Countryside Appraisal - Magnesian Limestone Ridge
Section 1: Physical and human influences
Section 2: Visual character of the landscape
Section 3: Landscape evolution and change
Section 4: Landscape strategies and key recommendations
Section 5: Landscape guidelines
Section 1: Physical and human influences
Introduction
| The Magnesian Limestone Ridge forms the southern most part of a narrow limestone ridge that extends from Nottingham along the western edge of the County to Oldcotes, then northwards through Yorkshire to a point beyond Ripon, where the ridge disappears under a thick mantle of glacial drift. Although never more than a few miles in width, this region forms a distinct belt of rising ground along the eastern fringe of the Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire Coalfields. In the central and southern parts of the region, coalfield influences have spread onto the limestone ridge and large mining settlements with their associated pit heaps are now a prominent feature in the landscape. Within Nottinghamshire, some of these settlements have coalesced to form heavily urbanised landscapes, especially in the vicinity of Sutton-in-Ashfield and around the western outskirts of Nottingham. Elsewhere, particularly to the north of Mansfield, the settlements are more self-contained and sit within a mainly rural setting. |
 |
Despite the impact of coal mining and more recent urbanisation of the landscape, the Magnesian Limestone Ridge still retains a very distinctive character which reflects the traditional pattern of land use and settlement within the region. In order to fully understand the character of the region, however, it is necessary to understand the factors that have contributed to its formation. The underlying geology, for example, has a strong influence on the character of the landscape, not only affecting landform, soils and vegetation, but also the human activities dependent upon it. The appearance of the land is in turn shaped by the results of man’s activities, which have changed natural vegetation patterns to suit human needs and introduced man-made elements into the landscape.
The shape of the land
The Magnesian Limestone Ridge is closely associated with a narrow belt of Permian rocks which outcrop along the western edge of the County. These rocks comprise two divisions, the Magnesian Limestone and the Permian Marl. The Magnesian Limestone is a compact, partially crystalline rock which provides good building stone, particularly in the Mansfield area. It is the relative hardness of this formation that determines the lie of the land. The softer Permian Marl, which consists predominantly of red clays, generally gives rise to a more subdued relief, the essential trend of which is controlled by the underlying limestone. Both beds diminish in thickness towards the southern end of the outcrop, before thinning out altogether to the west of Nottingham.
The Magnesian Limestone gives rise to a low escarpment which dips eastwards under the overlying Triassic sandstones of the Sherwood formation. The western edge of this escarpment is defined by a steep scarp slope overlooking the Nottinghamshire Coalfield. This scarp has an irregular outline in many places, where small streams draining westwards off the ridge have cut deep valleys into the underlying Coal Measures. The scarp is also partially hidden at Selston by a covering of glacial drift, which extends from the ridge onto the adjoining Coal Measures.
The limestone escarpment has a pronounced dip slope, with an average fall of 90 metres from the western edge of the region to its junction with the overlying Sherwood Sandstone formation in the east. The higher parts of this dip slope form a series of rolling summits which are particularly prominent to the north and west of Mansfield where they average 170 metres in height, rising to just over 200 metres at Huthwaite. The prominence of the escarpment in this area is due to the thickness and compactness of the limestone. To the south, where the limestone becomes thinner and more sandy in composition, the topography becomes less pronounced until, approaching the western outskirts of Nottingham, the escarpment disappears.
To the north of Mansfield, the limestone within Nottinghamshire is largely hidden beneath the Permian Marl, which gives rise to a more subdued, gently rolling landform. Within this area the main topographic features of any note are a series of deep, narrow valleys cut into the underlying limestone by larger streams originating higher up the dip slope in Derbyshire. The most prominent of these valleys is that associated with the River Meden at Pleasley Vale. The Meden, which serves as the county boundary in this area, has cut back through the limestone escarpment, and its headwaters now lie on the Coal Measures to the west of Teversal. Similar incised valleys have been formed by the River Poulter at Nether Langwith, the Milford Brook at Creswell, and the River Ryton at Shireoaks near Worksop. At Creswell, the Milford Brook occupies a gorge bounded by limestone cliffs. This gorge, known as Creswell Crags, is famous for its caves which have yielded important evidence of prehistoric man.
Soils
On the Magnesian Limestone, fertile, free-draining calcareous brown earth soils have developed. The soils have a fine loamy texture with a characteristic brown subsoil overlying the limestone. The soils are productive and easy to work, supporting a wide range of crops. The soils developed on the Permian Marl have a much heavier texture, with slowly permeable clay subsoils placing limitations on their agricultural use. These soils, which are found around Worksop, at Skegby and in the area between Annesley Woodhouse and Hucknall, can remain waterlogged for long periods in winter and spring. However, with drainage and good management they can produce moderate yields of cereals.
Landscape history
There is still much to learn about the development of the landscapes of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge. Considered to have been a remote wooded area, of late interest to settlers, it has often been considered only as part of Sherwood Forest. While this latter is indeed true, it is not the whole story which, for the want of detailed study, can only be sketched in outline and with some imprecision.
Little coherent can be said about the prehistoric and Roman landscapes of the region. Evidence of some of the earlier human occupation and activity in the East Midlands, during the later Ice Ages and after, comes from Creswell Crags. The caves of the limestone gorge provided shelter for the hunter-gathers who 12,000 years ago moved through a landscape which was gradually changing from tundra to birch and pine forest and would eventually develop into mixed oak forest, with alder, oak, elm and lime. While Creswell is the best known and studied, other gorges in the Magnesian Limestone have caves which were occupied by both people and animals at these early dates, and also later. Human occupation of significance has yet to be demonstrated at Pleasley Vale, but the full potential of this gorge, which appears to be considerably filled, has not been explored.
Later human activity on the Magnesian Limestone Ridge is indicated by the stone tools and fabrication debris of hunter-gatherer groups and of the first farmers and settlers of the Neolithic and the Early Bronze Age, which are found on the surfaces of ploughed fields. The effect of these people on the landscape can only be guessed, but it is to be expected that clearance for agriculture and the grazing of domesticated livestock, after 5000 BC, were the small beginnings of a long-term process of woodland diminution. Such human interference in the forests is often seen as the cause of a national decline in elm after 4000 BC and more locally of lime and pine and an increase in hazel after 1600 BC.
Modern land uses, and perhaps a lack of survey, have resulted in few cropmarks (differential crop growth over buried archaeological remains) in this region. There is however no reason to believe that it was any less favoured than others for settlement during later prehistory and the Roman period. It is to be expected that by the end of the first millennium BC the woodland here will have been substantially cleared and the brown earths cultivated. As in later generations, woodland may have been largely confined to those areas too steep to plough or too inaccessible for grazing. Such woodland as there was, during the Roman period at least, is likely to have been managed, much probably as coppice. Coppiced hazel from the Roman site at Menagerie Wood, in the Sherwood region outside Worksop, might have been brought in from here.
Roman settlement on the Magnesian Limestone Ridge is demonstrated by finds of Roman pottery and a number of coin hoards. Roman villas at Mansfield Woodhouse and Oldcotes will have been the centres for large estates. These lie outside the normal distribution of villas, and they may have more in common with the villas of Yorkshire which show a marked attraction to the Magnesian Limestone. At the risk of reading more than a mutual appreciation of the soil qualities of the limestone into this common choice of geology, this distribution may reflect a border territory of greater antiquity between the Iron Age tribes. This may be an origin for the long-lived importance of the north-western boundary of Nottinghamshire as a division between regions and kingdoms in the Saxon period.
