Cothill Fen - Saturday, 28th March 2026
Blog by Sally. Photos by Carol, Julio, Margaret and Sally Twelve Green Gymmers turned out on a sunny spring morning to meet Stephanie Wilson from Natural England at Cothill School car park, where we were able to load our tools onto the back of Steph's van and make our way along String Lane, an old drover's road, to Cothill Fen, where Steph briefed us on the tasks for our session. The Fen is owned by Natural England and sits adjacent to Parsonage Moor, which is owned by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (or BBOWT). Cothill Fen is one of the rare alkaline fens where specialist flora and fauna have evolved over millenia to adapt to the slightly less acidic conditions than are found on normal fens. The spring water that feeds Cothill (and other alkaline or calcareous fens) percolates through a layer of chalk. Sometimes, the chalk calcifies on the surface to form tufa, which is a bit similar to the limescale that builds up in our kettles. T...