Arthur’s Hill Beef In 2021

• Cows on former Nuns Moor allotments site by March 2021

The historic Nuns Moor allotments site on Brighton Grove could be host to beef cattle by Spring next year.

Plans by the city’s Freemen to turn the former 126 year old Brighton Grove allotments site into grazing land for beef cattle farmers are now at a stage where it is a distinct possibility ‘livestock’ could be introduced by March 2021.

Tree Planting

An ‘agreed complementary tree planting scheme’ is now in place for the site, according to the latest issue of the Freemen Magazine, and work is ready to start in Autumn.

Greening Wingrove & Arthur’s Hill (GWAH) will be meeting with the City Council and Freemen to help co-ordinate “habitat strengthening” and the planting of about 40 trees on the border between Nuns Moor Park and the former allotments land, says GWAH chair, Nigel Todd, also a member of the Council’s Town Moor Joint Working Group.

The tree planting scheme was agreed between the City Council and the Freemen (jointly responsible for managing Town Moor land) after aggrieved local residents complained in March 2016 of unauthorised felling of mature trees and uprooting of established hedgerow, citing a potentially harmful impact on nesting birds and wildlife.

Livestock Grazing Land

The remaining step to the introduction of livestock is the successful establishment of grazing pasture; dependent on factors such as weather, soil acidity, drainage and compatible grass types.

Work on this is expected to progress over the next year, suggesting cattle could be introduced by the start of the grazing season March 2021 if circumstances are right.

New Allotments

No official word has yet come from the Freemen about progress in developing replacement ‘reduced size’ allotment provision at the site.

This ‘major undertaking’ was promised in early 2015 and touted as a central part of ‘a fresh start’ vision for the land, which would see the ‘remainder’ of the site opened up for public access and for grazing.

By May 2015, more than 100 allotment gardeners had voluntarily vacated their plots, bringing to an end the city’s oldest surviving allotment site, allowing a redevelopment to go ahead.