What happened at the end of the Roman period is not clear, but the result was a dramatic change in the landscape of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge. The region will have shared in the general decline in population during the 4th and 5th centuries and experienced social and economic change as Roman institutions and organisations withered. Settlement contracted towards the western margins against the clays of the Coal Measures or river valleys, where there was a greater variety of resources. Woodland regenerated in some areas, particularly in those which were more marginal. This goes some way to explaining the well-wooded aspect of the north-western county border, for the boundary runs along the Magnesian Limestone to include only its eastern fringes in Nottinghamshire and the landscape here needs to be read against developments in Derbyshire. In other areas, perhaps greater in proportion, woodland regeneration was probably limited and the change was to limestone heath maintained by the grazing of stock. That large open areas survived into the Saxon period is indicated by the place names of Mansfield and Ashfield where the suffix “field” implies a landscape largely cleared of wood. While it may be possible to argue that such a name could originate in the heathland which was similarly developing on the Sherwood Sandstones nearby, later land use on the Magnesian Limestone points to a common visual impact. Ashfield is clearly a regional name, as may have been Mansfield; its prefix “ash” indicates the presence of ash trees. Another district name was Lindrick, as in Carlton in Lindrick. Here the name means “the ridge on which lime trees grow”, but where the ridge was or how extensive the lime woods were cannot be identified, for this district clearly covered a wide area most of which lay in what is now South Yorkshire. Lime woods are also indicated in the place name Linby, the second element of which may point to Scandinavian settlement in the late 9th or early 10th century. That there was room to accommodate newcomers is shown by other names with the element bi and the frequency of names with the suffix leah, now “ley”, found on the Magnesian Limestone Ridge and adjoining Nottinghamshire Coalfield, which means “clearing”. This also implies woodland, and perhaps rather more of it on the clays of the Nottinghamshire Coalfield, but does not necessarily imply the late settlement of West Nottinghamshire which earlier historians have deduced.
In 1086 the Magnesian Limestone Ridge was part of the most thinly populated part of Nottinghamshire. Most communities, particularly the larger ones in the south, were located along its western edge where they could both cultivate the Coal Measures clays and exploit the woodland, grazing and game of the Magnesian Limestone. In the north west of the County communities were on the whole small, situated by rivers or streams, and had small areas of arable while exploiting the woods and heaths on both the Magnesian Limestone and Sherwood Sandstone for grazing. Domesday Book records considerable tracts of woodland in the region, but much of this was wood pasture, which points to the mixture of heaths and woods already described, partly on the basis of the Domesday Book entries.
The general emptiness of the region encouraged the Norman kings to bring it under Forest Law. It is likely that the southern part of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge, the part entirely within Nottinghamshire, had been traditionally part of Sherwood. Assuming the “shire” of “Shire-wood” to equate with the County, this name can be little or no older than its first written appearance in the 10th century, when Nottinghamshire was first created. The meaning behind the name remains obscure. It may mean no more than the woodland on the border of the Shire; the woodland which distinguishes being within from being without the Shire. Alternatively, it may refer to much more ancient rights to its resources held by the King, nobility or communities elsewhere in the County. Under Henry II, Forest Law was extended across all of Nottinghamshire north of the Trent but this was cut back by Henry III in 1232 to embrace only the countryside of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge and the Sherwood region south of the River Meden. Northwards, however, the extensive royal woods and game preserves which extended into the Magnesian Limestone remained subject to the Forest officials, and to all intents and purposes still under Forest Law.
Henry III’s redefinition and reaffirmation of the traditional Forest was in part a response to the effect of rising population generating new settlement and expanding arable and grazing. As we have already seen, this process had begun much earlier on the Magnesian Limestone Ridge but in the 12th and 13th centuries became more marked, with existing villages growing and new communities appearing, often with the name elements of Woodhouse or, less frequently here, Moorhouse. The comparative emptiness of this region and the neighbouring Sherwood region in the 11th century, and the low value of their profits, made these suitable areas for the creation of hunting parks and donation for the establishment of monasteries. Of the twelve monasteries and nunneries founded in Nottinghamshire, eight were within or immediately adjacent to these two regions, with three being on the Magnesian Limestone and two more lying close by. By 1343 the last monastery in the County was founded at Beauvale. At this time there was so little land in the region that was not locked into the economies of other monastic estates or local manors and communities, that the endowment promised to this new foundation is unlikely to have been fully completed.
The woodland of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge was under continual pressure during the Middle Ages. Villages grew; Mansfield, the chief administrative centre in the south of the region since perhaps as early as the 7th century, became a market town, and Mansfield Woodhouse, Sutton, Kirkby and Hucknall Torkard became significant communities. In the north, however, village growth was more modest and much settlement expansion took the form of single farms or tiny hamlets carving their lands out of the woodland. Documents referring to the region regularly mention timber-cutting for building, usually carefully controlled by the King, and woodland clearance and encroachment by both individuals and communities. In 1349 the King himself cleared Linby Hay of timber to fence in his new park at Bestwood. By the later Middle Ages, woodland cover will have become very patchy except where conserved by the management of monastic estates and in the parks of a few lords who maintained detailed interest in the affairs of their estates. Even here, woods will have been sectors or compartments only within the parks which throughout the Middle Ages were increasingly turned over to tillage and the grazing of livestock. In general, it appears that more woods survived in the north of the region than in the south.
Communities on the Magnesian Limestone Ridge doubtless suffered as much as any other in the Black Death of 1349 and subsequent visitations of plague. The effect of these in the 14th century reduced the national population by over one third. In Nottinghamshire, it appears that outbreaks of disease were not consistent from one place to another; while one community might be struck badly, another might escape almost completely. Clear indication of both its presence and power in the region comes from the monasteries, the heads of which all succumbed in the year 1349-1350. There is however no evidence that any community in this region disappeared as a direct consequence of the plague. The 14th century epidemics did however usher in a period of protracted change in society and economy. With reduced population and social change, there was a swing away from arable production towards livestock husbandry. In the south of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge, where communities‘ arable was largely on the Coal Measures clays, this probably had comparatively little effect in landscape terms, as grazing was already the principal land use on the Magnesian Limestone. Wool, the fulling of it, the dyeing of it and the weaving of it, was an important industry in mediaeval Mansfield. In the north of the region and for those communities which were largely on the limestone, some reorganisation was probably necessary as over the 15th and 16th centuries a farming regime of convertible husbandry was established. How novel this was may be doubted, for it is likely that all the communities using the limestone heaths and woods followed the same practice as those involved on the Sherwood Sandstones, of making temporary enclosures and cultivating them for a fixed period of years after which they were allowed to revert to their former state. In these areas also, the need to enclose in order to achieve flexibility in land use may not have been pressing, as the fields of the smaller settlements and individual farms may have already been made up of closes originating in piecemeal assarts from woodland.
The 16th and 17th centuries saw a reinforcement of one form of landscape in the Magnesian Limestone Ridge, that of parks associated with the country houses of the nobility and gentry. The transfer of monastic sites and estates into lay hands was in part the foundation of this, as was the fashion for displaying status through building and ornamentation. Monastic woods and hedges at places like Newstead and Wallingwells did not disappear, therefore, but were maintained by the new owners and reinforced by new planting. New parks were added to ancient manor houses, as probably at Strelley during the 16th century and as at Annesley in the later 17th century, leaving the older mediaeval parks to the farmland they had already largely become. And new houses, such as Hardwick, just over the county boundary but with a park which crossed into Nottinghamshire, and Shireoaks, were equipped with parks and ornamental gardens. This parkland contributed and still contributes to the maintenance of a wooded aspect in the Magnesian Limestone Ridge, which was reinforced by the larger ornamental gardens and plantations of the wealthy around their houses in the 18th and 19th centuries.
