Work Rest and Play

• Amenity Grassland:
  Areas of grass, such as mown lawns in parks and playing fields, that are maintained for recreational or aesthetic purposes and are classified as a type of brownfield site.

• Australian Swamp Stonecrop (Crassula helmsii):
  A highly invasive plant species that can rapidly overgrow and dominate aquatic habitats, as seen in the Knapp Nature Pond.

• Black Redstart: 

A bird species known to colonise built structures on brownfield sites, notably observed breeding on bomb sites in London after WWII.

• Brownfield Site: 

Technically known as 'open mosaic habitat'; generally defined as derelict industrial land or vacant demolition sites that have been previously developed and subsequently abandoned. In Sidmouth, this definition expands to include areas heavily influenced by human activity, such as parks, gardens, and agricultural land.

• Cultivated and Disturbed Land: 

A Phase 1 habitat category associated with brownfield sites, encompassing areas like arable land, amenity grassland, and ephemeral/short perennial vegetation, reflecting human disturbance.

• Early-successional Species: 

Species that primarily thrive in the early stages of ecological succession, often colonising disturbed or bare ground habitats like brownfield sites.

• Ephemeral/short perennial: 

A vegetation classification in the Phase 1 Handbook, typical of short, patchy plant associations found on derelict urban sites, quarries, and similar brownfield areas.

• Halophytes: 

Plants adapted to grow in salty conditions, typically found in coastal areas like Jacob's Ladder where high salt concentrations are present.

• Invasive Species: 

Non-native species that spread aggressively and out compete native plants, leading to a decline in biodiversity, such as Australian Swamp Stonecrop and Three Cornered Leek.

• Lime Mortar: 

A traditional building mortar made from lime, sand, and water. Unlike modern cement, it creates a softer, more porous environment that allows many plants to colonise walls and structures, as seen in the Parish Churchyard.

• Minimal Sites: 

A category of brownfield sites in Sidmouth that have been heavily influenced by human activity but where intervention is 'minimal', allowing nature to recover through regeneration, such as hedgerows along quiet roads.

• Mown Lawn: 

A type of amenity grassland, where areas of grass are regularly cut, often found in parks and playing fields and contributing to a site's classification as brownfield.

• Open Mosaic Habitat: 

The technical term for brownfield sites, emphasising their varied and often dynamic mixture of open ground, bare soil, and patchy vegetation. It is recognised as a Priority Habitat in the UK.

• Phase 1 Habitat Survey: 

A standard method for surveying and classifying habitats, used to categorise various land types, including those associated with brownfield sites.

• Priority Habitat: 

Habitats identified in the UK as being of particular conservation concern due to their ecological importance or declining status, with 'open areas mosaic habitat' (brownfield sites) being one such designation.

• Ruderal Herbs: 

Fast-growing, often tall, herbaceous plants that colonise disturbed ground, such as rosebay willowherb and stinging nettle, commonly found on brownfield sites.

• Sid Vale Association (SVA): 

A local organisation that owns and manages significant areas of land in Sidmouth, including parts of The Byes, with a focus on wildlife conservation and public access.

• Skeletal Soils:

Thin, often stony or rocky soils, characteristic of brownfield sites, which contribute to maintaining the habitat in an early-successional stage due to their limited nutrient and water retention.

• Three Cornered Leek: 

An invasive non-native plant species mentioned as swamping areas like the bank behind the cricket pavilion in Sidmouth.

• Waxcap Fungi: 

A group of colourful fungi typically found in unimproved grasslands, with a significant colony noted on the grass beside the bowling greens in Sidmouth.