The newly-acquired land is adjacent to our existing Frogmore Meadows Nature Reserve and had previously been used as farmland. The enlarged nature reserve, which sits in the Chess Valley, now covers 25 acres – three times the size of the original site.
Nature Reserve triples in size thanks to generous legacy
We have recently purchased land near Chorleywood to triple the size of Frogmore Meadows Nature Reserve.
Gerald Salisbury
The purchase was made possible from a generous legacy left to us by Gerald Salisbury, who passed away in 2015. Gerald had been a long-term volunteer warden at Frogmore Meadows and was instrumental in helping us care for the meadows. As recognition of his dedication to the site, we have named the original reserve ‘Gerald’s Meadow’. Â
The extended nature reserve comprises rare water meadows and is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). We have been managing the original nature reserve since 1985 using traditional meadow-management techniques including grazing and haymaking.
Frogmore Meadows sits in a floodplain and the soils found there, when managed correctly, support an abundance of meadow grasses, orchids and wildflowers. In summer, Frogmore Meadows is a mass of beautiful flowers which are an important food source for many insects such as bees and butterflies.
We are hugely grateful to Gerald Salisbury for his devoted volunteering at Frogmore Meadows and we are thrilled that we are able to use his legacy to extend the nature reserve that he loved so much. The meadows on the reserve are a rare and precious habitat and we’re really looking forward to being able to manage this enlarged site to protect its wildlife and allow people to enjoy it.Nature Reserves Manager
To celebrate the extension of Frogmore Meadows, we have launched the Chess Valley Challenge – a ten-mile sponsored walk following the river Chess and going through the nature reserve. Find out more and register your place here.
