EEarls Colne

Millennium

Green

Earls Colne Millennium

Green Trust

The Green was an initiative of the Parish Council.

Funding for its purchase and creation came from

generous donations by local residents and the

business community, from national and regional

organisations and from the National Lottery

Commission. The Green’s Official Custodian is

The Charities Commission, and it is managed by

the Earls Colne Millennium Green Trust - a

Registered Charity run by local people on a

voluntary basis. They are supported in this task

by other volunteers (Friends of the Green) who

help to carry out maintenance work,

improvements and also occasional fund raising.

If you are interested in becoming involved as

a Friend of the Green, please contact the

Parish Council (tel. 01787 224370).

RRiivveerr CCoollnnee CCoouunnttrryyssiiddee PPrroojjeecctt

SPONSORSRural Action . Hullmatic Engineering Ltd

C A Blackwell (Contracts) Ltd . N C Cammack & Son LtdGigawave Antennas Bass . David Whiting . Tree Surgeon

Ashwell’s Amenity & Pleasureground TrustW G Waters Ltd . Rudolph Wolff . Charitable TrustThe Garfield Weston Foundation . C R Timber LtdTrane (UK) Ltd, E Hobbs (Farms) Ltd . Pakfin Ltd

Milbank Trucks Ltd . Milbank Flooring Ltd

Grass Snake

Water Vole

Broad-bodiedDarter

JULY

AUGUST

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER

NOVEMBER

DECEMBER

JAN-

UARY

FEBRUARYMARCHAPRIL

The Arrow of Time

A ‘Human’ Sundial

How it works

1. Stand astride the centre line of the arrow at

the current month marker. If necessary,

raise one arm above you so that your

shadow reaches the number blocks.

2. Between April and October (BST) your

shadow will indicate clock time within

5 minutes or so.

3. Between November and March (GMT),

subtract 1 hour from the indicated sundial

time to give you clock time - again within

5 minutes or so.

4. For greater accuracy at any date, adjust

the clock time indicated on the sundial by

adding or subtracting the number of

minutes for today’s date as

indicated on the graph.

The difference between clock time and the sundial’s

time arises because of the earth’s elliptical orbit

round the sun, the tilt of its axis and Earls Colne’s

longitude being 0o41’ east of Greenwich.

Mill Green

Adventure TrailFun on the Adventure Trail Play Area at the Mil-

lennium Green Open Day.

JUNE

P

W

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Yellowhammer

Ringlet

Hawthorn

Hazel

Green Woodpecker

Dog Rose

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Entrance

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Entrance

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Benches/Picnic Benches

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Benches/Picnic Benches

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Hedges

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Board Walk

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Long Grass/Meadow

Invertebrate Area

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Board Walk

Vehicular disabled entrance

Ju Oak

Jub Jub Ju Ju Jubile k

Play AreaP y P y

Jubilee

(Arrow of time) Sundial Human

Sun Dial

S

Entrance

Sun Dial

Stile

Gate

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& kissing gateEntrance

(Arrow of time)

AADROTLAS AAT

Entrance

Grassland

The paths and the grass at the top of the

Green are kept short for recreational

purposes. The rest is managed as a hay

meadow sown with a mixture of native

grasses and wildflower seed. In late spring

and summer look for ox-eye daisy,

common vetch, cowslip, buttercup,

scabious, orange hawkweed, meadow

cranesbill and lots more. Keep an eye out

for Common Lizards, a colony of which was

transferred to the Green by the building

firm Barratts plc, from one of their

development sites in Halstead. Although

not an endangered species, the Common

Lizard population is in decline. Typical

habitats were created for them around the

Green from wood piles, corrugated iron

strips, old bricks and mounds of hay.

Kestrel

Skylark

Ox-Eye Daisy

Cowslip

CommonVetch

CommonLizard

SilverBirch

Comma

Small-leaved lime

EnglishOak

Woodland

Most of the trees in the small copses are native

to this area and were planted and dedicated

individually by local people. A specially

produced book recording the dedications is on

view at the local Library. The main tree species

are oak, ash, hornbeam, wild cherry and small-

leaved lime interspersed with smaller shrubby

species like hazel, dogwood, guelder rose and

blackthorn. The oak trees in the lower meadow

are grown from acorns from the Honywood Oak -

a famous 700 year old tree which can be found at

nearby Marks Hall. The larger wooded area in

the middle of the Green was part of a set-aside

scheme planted by the former owner. At its upper

edge, another habitat has been specially created

to attract a large variety of invertebrate species.

The interpretation board at this site gives more

detailed information.HPond

This pond was constructed on the course

of the Bourne Brook by the Environment Agency,

and it serves two purposes. Firstly it reduces the

peak flow at times of flooding on the river by

acting as atemporary storage tank, and secondly

it provides another valuable area for wildlife.

The habitat here creates opportunities for many

types of flora and fauna to flourish. Look out for

kingfishers, different types of dragonfly, grass

snakes, water voles and even the occasional

otter. Growing around the edge of the pond are

many species of damp-loving trees. These

include alder, willow and native black poplar.

The shallow, open nature of the pond also makes

it an ideal location for fish to breed. On its opposite

bank is an area of just over an acre which has been

left deliberately unmanaged to encourage even

more species of plant, animal and invertebrate life.

Hedges

The Green is bordered on two sides by native

hedges. The one that runs alongside Stonebridge

Hill is a mature hedge which includes hawthorn,

hazel and elm and needs periodic maintenance

to control the spread of Dutch elm disease.

The northern boundary hedge was planted in

1999. It is a mixture of native species including

hazel, hawthorn, dog rose and field maple.

This hedge is managed traditionally to provide

valuable habitat that will especially benefit

declining species of farmland birds such as the

Yellowhammer pictured above.

The Greenwas created in 1999

to mark the Millennium

and provide a place for

local people to enjoy

informally the peace of

the countryside. Many

different habitats have

been created to support

a rich diversity of

wildlife.