With much of its area given over to common grazing, enclosure only became general in the Magnesian Limestone Ridge during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In that age of agricultural improvement and development, the common wastes were considered to be anachronistic and inefficient. The market for animal products was expanding. Industry was developing in West Nottinghamshire bringing in new population, and the canal and river network gave access to further afield. Laid out by surveyors, this enclosure landscape is still visible on the map and on the ground in the large regular and rectangular fields which contrast with the more piecemeal fields around their periphery.
Animal husbandry dominated the agricultural economy of the region during the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, but the suitability of much of its soils for cultivation is reflected by a rise in arable from the late 19th century. Largescale conversion to arable during the Second World War was maintained thereafter by government and EEC farming policies. Increased mechanisation resulted as elsewhere, in the loss of hedgerow and other boundaries, but while sometimes locally dramatic this is less marked than in some other landscape regions in the County.
It was industry which created the modern landscape of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge, particularly in the south. There had been industrial activity, small-scale and local, throughout the Middle Ages and after. Stone quarrying was perhaps the most significant of these, supplying prestige buildings such as churches and manor houses. Mansfield Stone in particular had a repute which extended well beyond the region. Equally, the local importance of charcoal and lime burning and of corn milling, powered by both wind and water, should not be ignored. As already mentioned, wool processing and cloth making were important and these were the foundation for the first phase of industrial expansion in the later 18th century and early 19th century, which centred on textile production. Through both the development of domestic framework knitting and the construction of textile mills, people were drawn into the region, beginning a rise in population. Many of the new mills and the houses of their workers in towns, villages and the countryside were built in local stone. This perpetuated the natural tradition of the region, which had begun with the houses of the nobility and gentry in the 16th and 17th centuries and had continued with the town houses of Mansfield and other larger communities. In a region where stone was more readily available than brick, it was natural that, as humbler dwellings were improved, stone should be used. By the end of the 18th century, even the most humble dwelling was likely to be built in stone or, depending on locality, stone and brick. In consequence, the farms and houses of the region still bestow upon it a distinctive building character.
Some of the development for textile production was locally very significant, with large mill buildings and water engineering to power them, as may still be seen at Pleasley Mills, Nether Langwith, Mansfield and in the Leen Valley. The major and more general transformation came with the development of deep mining in the second half of the 19th century. Pit heads, waste heaps, and housing now become major landscape features and the rural, agricultural character of many villages was submerged. Even more significantly, the infrastructure to serve the pits and their communities cut across and disrupted the earlier patterns of the landscape. The first example of this was the Mansfield - Pinxton tramway, linking Mansfield to the Cromford Canal, opened in 1819. This was followed later by tramways and railways which paid no particular respect to existing boundaries. After the Second World War, although railways continued to be important for bulk transport of coal in particular, they were overtaken for other purposes by road transport. Road construction and improvements and continued expansion of housing have therefore been major elements in more recent landscape development.
For all the modern development, the Magnesian Limestone Ridge remains an area in which a long history can be seen in its landscape. Together with the Nottinghamshire Coalfield, the depth and interest of this landscape is too little appreciated. It is certainly under researched in almost every dimension, including its industrial heritage. Improving both the understanding and appreciation of the history of change and continuity, and of the forces behind these, is essential to maintaining and enhancing its landscape character.
Landscape types could occur at any location within the country where there are similar physical resources and historical patterns of land use. In reality the landscape types possess a distinctively local character, because they share the broad characteristics of the regional character area, or represent a particular aspect of that character.
Return to top
Section 2: Visual character of the landscape
Introduction
The Magnesian Limestone Ridge is a settled agricultural region whose character is strongly influenced by the nature of the underlying geology. This is reflected not only in the shape of the land, but also in the associated pattern of land use and settlement. The land is shaped in the form of an elevated escarpment, for the most part gently rolling, but in places deeply dissected by narrow, steep-sided river valleys, while the historical development of the region is reflected in the surface pattern of large estates, enclosed commons and small rural villages. Together with the unifying influence of limestone as a locally distinctive building material, these are the regional characteristics that differentiate the Magnesian Limestone Ridge from surrounding areas.
The spread of the coal industry into the Magnesian Limestone Ridge during the 20th century was associated with the development of new mining settlements throughout the region. However, despite the distinctly urban style of these settlements, most are fairly self-contained, and in most areas there has been little development within the intervening countryside. Consequently, the Magnesian Limestone Ridge remains essentially rural in character and even in the more heavily urbanised parts of the region there is usually a marked distinction between the built environment and the surrounding countryside. Local variation in landscape character thus continues to be determined largely by differences in the physical make-up of the region, rather than the degree of urbanisation in any particular area.
The Magnesian Limestone Ridge can be subdivided into three physically distinct landscape types. These have been classified generically which means that, theoretically, the landscape types could occur at any location within the country where there are similar physical resources and historical patterns of land use. In reality the landscape types possess a distinctively local character, because they share the broad characteristics of the regional character area, or represent a particular aspect of that character.
LImestone farmlands
A gently rolling, and in places urbanised agricultural landscape, characterised by large hedged fields, estate woodlands and small limestone villages
 |
Characteristic features
|
Landscape description
The Limestone Farmlands are a simple, yet distinctive agricultural landscape, characterised by a well-defined pattern of hedged fields and large estate woodlands. These elements not only control the scale andstructure of the landscape, but they also helpto contain the impact of the coal industry andits associated urban influences. Consequently,this landscape remains essentially rural incharacter, despite the fact that miningsettlements and their associated pit heaps arenever far from view.
The character of the Limestone Farmlands is very much influenced by the gently sloping limestone escarpment. For the most part this escarpment has a rounded, rolling profile and along its western summit there is often a strong impression of elevation and space. This impression is emphasised by the open nature of the landscape, and where the escarpment falls off steeply along its western edge there are often panoramic views over the adjoining Nottinghamshire Coalfield. On the lower-lying parts of the dip slope, especially where these abut the higher sandlands in the southern part of Sherwood, the feeling of elevation is replaced by a sense of enclosure.
Although the area is less heavily wooded than Sherwood, tree cover is nevertheless an important visual element in this gently rolling landscape, particularly on the lower-lying parts of the escarpment. At Newstead, Wallingwells, Gateford, Welbeck, Newstead and Nuthall, for example, the combination of large estate woodlands, parkland and belts of trees creates a strong sense of wooded enclosure. Elsewhere, the landscape appears less enclosed, and middle or longer-distance views framed by wooded skylines are more common. In these areas the Limestone Farmlands tend to have a more open character, an impression that is reinforced by the general lack of hedgerow trees. Although most woodlands are recent plantations comprising mixed or coniferous species, there are a number of small ancient woodlands scattered throughout. Examples include Lord Stubbins Wood, Norwood, Watnall Coppice and Bulwell Hall Wood. The overall impression therefore is of a very well-wooded landscape. This is accentuated by the rolling topography which results in wooded skylines and horizons. There are remnant parkland landscapes at Annesley, Wigthorpe, Welbeck, Shireoaks, Gateford and Carlton in Lindrick.
The fertile, free-draining soils that are derived from the underlying Magnesian Limestone support a prosperous agricultural economy, which is reflected in the large, well-run farms that occur in the Limestone Farmlands. Much of the land is intensively managed for arable production in medium to large-sized fields. These fields are mostly bounded by neatly trimmed thorn hedges, but stone walls are also a feature in places, more often along the summit of the escarpment. Most fields are regular in shape, reflecting the relatively late enclosure of much of this landscape. Smaller fields, often associated with pockets of permanent pasture, are a feature around rural villages, such as Teversal and Holbeck, and along the narrow river valleys that dissect the escarpment. Hedges in these areas tend to be more bushy and species-rich than those found elsewhere.
