls Green Pastures. The reserve is situated at the southern edge of Box village and one mile east of Nailsworth. The site is owned and managed by the

Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust The Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust is the Gloucestershire local partner in a conservation network of 46 Wildlife Trusts. The Wildlife Trusts are local charities with the specific aim of protecting the United Kingdom's natural heritage. The Gl ...

. It was purchased in 1978 and named in the memory of Mr F S Fawkes, a local naturalist and a founder member and former Vice-President of the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust (formerly the Gloucestershire Trust for Nature Conservation). Grant aid was received for its purchase from the World-wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Nature Conservancy Council (NCC), the Langtree Trust and the Dulverton Trust.Kelham, A, Sanderson, J, Doe, J, Edgeley-Smith, M, et al, 1979, 1990, 2002 editions, 'Nature Reserves of the Gloucestershire Trust for Nature Conservation/Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust'

The site

The reserve consists of two meadows and supports one of the largest

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

populations of the rare

Meadow Clary ''Salvia pratensis'', the meadow clary or meadow sage, is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae, native to Europe, western Asia and northern Africa. The Latin specific epithet ''pratensis'' means "of meadows", referring to its pr ...

. It is on Inferior Oolitic limestone and

Fuller's Earth Fuller's earth is any clay material that has the capability to decolorize oil or other liquids without the use of harsh chemical treatment. Fuller's earth typically consists of palygorskite (attapulgite) or bentonite. Modern uses of fuller's ea ...

and faces south. It overlies extensive mine workings. These produced high quality freestone used for building in the

Stroud Stroud is a market town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is the main town in Stroud District. The town's population was 13,500 in 2021. Below the western escarpment of the Cotswold Hills, at the meeting point of the Five ...

area.

Plants

The Meadow Clary blooms in June and July, its flowers being a brilliant blue. The site also support a variety of typical limestone grassland plants which include

Common Rock-rose ''Helianthemum nummularium'' (known as common rock-rose) is a species of rock-rose (Cistaceae), native to most of Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical si ...

, Cowslip, Lady's Bedstraw,

Common Restharrow ''Ononis repens'', the common restharrow, is a plant species of the genus ''Ononis''. Description It is a prostrate (maximum height 60cm) woody perennial, spreading by rhizomes. It has hairy stems and small oval leaves with toothed edges. ...

, Dwarf Thistle, Burnet-saxifrage, Field Scabious,

Quaking-grass ''Briza'' is a genus of annual and perennial plants in the grass family, native to northern temperate regions of Eurasia, North Africa, and certain islands in the Atlantic. The group is generally referred to as the quaking grasses because the ...

and

Green-winged Orchid ''Anacamptis morio'', the green-winged orchid or green-veined orchid ( synonym ''Orchis morio''), is a flowering plant of the orchid family, Orchidaceae. It usually has purple flowers, and is found in Europe and the Middle East. Description It f ...

s.2011, 'Nature Reserve Guide', Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, publication to celebrate its 50th anniversary

Conservation

The conservation is centred on promoting the spread of Meadow Clary, but maintaining and developing the overall wildlife interest. Cattle grazing is used to prevent the growth of coarse grass and restricts scrub. Thistles are cut annually and any ragwort growth is pulled.

Publications

* Kelham, A, Sanderson, J, Doe, J, Edgeley-Smith, M, et al, 1979, 1990, 2002 editions, 'Nature Reserves of the Gloucestershire Trust for Nature Conservation/Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust' * 2011, 'Nature Reserve Guide', Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, publication to celebrate its 50th anniversary

References

SSSI Source

Natural England SSSI information on the citation

Natural England SSSI information on the Box Farm Meadows unit

External links

Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust

Natural England
(SSSI information) {{SSSIs Gloucs biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire Sites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1985 Nature reserves in Gloucestershire Meadows in Gloucestershire