Plaster's Green Meadows

Plaster's Green Meadows
Site of Special Scientific Interest

Location within Somerset
Area of Search	Avon
Grid reference	ST532611
Coordinates	51°20′49″N 2°40′24″W / 51.34704°N 2.67335°W / 51.34704; -2.67335Coordinates: 51°20′49″N 2°40′24″W / 51.34704°N 2.67335°W / 51.34704; -2.67335
Interest	Biological
Area	4.3 hectares (0.043 km²; 0.017 sq mi)
Notification	1989 (1989)
Natural England website

Plaster's Green Meadows (grid reference ST532611) is a 4.3 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest near the village of Nempnett Thrubwell, Bath and North East Somerset, notified in 1989.

This is an area of unimproved and traditionally managed species-rich meadows which support a neutral grassland community of a type which is now rare throughout Britain. The site is situated on the slopes fringing the Lias Tablelands and is underlain by Rhaetic clays and, lower down the slope Keuper Red Marl. The slowly permeable clay soils are slightly calcareous in nature and this is reflected in elements of the flora.

The site is characterised by the nationally rare Common Knapweed (Centaurea nigra) and Crested Dog’s-tail (Cynosurus cristatus) and dominant grasses include Sweet Vernal-grass (Anthoxanthum odoratum), Crested Dog’s-tail and Yorkshire Fog (Holcus lanatus), while Quaking Grass (Briza media) and Yellow Oat-grass (Trisetum flavescens) are also frequent.

There is a high component of herb species throughout the meadows including Saw-wort (Serratuta tinctoria), Dyer’s Greenweed (Genista tinctoria), Common Knapweed, Pepper-saxifrage (Silaum silaus), Devil’s-bit Scabious (Succisa pratensis), Betony (Stachys officinalis) and Spiny Restharrow (Ononis spinosa). The calcareous nature of the soil is reflected by the presence of Cowslip (Primula veris), Fairy Flax (Linum catharticum), Glaucous Sedge (Carex flacca), Lady’s Bedstraw (Galium verum) and occasional Salad Burnet (Sanguisorba minor).

The meadows are bounded by hedges supporting numerous species including Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), Wych Elm (Ulmus glabra), English Elm (Ulmus procera), Hazel (Corylus avellana) and Field Maple (Acer campestre). Hedgerow trees include Ash (Fraxinus excelsior), Sweet Chestnut (Castanea sativa), Holly (Ilex aquifolium) and Oak (Quercus spp.).

Sources

English Nature citation sheet for the site (accessed 16 July 2006)

Biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Avon

Ashton Court Avon Gorge Banwell Caves Biddle Street, Yatton Bishop's Hill Wood Blagdon Lake Bodkin Hazel Wood Brockley Hall Stables Brown's Folly Burledge Sidelands and Meadows Burrington Combe Chew Valley Lake Cleaves Wood Cleeve Wood, Hanham Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines Compton Martin Ochre Mine Congrove Field and The Tumps Dolebury Warren Ellenborough Park West Folly Farm Goblin Combe Gordano Valley Harptree Combe Hawkesbury Meadow Hinton Charterhouse Field Horseshoe Bend, Shirehampton Iford Manor King's Wood and Urchin Wood Long Dole Wood and Meadows Lower Woods Max Bog Middle Hope Midger Monkswood Valley Plaster's Green Meadows Purn Hill Puxton Moor Severn Estuary Shiplate Slait St. Catherine's Valley Steep Holm Tickenham, Nailsea and Kenn Moors Uphill Cliff Upton Coombe Walton Common Weston Big Wood Yanal Bog

Neighbouring areas Gloucestershire Somerset Wiltshire

Chew Valley

Towns and villages:	Belluton Bishop Sutton Blagdon Burnett Cameley Camerton Chelwood Chew Magna Chew Stoke Chewton Keynsham Chewton Mendip Clutton Compton Dando Compton Martin East Harptree High Littleton Hinton Blewett Hunstrete Keynsham Litton Marksbury Nempnett Thrubwell Norton Malreward Pensford Publow Regil Stanton Drew Stanton Prior Stowey Temple Cloud Timsbury Ubley West Harptree Winford Woollard

Reservoirs:	Blagdon Lake Chew Magna Reservoir Chew Valley Lake Litton Reservoirs

Rivers:	River Chew River Yeo

SSSIs:	Barns Batch Spinney Blagdon Lake Burledge Hill Chew Valley Lake Compton Martin Ochre Mine Dundry Main Road South Quarry Emborough Quarries Folly Farm Harptree Combe Hartcliff Rocks Quarry Lamb Leer Lulsgate Quarry Plaster's Green Meadows Wurt Pit and Devil's Punchbowl

Open Access Land	Burledge Hill Knowle Hill Round Hill (Folly Farm)

Councils:	Bath and North East Somerset Mendip North Somerset

Surrounding areas:	Dundry Down Lulsgate Plateau Mendip Hills Yeo Valley

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