The traditional pattern of settlement in the Limestone Farmlands is strongly nucleated and characterised by small rural villages, such as Linby, Papplewick and Teversal. Village character is particularly distinctive, comprising buildings constructed mainly from the local pinkish-yellow limestone, with orange pantile roofs. Other villages, including Nuthall, Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Skegby and Carlton in Lindrick, have been completely subsumed by urban development resulting from the exploitation of the underlying coalfield, and although there is often a core of older stone buildings, these are usually surrounded by terraced housing and more recent suburban-style housing estates. Most of the new mining settlements form discrete, self-contained urban units and this is one of the reasons why the Limestone Farmlands retain their distinctive agricultural character. Almost all of the mines have now closed, but the urbanised settlement pattern, huge pit heaps and other associated infrastructure remain as an enduring legacy of this industry.
Limestone fringe
A well-wooded, undulating, estate landscape characterised by large fields, framed by hilltop and valley woodlands
|
Characteristic features
|
 |
Landscape description
The Limestone Fringe is a well-wooded estate landscape associated with an area of glacial drift fringing the western edge of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge, between Annesley Woodhouse and Eastwood. This area of drift, which extends from the limestone escarpment onto the adjoining Coal Measures, has a 
large-scale, markedly undulating topography characterised by deep valleys and rounded, rolling summits. Consequently, although the pattern of land cover is similar to that found elsewhere in the region, woodlands assume much greater prominence due to the nature of the landform, and it is this that distinguishes the Limestone Fringe from other parts of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge.
The Limestone Fringe landscape is particularly well developed in the valley above Moorgreen Reservoir, where the large-scale undulating topography and the pattern of large fields and estate woodlands combine to create a visually unified landscape with a strong sense of place. Large, mixed and broadleaved woodlands are a prominent feature within this area, particularly in the lower part of the valley around the reservoir. The heavily wooded backdrop, created by the presence of Park Forest, also makes a significant contribution to landscape character and sense of place.
Scale and enclosure in this landscape are mainly controlled by landform and tree cover. The latter, consisting mainly of large estate woodlands, smaller coverts, parkland and belts of trees, creates a sequence of linked wooded spaces, within which the mainly regular pattern of medium to large-sized fields is often a subsidiary landscape element. Most of the woodlands are plantations of recent origin, but a few remnants of ancient broad-leaved woodland also survive at Willey Spring, Davis Bottom, the Dumbles and High Park Wood.
The sense of containment and seclusion created by the combination of landform and woodland is particularly strong in the valleys within the Limestone Fringe, whereas the intervening summits often afford wide sweeping views over the adjoining Nottinghamshire Coalfield. The quiet, secluded character of these valleys, which is reinforced by restricted access and a general lack of human habitation, is a special feature of the Limestone Fringe, providing a welcome contrast to the surrounding busy urbanised landscapes.
The regular, in places geometric field pattern, the few, often straight roads and the sparsely settled character of the landscape, all reflect the relatively late enclosure of much of the Limestone Fringe, probably from common land. This late enclosure pattern is particularly apparent at Underwood and Selston, where small remnants of unenclosed common still survive. Pockets of older enclosure, characterised by smaller, semi-regular fields, can also be found in the Limestone Fringe. These areas, in places associated with historic sites such as Beauvale Priory, are found mainly within the valleys. In many ways they are akin to the remnant pockets of farmland that still occur within the Coalfield Farmlands in the adjoining Nottinghamshire Coalfield region.
River meadowlands
Narrow, in places incised, river corridors, defined by grazing meadows and riverside trees
|
Characteristic features
|
 |
Landscape description
With the exception of the River Leen, which flows directly into the Trent, the Magnesian Limestone Ridge is drained by a series of minor rivers and streams that flow in an easterly direction through the adjacent Sherwood region and into the Idle basin. The watercourses include the headwaters of the River Ryton, the Millwood Brook, the River Poulter and the River Meden. In Nottinghamshire, these rivers are flanked along most of their length by a narrow alluvial flood plain which defines the limit of the associated river corridor landscape. The river channel is a key element of this landscape, especially where it retains a natural bank profile supporting marginal aquatic and bankside vegetation. Such features not only provide a valuable habitat for plants and animals, but they create a sense of visual and ecological continuity along the length of the river corridor, particularly where they are associated with unimproved meadow or pasture.
Grazing meadows, often with patches of wet grassland, are a recurring feature of the River Meadowlands. Typically they are enclosed by ditches or wire fences, but in places the edge of the flood plain is bounded by a prominent, sinuous hedgeline. Where they remain relatively unimproved, riverside meadows are an important wildlife resource The undisturbed pastoral scenes evoked by the presence of grazing animals provides a welcome contrast to the intensively cultivated landscape of the surrounding Limestone Farmlands. The most extensive areas of river meadow occur along the Poulter between Norton and Nether Langwith, and along the Meden upstream of the tip at Shirebrook.
The setting of the River Meadowlands often varies markedly from one river to another and this has a significant influence on the visual character of this landscape. Where the River Meden runs along the county boundary, for example, it flows through a wooded, steep-sided valley, while at Creswell Crags the Millwood Brook has cut a gorge through the underlying limestone. In both cases the immediate river corridor is topographically defined and this creates a strong sense of visual containment. Containment of a different type has been created by various forms of development, including railway embankments, along parts of the Leen at Hucknall and along the upper reaches of the Meden at Teversal. In many places, however, there is no physical distinction between the edge of the river corridor and the surrounding landscape, the only visible difference being a change in land use. In these areas, unless there are many riverside trees, the landscape typically has a much more open aspect.
Human habitation is generally not a feature of the River Meadowlands and, apart from a few relic industrial artefacts, there are few built features within this landscape. The disused and converted textile mills in Pleasley Vale, constructed from the local limestone, are a particularly distinctive feature of the River Meden. The lack of human habitation, together with the fact that many of the valleys are often inaccessible, imparts a peaceful, undisturbed character to the riverside environment. Influences outside of the river corridors, however, such as the movement and noise of traffic, can easily detract from this peaceful ambience.
Return to top
Section 3: Landscape evolution and change
Introduction
This section examines the main forces that have brought about change and evolution within the Magnesian Limestone Ridge over recent decades. It does this by discussing how the current structure and pattern of land use has developed, paying particular regard to agriculture, woodland, transport, industrial/residential development and mineral extraction. It also considers the trends and pressures that may produce landscape change in the future.
Agriculture
Although the Magnesian Limestone Ridge has been exploited for its productive soils and natural resources since Palaeolithic times, the area has traditionally been sparsely settled, and has been subject to fluctuating populations over time.
During the Middle Ages, there was a move away from arable cropping towards grazing, mainly by sheep, in large unenclosed commons. This continued up to the late 18th and early 19th centuries, when the commons were enclosed. Animal husbandry dominated the economy during the 19th century and the first half of 20th century, but the suitability of the soils for cultivation meant that this gradually gave way to arable production. The Second World War was probably the most significant period of change as large areas of land were ploughed up for arable cropping. Most of the region contains high quality agricultural land, with poorer areas located south of Annesley Woodhouse, around parts of Sutton-in-Ashfield, west of Warsop, and between Worksop and Langold.
In the river valleys, wet meadows and pastoral land uses have continued to be dominant, whilst elsewhere on the freedraining soils up to 90% of the land is cultivated, particularly to the north of the area. Other areas where pasture is present are around Ashfield, Mansfield, Nettleworth Park, Holbeck and Cuckney, indicating heavier and less well-drained soils. Arable crops include wheat, oats and barley, with a smaller acreage of potatoes, sugar beet, peas and beans.
Farm holdings in the area are generally moderate to large, and the regular field pattern indicates a recent enclosure, typically bounded by well-trimmed hawthorn hedges. Mechanisation has resulted in some loss of hedgerows and other boundaries, but whilst this is locally significant, overall it is less marked than in many other regions in the County.
