LIVING CHURCHYARDS
Here at Venn Ottery Church we are working towards making our 'God's Acre' ablaze with native wildflowers, alive with bees, butterflies, birds and small mammals, a sanctuary for the living aswell as the dead. Churchyards can provide a huge contribution to the biodiversity of the countryside and at the same time engage and educate the wider local community
In our churchyard we already have a little haven for wildlife, with a variety of species in residence. There are bees living in the tower, these have been in residence for 20 years, you can hear the walls humming on warm days and they can be seen busy flying back and forth visiting plants in and around the churchyard. At night our bat colony comes to life, we have them roosting in the porch, the tower and the main church. If you see droppings in these places these are evidence of our little friends. In 2017 we took part in the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Survey with some great results, we were stunned by not just the amount of bats but also the variety. During the winter of 2017/18 we had a Brown long eared bat taking refuge in a draw in the vestry.
Birds can be found feeding and nesting in the churchyard, the Yew tree provides food and shelter as do the hedges that surround the church. We have Tawny Owls roosting in the tower and calling at night too. The grasses and mosses are havens for ants, worms and other insects which in turn feed the birds. The moss is also an ideal home for Bumble bees to live in, along with other types of bees and wasps. Even the headstones are hosts to an array of lichens spreading out over time. On Sunday June 3rd after the church service we will be planting a few wildflower plants to add to the variety of flora that is already florishing here. We hope that this will encourage more wildlife into the churchyard. If you would like to make a contribution towards the planting or help please come along and if you have more ideas to make our churchyard welcoming to those seeking sanctuary please give us your suggestions.
Judith Taylor
vennotery@hotmail.co.uk
