Saturday, March 23 2024

Cakeham Manor Estates News

The Parish Council has received the following report from Patrick Byrne, Chairman of Cakeham Manor Estates Ltd, regarding a change of farm tenancy of their land and plans for new planting,

"We thought you might be interested to know that we are changing the way Cakeham Manor Estates is farmed. We have been looking to manage our few acres in a more environmentally conscious way, and this year, working with Webb’s land, we are starting working with Gentle & Sons, who operate Hale Farm in Wittering. Cakeham land will move to Gentle & Sons this year, with Webbs land following next year. You will start to see changes on the two main fields either side of Berry Barn Lane quite soon.

The key changes will be.

• Reduced use of chemical fertilizers.
• Use of natural fertilizers.
• Improving soil health by drilling the land rather than ploughing.
• New winter bird food sections
• New flower grass margins.

New flower grass margins and winter bird food areas, will cover about 15 acres and the proposed areas are shown below in Green and Pink. The areas will be sown and allowed to grow naturally, to provide winter feed for birds and improve insect life."