Essential heathland restoration work will take place at Green Farm, Surrey, on the area known as Gravel Hanger this month (July). It aims to reduce the amount of bracken and gorse present to allow more heather, bilberry and heathland vegetation growth.

Contractors will use a combination of brush cutting and carefully targeted glyphosate spraying to reduce the vigour of the bracken. The work has been informed by reptile and nightjar surveys to ensure minimal disturbance to these species. 

It’s important to take care when visiting Gravel Hanger while the work is ongoing. Walk on the permissive and public paths only, and please keep dogs on leads. 

The Gravel Hanger area is over-dominated by bracken.

Why we are doing it
Both bracken and gorse have a place as part of a balanced heathland mosaic habitat. Nightjars are known to lay eggs on bare ground underneath bracken, while reptiles such as smooth snakes and sand lizards also use bracken patches for shade and feeding. Dartford warblers like using dense patches of gorse for their nests and as perches. However, the bracken at Gravel Hanger has become too dominant, so plants such as heather and bilberry have diminished, resulting in a less diverse heathland. 

This work will reduce the area choked by bracken to create a more diverse habitat suited to a wider range of heathland specialists, including ground-nesting birds, reptiles and pollinators like the silver-studded blue butterfly. 

Due to the volume of bracken and the angle of slope that hinders machinery, we have chosen to use glyphosate in a few isolated patches with the greatest bracken cover, where other plants have already been shaded out. Glyphosate is an effective herbicide and will kill non-target flora, so it is being used as selectively as possible and only at the very start of the work.

Where heather, bilberry and other plants are present alongside the bracken, glyphosate will not be used. Instead, the bracken in these areas will be removed using brush cutters to preserve the other flora. In the future, we will phase out our use of glyphosate in controlling bracken and other invasive species on the heathland, opting to use other methods as part of a regular programme of works.

Bell heather stands with ling heather, plus bracken coverage, broom and gorse.

What’s next?
Further work will be scheduled on the Green Farm and Gravel Hanger heathland during the autumn and winter months to promote stands of heather and add more structural diversity to the heathland. 

We’re looking forward to seeing the results of this work over the coming years through increases in species diversity and abundance on site.

How you can help
We will be working with our volunteers to remove bracken on the heathland behind Beacon Hill towards the end of July. All are welcome to join us to support this effort. More information on volunteering at: www.thecrt.co.uk/volunteering 

How to support us
If you want to help us protect local wildlife and habitats, you can join as a CRT Friend, attend our in-person and online events and volunteer on one of our farms. You can also sign-up to our monthly newsletter 'CRT News' for regular updates from our farms, straight to your inbox. 

Published: July 2025