Madingley Slip Road - Protected Road Verge S48

Protected Road Verge S48 - Madingley Slip Road

The start of the north verge is at the edge of the concrete pad The County Council have over 90 protected road verges, which are designated because of their botanical interest.  They contribute to the Biodiversity Action Plan for Cambridgeshire, which identifies roadside verges as important sites of biodiversity.  The protected verges are marked by prominent posts.  Each protected verge can have a designated warden to keep an eye on it.  I am looking after S48, which is the east bound slip road off the A428 leading to the Madingley roundabout.  The north protected verge runs from a concrete pad just past the last exit sign for Cambridge to the start of the crash barrier on the north side.  The south protected verge runs from near the beginning of the slip to the start of the crash barrier on the south side.  It is just over a kilometre in length, and averages a width of 6 metres, although parts of the southern verge approach a width of 50 metres.  The preliminary species list [Updated 2005 November 14] includes species from a 2002 WT survey.  For completeness this list also includes species seen in the area between the protected verge and the north embankment of the A428 and in the cut-off between the slip road and Church Lane and totals over 200 species.

Each protected verge has been surveyed by the Wildlife Trust, with recommendations as to its management.  The 2002 survey by the Wildlife Trust for S48 notes:

Site description

Near the middle of the north verge This verge is a good example of a calcareous species rich verge with steep embankments and some anthills.  The embankment on the north side has been cut back to the chalk sub soil, whilst on the south side there is a high chalk content in its topsoil.   The predominant species include False oatgrass (Arrhenatherum elatius), Upright brome (Bromus erectus), Wild carrot (Daucus carota), Tufted hair grass (Deschampsia cespitosa) and Yorkshire fog (Holcus lanatus).

The whole verge has a good variety of species and thirteen calcareous to neutral grassland indicators are present along the verge. Of these, seven strong grassland indicators are present. Yellow wort (Blackstonia perfoliata), Upright brome, Wild basil (Clinopodium vulgare) and Ploughman’s spikenard (Inula conyzae) are strong indicators of calcareous grassland, whilst Glaucus sedge (Carex flacca), Common spotted orchid (Dactylorhiza fuchsii) and Hairy violet (Viola hirta) are all strong indicators of calcareous to neutral grassland. Bee orchid (Ophrys apifera) is also frequent along the verge. Due to the southern aspect and steep slope, the north side of the road contains a high number of grassland indicators and grass species, thus allowing much of the sward to remain open and retain a high population of species.

The end of the north verge is by the distant crash barrier, not the post in the foreground Scrub is beginning to encroach out from the hedgerow, particularly where Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus) and Dewberry (Rubus caesius) are dominant along the northern verge. However Common spotted orchid and Hairy violet are partially associated with dappled shade. The number of Common spotted orchid associated with Yorkshire fog and Cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata) greatly increases on the southern side where the verge is damper. Other very shady or damp patches also have abundant Common fleabane (Pulicaria dysenterica), Field horsetail (Equisetum arvense) and Soft rush (Juncus effusus).

Some tree species such as Field maple (Acer campestre) have been planted along the verge and a hedgerow lines the verge on the northern side.

 

Special interest

No scarce or rare species were recorded in the 2002 survey. The site is however a proposed County Wildlife Site under the calcareous grassland criteria.  On 2005 May 30 I found one specimen of dwarf spurge (Euphorbia exigua) on the north embankment, which is a recent addition to the red data list.  I also found a specimen growing on the A428 embankment in June, and one on the south verge on August 13.

 

Management and recommendations

The start of the south verge is by the drain cover The shallow slopes should be cut twice a year, once between mid April to mid May, followed by a second cut in September/October. The cuttings from the autumn cut should be removed to prevent a build up of nutrients and deterioration in the quality of the grassland. To prevent damage to the anthills a sensitive cutting regime should be implemented in these areas using a strimmer. 

Some scrub clearance should take place, but also a small scattering of young scrub and trees should be maintained for the species that are suited to these conditions. 

Four posts should be erected to mark the location of the Protected Road Verge. [Two were put up, but these were not in the right position to mark the length of the north verge.  One is now correctly positioned following the drainage works.]

 Drainage improvements took place during 2006 May - July and the contractors did an excellent job of protecting the verge.  Soil imported as fill along some sections of the non-protected verges is supporting several new species.  Scrub clearance is intended as part of the 'make good' during the autumn of 2006.

Updated 2006 September 4

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