Trees and woodland
The region currently has a woodland cover of slightly over 6%. A significant proportion of this woodland is associated with a number of parkland estates, which developed from earlier monastic estates. Outside of the parkland areas woods are generally scattered, with ash predominating due to its preference for the calcium-rich soils found over the limestone. This is indicated by the names Kirkby-in-Ashfield and Sutton-in-Ashfield, although little woodland remains in this area today.
The region today has a low proportion of coniferous woodland, and is one of the only areas in the County whose woodland area decreased during the 20th century, from 7.6%. Losses have been due mainly to urban, industrial, and new road development. Areas where woodland cover has increased include plantation woodlands between Eastwood and Annesley Woodhouse. The historical development of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge has meant that a number of ancient woodlands remain, including Willey Spring, High Park Wood, Boon Hills Wood, Lord Stubbins Wood, Ouday Wood and Rough Piece.
Industrial and mineral extraction
The area is associated with coal mining and limestone quarrying. Remnants of an historic water-powered textile industry can be seen in Pleasley Vale; water from the Meden was used for powering the spinning and weaving of cotton and wool. Pottery was also made at Bulwell using the Permian Marls.
Limestone is the only hard rock of any economic interest within the County. There are four active limestone quarries in the area, two near Mansfield and two near Linby. The Mansfield Limestone is generally coarse-grained and suitable as an aggregate often used for road construction. In the past it has been widely used as a building material, notably for Southwell Minster and Ely Cathedral. The Linby Limestone, locally known as Bulwell Stone, is too soft for aggregate, but is a good ornamental building and rockery stone. In the past it was widely used for building, especially for walls.
Existing quarries are mainly controlled by old planning consents with minimal planning conditions, although many of these are now being reviewed. Reclamation by filling is rare because of poor access, lack of soil conservation and groundwater problems. At Quarry Banks an old limestone quarry has naturally revegetated and is now an SSSI, but in urban areas quarry floors have often been built on.
Limestone produced in Nottinghamshire is mostly for local markets and transport is largely by road. Reserves of aggregate limestone are close to exhaustion and there are demands for a replacement quarry site.
The region formed the initial location in the County of deep-coal mining into the concealed coalfield, with the first of such collieries being established at Shireoaks in 1859. As with the Coal Measures, deep mining has had a significant impact upon this area, both in the legacy of spoil heaps and associated colliery development and also in the network of railway lines used to serve the mines. The decline of the industry, with 25 pits closed and 35,500 jobs lost in Nottinghamshire since 1980, has caused economic disruption and further changes to the local landscape. There are no active mines remaining within the area and reclamation is ongoing, as well as measures to counter subsidence problems. Various initiatives are under way to stimulate economic regeneration of the coalfield. Restoration of disused mines to agriculture is no longer the accepted norm and a wider range of amenity is now being explored.
Urbanisation
Historically the Magnesian Limestone Ridge has been the most thinly populated part of the County. At the time of the Domesday Book, most communities were located along the western edge where the exposed coalfield could be exploited as well as the grazing and game of the Magnesian Limestone. To the north west, communities were focused on rivers or streams, and the bulk of the area was left as wood pasture.
The first phase of industrial expansion occurred in the later 18th century and early 19th century, centred on textile production. The major transformation in urban and industrial development came with the development of deep mining in the second half of the 19th century. The agricultural character of many villages was submerged by the presence of pit heads, waste heaps and industrial housing. The infrastructure which served the pits was superimposed on earlier patterns of the landscape, for example the Mansfield Pinxton tramway was followed by numerous mineral lines.
Today, this is a very densely populated area and the main urban centres are Hucknall, Ashfield and Mansfield, centred around the industrial base. Further north the area is more rural and, with the exception of Worksop, settlement consists mainly of villages. Shireoaks, Langwith, Warsop, Linby and Newstead are specifically associated with coal mining.
Roads, railways and the Chesterfield Canal have made a significant impact on the Magnesian Limestone Ridge. The M1 motorway crosses from east to west including the A508, A38 and A616. The area is poorly served by rail, although there is a passenger line at Worksop and it is planned to extend the Robin Hood line north from Mansfield to Worksop. Former mineral lines have been converted to greenways as at Teversal/Pleasley and Linby/Newstead. The former dominance of freight on rail has been overtaken by the more environmentally damaging road freight since the Second World War.
Return to top
Section 4: Landscape strategies and key recommendations
Introduction
When applied to the landscape, the notion of “character” is not a concept that merely concerns itself with aspects of scenic quality. The character of the landscape derives from a complex interaction of a wide range of physiological and historical phenomena. These include geology, topography, soils, ecology, archaeology, architecture, and local customs and culture, as well as the pattern of land use, settlement and fields. It is the varied interaction between these factors which produces the local and regional variations in character for which the English landscape is famous. The diversity of that character is a central part of our landscape heritage and vital to people’s appreciation and enjoyment of the countryside.
The landscape that we see today is a product of its historical evolution, reflecting the underlying physical resource and the changing nature of human exploitation of the land. The landscape will, of course, continue to change and evolve, reflecting the changing priorities and demands that society places on it. Over recent decades, however, these priorities and demands have often degraded rather than improved the fabric of the landscape. There is now a general consensus that positive action is needed to reverse this trend, and that this should place a high value on conserving and enhancing the inherent character and diversity of our landscapes.
A series of Landscape Strategies and Key Recommendations is set out in this section for each of the landscape types within the region. These should be read in conjunction with the Landscape Guidelines that appear in section 5. Collectively, these will provide the framework for conserving and strengthening the distinctive character and features of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge. They will help to ensure that landscape character is reflected in the many decisions and actions that affect its continuing evolution. The intention is not to fossilise change, but to provide a context that will enable policy making, planning and landscape management decisions to be made which respect and sustain the diversity and character of our countryside.
Landscape strategies |
|---|
| These recognise the forces acting upon the landscape and set the broad vision for its future management. The Strategies provide the framework for conserving and enhancing the character and distinctiveness of the landscape. The Landscape Strategies are given in the form of a short summary title, followed by a reasoned justification of why it has been chosen. The strategy options defined for each landscape type generally relate to one, or more than one, of the following four courses of action: |
| A: Conservation, where the traditional landscape character and “sense of place” are strong, or where many landscape features are notable for their landscape, ecological or historical value. The Landscape Strategy will encourage the good management of the key features which characterise the landscape and recommend the avoidance of out-of-character development. |
| B: Enhancement, where landscape character is still reasonably strong, but the overall structure and individual features are in decline. The Landscape Strategy will relate to areas where landscape character is perceived to be under threat, and where positive action is required to strengthen the overall character and structure of the landscape. |
| C: Restoration, where landscape character or individual features have suffered significant decline or damage, but the underlying character and patterns within the landscape are still evident. The Landscape Strategy will seek to replace characteristic features and rebuild the character of the landscape. |
| D: Creation, where little of the original landscape character or landscape features remain. The Landscape Strategy will set a vision for a new landscape. This will either relate to the characteristics of a former landscape through a process of reconstr reconstruction, or aim to create a new and different landscape. |
Key recommendations |
|---|
|
The Landscape Strategies are supported by a series of Key Recommendations. These develop and focus the overall strategy further by identifying the main actions and priorities for each landscape type. The Key Recommendations are presented as a series of aims, each followed by a justification describing the recommended course of action. The Landscape Strategies and Key Recommendations are summarised at the beginning of the description of each landscape type. |
LImestone farmlands
Landscape strategy
Conserve and enhance the distinctive character and overall unity of the landscape
|
Key Recommendations
|
 |
Landscape strategy
- Conserve and enhance the distinctive character and overall unity of the landscape
The Limestone Farmlands have a distinctive character, which is controlled largely by the relationship between landform, field pattern and tree cover. The ordered pattern of medium to large-sized fields is a particularly dominant and unifying element, but almost everywhere this is complemented by a larger-scale pattern of estate woodlands. The latter provide a sense of proportion and balance without detracting from the distinctive open, rolling character of the limestone escarpment. While the unity of this pattern remains reasonably intact, the general trend towards arable intensification and the decline of more traditional mixed farming enterprises has led to a significant decline in the overall condition of the landscape. The majority of hedgerows, for example, no longer have a stock control function and many of these are gappy, or dying out at the base. As a result of intensification, the structure of the landscape is beginning to break down in some areas. This trend is exacerbated in places by the impact of coal mining and the associated urbanisation of the landscape. Nearly all of the mines have now closed, but the urbanised settlement pattern, huge pit heaps and other associated infrastructure remain as an enduring and visually intrusive legacy.
