How it all started…
When Barbara and Neil Taylor, our founders, bought Denmark Farm in 1984, they wanted to let the habitat naturally regenerate, generally with as little input as possible.
This underpins our approach to conservation and ecology.
Although they did have to restore the woodland, replanting trees in the Bluebell Wood, Cops and Shelterbelt which were unexpected felled prior to the purchase completing. This was simply to restore the previous diversity of habitats.
Initially, they switched to a more traditional grazing system using low numbers of cattle rather instead of sheep.
They blocked up field drains, stopped adding fertilisers and also fenced off overgrazed hedgerows, streams and ditches.
This helped to help ‘kickstart’ natural processes.
The ‘Denmark Farm’ project
In 1987, the Taylors founded the Shared Earth Trust, with the intention to establish the Denmark Farm Conservation Centre as a 25-year experimental project.
They were supported by officers of the then Nature Conservancy Council, the Countryside Commission and Dyfed County Council.
They made Denmark Farm a “pioneering case study of habitat restoration, demonstrating change through simple conservation and management measures, and less intensive farming practices” (Shared Earth Trust, 1997).
The five initial objectives of the trust were to create:
- A nature reserve – recognising the threats to wildlife because of landscape scale change due to farming practices in mid Wales
- A genetic bank – creating a reservoir of wildlife that could repopulate the wider landscape
- A case study – to share and support replication of site restoration
- An education and advice centre
- A place for retreat and healing
Connection
This approach sought to connect people with nature,
and in the middle of the 1980s, that was a pioneering ambition.
This highlights how important ecology is to us…
Everything is interconnected: without all the links between natural and human-created systems, our world would not function.
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At Denmark Farm Conservation Centre, we aim to illustrate the relationships between people and nature, exploring the value and diversity of life and landscapes.
Studying these relationships and the associated biodiversity is known as ecology.
We are working hard to demonstrate how to connect people with nature.
Natural systems are not static.
Over the years the site has evolved hugely. Initially farmland solely focused on the production of animals, it has now become a site of great conservation value. We have a mix of ecosystems including woodlands and wildflower meadows. We also see abundant amphibians, breeding birds and a great diversity of insects.
And the changes continue…
Our woodlands mature, our meadows become more diverse and we introduce new components, such as our wetland water treatment system.
As we learn more from our site through monitoring and delivering courses, we evolve our approach to conservation. This help us manage the land to transform it into an even more valuable site for humans, plants and animals.
