Ham Lands is a 72-hectare Local Nature Reserve and Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation in

Ham Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term "ham ...

in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and the

Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames is a borough in southwest London. The main town is Kingston upon Thames and it includes Surbiton, Chessington, Malden Rushett, New Malden and Tolworth. It is the oldest of the four royal boroughs in Eng ...

. The area is very popular with walkers, nature lovers, and horse-riders. There is an unofficial (non Council) off-road BMX track near Teddington Lock. The site is a large area of grassland and scrub bordering the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

. The other boundary is mostly formed by Riverside Drive. The area is divided into two sections by the lagoon and Thames Young Mariners. The land belonged to the

Earl of Dysart Earl of Dysart (pronounced ) is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1643 and has been held continuously since then by descendants of the 1st Earl, William Murray. Creation The title was created in 1643 for William Murray, ...

until the nineteenth century. In 1904 it was leased by the Ham River Grit Co. Ltd for excavation of sand and ballast. They constructed a wharf and processing plant where barges loaded. A canal was constructed through the towpath in the 1920s to create an internal loading lagoon, now the Thames Young Mariners. The gravel pits were then backfilled with soil from different areas of London, creating a variety of habitats which attract many bird and butterfly species. By the 1960s tipping was complete and the Wates estate built along Riverside Drive. The construction of

Teddington Lock Teddington Lock is a complex of three locks and a weir on the River Thames between Ham and Teddington in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. Historically in Middlesex, it was first built in 1810. The limit of legal po ...

in 1904, now the limit of the tidal Thames, resulted in the raising of the towpath while the in-filled area was above the general level of flooding. The area north of Thames Young Mariners is still floodable. The flood-meadows have a wide range of wild flowers and there are many plants which are rare in London. Some of the more unusual plants found include meadow saxifrage, hemlock water-dropwort, yellow vetchling, hoary cinquefoil/silver cinquefoil, dittander/pepperwort, bee orchid,

pyramidal orchid ''Anacamptis pyramidalis'', the pyramidal orchid, is a perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the genus ''Anacamptis'' of the family Orchidaceae. The scientific name ''Anacamptis'' derives from Greek ανακάμτειν 'anakamptein' meaning 'b ...

. Plans to build on the former gravel pits were finally abandoned by the Council in 1983. A survey of the flora was carried out by Nigel Hepper in 1985 and a report published in 1987 which recognised eight zones. File:Ham Lands, off Riverside Drive, Richmond.jpg, Ham Lands South File:Ham Land North, View of Richmond Hill.jpg, View of Richmond Hill File:Ham Lands North, Ham, Richmond.jpg, Ham Lands north File:Ham Lands, Ophrys apifera (1).jpg, Bee orchid File:Pyramidal Orchid on Ham Lands North.jpg, Pyramidal Orchid

References

External links

Friends of Ham Lands

Official website

Species checklist

Concise Check-list of Vascular Plants
{{coord, 51.435, -0.325, type:landmark, display=title Floodplains of Europe Ham, London Local nature reserves in Greater London Nature reserves in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Parks and open spaces in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames Parks and open spaces on the River Thames Nature reserves in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames

References

Further reading

External links