Whilst the Limestone Farmlands have a reasonably strong sense of place, it is clear from the above analysis that not only is the general condition of the landscape poor and in decline, but that urban intrusion is also an issue in many areas. Consequently, although the priority should be to conserve and strengthen the locally distinctive character of the landscape, there is also scope for landscape enhancement, particularly with regard to mitigating the impact of urban development. The overall management strategy for the Limestone Farmlands should thus involve a combination of conservation and enhancement - to conserve those features that contribute to local distinctiveness, while at the same time looking for opportunities to enhance the character and the overall unity of the landscape.
Key recommendations
- Conserve and strengthen the traditional pattern of hedged fields
The key to achieving the overall strategy for the Limestone Farmlands is to conserve and, where necessary, restore the essential fabric of the landscape. Priority should thus be given to maintaining and strengthening the traditional pattern of hedged fields. Most hedges are closely trimmed and many are gappy, or dying out at the base. There is a need, therefore, for more appropriate management, in particular to move away from hedges being excessively tidy and low cut. Replacement planting is also necessary in some areas to restore the structure of the landscape. The aim should be to focus initially on strengthening and replanting primary hedgelines, that is those that can be traced for a distance of two or more fields. These include roadside hedgerows and those that mark farm and parish boundaries. At present there is no functional reason for maintaining many of the hedges in the Limestone Farmlands and, in the longer term, measures may also be needed to promote a more traditional and sustainable pattern of mixed farming in this area.
- Identify opportunities for enhancing ecological diversity
Alongside measures for conserving and strengthening the overall structure of the landscape, opportunities should also be sought for enhancing ecological diversity. Much of the land in the Limestone Farmlands is intensively managed, leaving little space for wildlife. Hedgerows, however, can often provide a valuable habitat for plants and animals, and better management of these features, in particular allowing hedges to grow thicker and taller, should also benefit wildlife. With farmers increasingly being urged to reduce production and look after the environment, the creation of expanded field margins alongside selected hedgerows could considerably enhance the value of these features as wildlife habitats. To gain maximum benefit, grassland or wildlife fallow margins should be developed alongside existing features of interest, such as primary hedgelines, watercourses and woodland edges. Opportunities should also be sought for the restoration of limestone grassland on suitable sites along the crest of the escarpment.
- Promote measures for conserving and strengthening local vernacular character
One of the special features of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge, especially in the Limestone Farmlands, is the distinctive vernacular character of the older buildings, most of which are constructed in the local pinkish coloured limestone, with orange pantile roofs. Although particularly prominent in rural villages such as Linby and Teversal, clusters of these stone and pantile buildings also occur within the larger mining settlements that have grown up around an older village core. In most of these settlements, however, any sense of local identity has been overwhelmed by the scale and style of the newer suburban development and has been replaced by a rather bland and characterless urban landscape. Steps should be taken to reverse this trend by ensuring that new development is designed to reinforce the identity of individual communities. Particular attention should be given to developing an architectural expression of community identity which reflects both the function of the settlement and something of the distinctive vernacular character of the region as a whole. It is also important that every effort is made to locate new development within, or around, existing built-up areas to conserve the nucleated pattern of settlement within the Limestone Farmlands.
- Initiate schemes for large-scale woodland planting to contain and soften urban and industrial development
The pattern of large estate woodlands, in places associated with parkland and belts of trees, is a key landscape element in the Limestone Farmland that helps to soften the visual impact of urban and industrial development. Where this pattern is weak, or has become fragmented, such development is often visually intrusive and in these areas there is much scope for creating a new woodland structure to contain and soften the urban fringe. New planting that reflects the scale of the urban edge, and which links strongly into the wider landscape pattern, is likely to work best. Large woodlands are therefore likely to be more appropriate than small woods and belts of trees, although aesthetic and amenity considerations will need to guide the exact proportion of planted and open land in any given area. Many restored pit heaps are similar in size to the larger estate woodlands such as Pleasley Park, and given the high quality of much of the agricultural land in the Limestone Farmlands, these sites may provide the best opportunity for large-scale woodland planting.
Limestone fringe
Landcsape strategy
Restore and enhance the overall unity and locally distinctive, well-wooded character of the landscape
|
Key recommendations
|
 |
Landscape strategy
- Restore and enhance the overall unity and locally distinctive, well-wooded character of the landscape
The Limestone Fringe is a rather diffuse landscape, which overall has a variable character, depending on the proportion of woodland cover and the way in which this is sited in relation to the underlying landform. The nature of the landform in the Limestone Fringe tends to emphasise the prominence of woodlands and, where there is a good balance between woodland cover and open land, these two elements combine to create a strong sense of containment and visual unity. This in turn reinforces the secluded character of the landscape and helps to mitigate the impact of urban development. In contrast, where there are few woodlands, or the pattern of tree cover has become fragmented, this distinctive character is usually less obvious, while urban influences tend to be more intrusive. A major source of disturbance in the Limestone Fringe is from traffic movement and noise on the M1 motorway, which passes along high ground through the middle of the area.
From the above analysis it can be seen that there is considerable potential for landscape enhancement, particularly with regard to the creation of new landscape features, although opportunities should also be sought for restoring locally distinctive features, such as parkland and belts of trees. The overall approach to management in the Limestone Fringe should thus involve a combination of restoration and enhancement - to restore those features which contribute to local distinctiveness, while at the same time enhancing the overall unity of the landscape through appropriate large-scale woodland planting.
Key recommendations
- Initiate schemes for conserving and restoring the integrity of historic estatelands
Historic estates, such as those at Annesley and Beauvale, are a distinctive feature of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge, and in the Limestone Fringe they make a significant contribution to the overall character of the landscape. A key feature of these estates is the pattern of woodlands and belts of trees, usually associated with a large country house set in ornamental grounds. With the break-up of large estates since the Second World War, this historic pattern of tree cover has become increasingly fragmented. Steps should be taken to halt this decline by implementing landscape masterplans aimed at conserving and restoring the visual integrity of historic estatelands. This should involve a co-ordinated and long-term programme of tree felling and replacement planting. Opportunities should also be sought to mirror estateland character in the design of new planting schemes throughout the Limestone Fringe.
- Promote large-scale woodland planting as a means of enhancing visual unity and mitigating urban development
A dominant and unifying theme throughout the Limestone Fringe is the large-scale pattern of woodlands and open spaces, but where this pattern is weak the landscape tends to lack structure and visual integrity. Around mining settlements this impression is often reinforced by the juxtaposition of different land uses, including urban development, busy roads, mine workings, spoil heaps, public open space, and arable farmland. The most practical way to mitigate the impact of these influences and enhance the overall unity of the landscape is to create a new woodland structure that will contain and soften the urban fringe environment. New planting that reflects the scale of the urban edge, and which links strongly into the wider landscape pattern is likely to work best. The potential for large-scale woodland planting is therefore significant, although aesthetic and amenity considerations will need to guide the exact proportion of planted and open land in any given area. Woodland planting would also help to mitigate the impact of the M1 through the Limestone Fringe, particularly in the Selston area where the motorway runs along the top of an open summit.
River meadowlands
Landscape strategy
Conserve and restore the special character and continuity of the river corridor landscape
Key recommendations
- Seek opportunities for restoring the character and ecological diversity of alluvial grasslands
- Retain and enhance the diversity of river channel and bankside vegetation
- Promote riverside tree planting as a means for enhancing the continuity of the river corridor
Landscape strategy
- Conserve and restore the special character and continuity of the river corridor landscape
Meandering river channels, flanked by riverside trees and grazing meadows, are the key elements which contribute to the special character and continuity of this landscape. The associated wildlife and traditional, undisturbed pastoral scenes are perhaps the most evocative qualities of the River Meadowlands, particularly as they provide a welcome contrast to the surrounding intensively cultivated arable fields. In places, these fields have impinged on the river corridor, disrupting the visual and ecological continuity of the landscape. The straightening and reprofiling of the river channel has also had an impact along some stretches of river, resulting in the removal of riverside trees and an overall loss of species diversity. Likewise, intensification of grassland management has caused a decline in the diversity of plants and animals associated with river meadows.
From the above analysis, it is clear that, while the character of the River Meadowlands is inherently strong, there is much scope for improving the condition of the landscape, particularly in those areas damaged by river drainage, or where the traditional pattern of land use has become fragmented. The general approach to management in this landscape should thus involve a combination of conservation and restoration - to conserve and, where necessary, restore the special character and continuity of the river corridor landscape.
Key recommendations
- Seek opportunities for restoring the character and eclogical diversity of alluvial grasslands
The key to conserving the special character and continuity of the River Meadowlands is the maintenance of a continuous strip of meadowland along the length of the river corridor. It is also important that the long, sinuous hedgerows, which in places define the edge of the river floodplain, should be retained and managed as landscape features. Since the 1940s, flood alleviation schemes have allowed arable cultivation to encroach onto the alluvial floodplain, disrupting the visual continuity of this distinctive land use pattern in many areas. This has been associated with a decline in ecological diversity due to the loss of old flood meadows and other wetland habitats. Given the current agricultural climate to restrain cereal production and control nitrate run-off into watercourses, opportunities should be sought for restoring these areas to permanent grassland. Where possible, consideration should be given to the re-creation of species-rich wet grassland habitats.
- Retain and enhance the diversity of river channel and bankside vegetation
The river channel itself is a key component of this landscape. It is particularly important as a habitat for plants and animals and every effort should be made to retain water quality, as well as features such as meanders, islands, riffles, cliffs and backwaters that are associated with a more natural channel profile. Together with riparian trees, scrub and other bankside vegetation, these features make a significant contribution to the special character of the riverside environment. Where a river has been modified by engineering works, opportunities should be sought for diversifying the channel profile, either by natural processes, or through direct intervention. The latter might include reprofiling to create a more natural bank profile, or cutting a notch into the base of the bank to allow for colonisation by emergent plants.
- Promote riverside tree planting as a means for enhancing the continuity of the river corridor
Scattered waterside trees and patches of scrub make a significant contribution to the overall character and continuity of riverine landscapes. These features not only help to define the meandering course of the river channel, but they provide a degree of enclosure in a landscape that often lacks other threedimensional elements. The extent of riverside tree cover in the River Meadowlands is very variable and for the most part reflects the degree to which the channel has been modified by river engineering works. There are thus many areas that would benefit considerably from tree and shrub planting, using locally occurring native species. Where possible, riverside tree planting should be undertaken as part of a package of measures to enhance the riverside environment.
Return to top
Section 5: Landscape guidelines
Introduction
The Landscape Guidelines that follow act as the mechanism for implementing the aims of the Landscape Strategies and Key Recommendations by indicating how specific aspects of landscape character can be conserved, enhanced or restored. The Guidelines are design-based and relate to the management of all the individual features and components of the landscape, highlighting possible courses of action and mechanisms for implementation. The Guidelines provide the framework to place wider landscape considerations at the heart of the conception and design process for individual projects. They also recommend appropriate courses of action for integrating nature conservation measures into the process of change.
The Landscape Guidelines are presented in the form of a summary statement, followed by a justification for that course of action. The Guidelines are grouped under a number of topic headings, rather than by landscape type, as this better reflects the specific management issues and range of potential users of this manual. To aid clarity each topic area has been assigned a stylised symbol as follows.
 |
Rural villages |
 |
Parkland and ornamental grounds |
 |
Farmsteads and rural dwellings |
 |
Historic features |
 |
Urban development |
 |
Farmland |
 |
Woodland |
 |
Recreational land |
 |
Hedgerow trees |
 |
Highways and rural lanes |
 |
Hedgerows |
 |
Utilities and industrial sites |
 |
Meadowland and pasture |
 |
Development mitigation |
 |
Rivers and stream lines |
 |
Mineral extraction |
|
|
Conserve the nucleated pattern of rural settlements by avoiding new development in open countryside |
Urban growth has accompanied industrial expansion within the region, beginning with the textile industry and then deep-mined coal. Over the last few decades Sutton-in-Ashfield, Kirkby-in- Ashfield and Mansfield have all expanded, and coalesced in some areas to form a densely populated and heavily urbanised landscape. Other settlements have been affected by the expansion of the main urban areas, including Nottingham, leading to an alteration in the size and character of many villages. However, to the north of Mansfield the traditional nucleated settlement pattern is still mostly intact. Any new development in open countryside that could adversely affect the historic settlement pattern or rural character of these areas should therefore be avoided. New built development should be restricted, as far as possible, to existing settlements. Where new housing is necessary in the wider countryside it should reflect the dispersed pattern of isolated farmsteads and other buildings that lie outside the village envelopes. Single dwellings rather than groups of dwellings should be preferred.
|
|
The design of all new buildings should reflect the local vernacular character of village settlements |
Most of the older buildings in the region (including the old mills in Pleasley Vale) are built from the local pinkish coloured magnesian limestone, with orange pantile roofs. These buildings, and the walls that often surround them, blend well with their surroundings, and the conservation of this distinctive vernacular style should be a priority. A range of other building styles is also found in most villages, including more recent infill development that does not harmonise with the local vernacular style. Such development can appear out of place, often introducing a suburban influence that sometimes disrupts the overall unity of the built environment. Attention should thus be given to the scale, siting, and design of all new buildings, in particular, the incorporation of traditional features which reflect the local vernacular character.
|
|
Protect and enhance the internal open space and irregular outline of village settlements |
Rural villages typically have a low settlement density and a high proportion of land which is not built-up. This may include the village green, glebe land, gardens, allotments, small paddocks associated with village farms and other open spaces. Such features are an important part of the village scene and should be conserved. They also contribute to settlement diversity and by providing breaks in the built environment they help to tie the village into the surrounding countryside.
Excessive infill development can overwhelm this pattern and result in a hard built edge against open farmland. The design of new development should therefore incorporate sufficient open space to break up hard edges and to allow appropriate landscaping to link the new settlement edge into the surrounding farmland.
|
|
Conserve the character of rural villages by retaining farmsteads within settlements |
Working farms are a vital component of the rural economy and throughout history farmsteads have been an integral feature of the village scene. The presence of farmsteads, often in the heart of the village, is thus a distinguishing characteristic of rural settlement, emphasising the cultural and economic bonds between the village and the land. A recent trend, however, has been to sell off farmhouses and their adjoining buildings when farms come onto the market. In many cases the farm buildings are sold separately and converted into dwellings. This usually leads to changes in the fabric and surroundings of the site but, more significantly, the bonds between the village and the agricultural economy are weakened and rural character is diminished. Local planning policies should therefore seek to resist proposals for the redevelopment of farmsteads within rural villages.
|
|
Conserve and enhance tree cover within and around rural settlements |
Mature trees are an important feature within and around rural settlements, where they provide colour, shelter and a sense of proportion and balance to the built environment. Large, mature trees are particularly valuable as local landmarks and their presence often creates a strong sense of place. Such trees should be preserved and opportunities sought to create new features for future generations. Individual garden trees also play an important role in linking settlement edges into the wider countryside. Property owners should therefore be encouraged to plant appropriate longer-lived trees, rather than quick-growing ornamental species. New planting should also be undertaken to soften the hard edges of more recent development and consolidate the existing level of village tree cover. The intention should not be to hide buildings, but rather to integrate them into the surrounding landscape.
|
|
Conserve and enhance tree cover within and around farmsteads and rural dwellings |
Clumps of trees are an important feature around farmsteads and rural dwellings where they provide shelter and give a sense of proportion and balance to the built environment. Mature trees are particularly valuable as local landmarks where their presence often produces a strong sense of place. Trees can soften the hard edges of new buildings and help to link the new development into the wider farmed landscape. Tree planting, using locally occurring species, should be encouraged around farmsteads and rural dwellings. The intention is not to hide the buildings, but rather to integrate them into the landscape. Ornamental species planted as quick growing screens, particularly Leylandii, should be avoided.
|
|
New agricultural buildings should be sited, designed and landscaped to blend with the surrounding farmed landscape |
The traditional character of farmsteads is being eroded by the construction of modern farm buildings, which often look out of place. Many new buildings are necessarily large and the roof areas can be particularly dominant. Siting and design are therefore very important and this should always be considered when planning a new agricultural building. No amount of “landscaping” will conceal a building that is fundamentally badly designed. Big buildings can sit well in an open landscape if they are well sited in relation to other features such as landform and tree cover. Use of shadows, different textures and careful selection of building materials can add interest and break up the mass of a large building. Similarly, the choice of colours should complement those in existing buildings and in the surrounding landscape. Darker, matt colours are generally less obtrusive than light, shiny colours. The surroundings of new buildings are also very important but are often given inadequate consideration. Locally occurring trees such as oak, ash and beech should be used in a positive way to strengthen the overall farm landscape, rather than as an afterthought in an attempt to hide an ugly building.
|
|
New urban fringe woodlands should be designed to soften, rather than hide, built development |
The interface between the urban edge and the surrounding landscape can often appear sharp and stark. Tree planting within and around existing development is one of the best ways to soften hard edges. Integration can best be achieved by allowing established trees to run into a built-up area and designing new planting to soften the appearance of the urban environment. New planting that reflects the scale of the built development and which links strongly to the wider landscape pattern is likely to work best. The aim should be to contain and soften the urban edge rather than to try and hide it completely. Tree planting within the built-up area itself is often one of the best means of attaining this effect, although this is not always possible on existing sites. Opportunities should thus be sought in all new development schemes for allocating a proportion (at least 10%) of the site for tree and woodland planting. Resources should also be provided for the ongoing management of these features.
|
|
The design of new woodland planting should complement the shape and scale of the surrounding landscape pattern |
Woodland planting can often be used to good effect for enhancing the visual amenity of agricultural or urban fringe landscapes. It is important, however, that the location and scale of such planting reflects the character and scale of the surrounding landscape pattern. Medium to large estate woodlands are a key feature of the Limestone Farmlands and Limestone Fringe, where they provide structure and biological diversity in an arable-dominated environment. New planting in these landscapes should seek to complement that pattern. Every effort should be made to site the woodlands appropriately and retain some of the open, sweeping views. In areas where small-scale semi-regular field patterns occur, large-scale woodland planting should be avoided. In these areas local landscape character should be retained and woodland planting should be more limited and restricted to the average field size. The Magnesian Limestone Ridge forms part of the Greenwood Community Forest area and therefore is targeted for increased woodland coverage. Obvious opportunities exist for this on ex-colliery sites and urban fringe areas which have a derelict or neglected appearance. Planting proposals should, however, be designed following a local landscape assessment to ensure that new woodlands are appropriately sited. It is important that new planting follows the advice given in the Key Recommendations for each landscape type and that a survey is carried out prior to planting to identify any important features that should be conserved.
|
|
Promote measures for the sustainable management of estate plantations |
Estate plantations are a distinctive feature throughout the Magnesian Limestone Ridge. Traditionally these were managed for timber or game, but with the demise of management practices such as coppicing, along with the general reduction in the availability of farm labour, most of these woods are now unmanaged. As landscape features, many are in decline and in urgent need of management. With Government incentives now favouring the diversification of farm enterprises, there is scope for restoring and making better use of this resource for timber, fuelwood, game, wildlife, or recreational pursuits. Many of these woods are suited to long rotation coppicing, as a source of fuelwood for example. Where coppicing is impractical, or where woods are visually prominent, high forest management may be a more suitable option. In either case owners could benefit from economies of scale by working together to market woodland products, or to promote the use of neighbouring woods as a sporting or recreational resource for local people.
|
|
Conserve all ancient woodland sites and restock with locally occurring native species |
Irregularly shaped semi-natural ancient woodland and woodlands containing native deciduous species are a feature across much of the region. The highest priority must be afforded to the conservation and appropriate management of all ancient woodland sites. In nature conservation terms, native deciduous woodlands provide habitat for a much wider range of flora and fauna than do non-native woods. Ancient woodlands in particular accommodate vast ranges of species, including invertebrates, fungi and wildflowers which can only survive in the specialised conditions provided therein. Parts of the woodland have been planted with conifers and non-native deciduous species. The wildlife value of such woodlands is often less than that of native deciduous woodlands. Further use of non-native species in existing woodlands should be avoided and, wherever possible, restocking with appropriate native trees and shrubs should be the management priority.
|
|
Develop opportunities for better integrating existing forestry planting into the wider landscape |
Many of the Limestone Fringe woodlands are mixed or coniferous. In many cases the design and species composition of these plantations could be improved. Opportunities should therefore be sought, perhaps at the end of a rotation, to better integrate these woodlands into the wider landscape. This might involve extending, reshaping, or partially clear felling the existing plantation. Particular attention should be given to the treatment of woodland edges and rides. Species composition may also need to be modified. A proportion of conifers can add interest to the landscape and benefit certain species, but in general large, long-lived broad-leaved species should be favoured, where economic conditions are not predominant.
|
|
Conserve all river valley woodland and encourage the creation of new woodlands at appropriate locations |
A variable pattern of woodland cover exists within the River Meadowlands. Along the upper reaches of the Meden the steep valley sides are clothed in woodland; however, elsewhere a scattered distribution of small-scale woodland is more characteristic. This is frequently dominated by ash. As well as being an integral part of the River Meadowlands landscape the woods provide important habitat for a range of wildlife including birds, invertebrates, mammals and amphibians. It is important that all areas of river valley woodland are conserved and the visual unity of the landscape enhanced by the sympathetic management of existing small woodlands. The opportunities for establishing new, small-scale damp woodlands in areas where conditions are favourable should also be investigated, either through natural regeneration or planting. River valley landscapes in urban and industrial areas could particularly benefit from the establishment of such woodlands. Large-scale planting should be avoided, particularly where it would lead to the loss of grassland habitats, have the effect of filling in meanders or close off views down the river corridors.
|
|
All tree and woodland plantiing shoud include a proportion of large long-lived tree species |
The use of appropriate species in well-designed mixes is important in determining how well new or replacement tree planting will fit into the landscape. Selection of species will need to reflect a wide range of considerations, including the balance to be struck between nature conservation, landscape enhancement and timber production. Broad-leaved species should predominate, but a proportion of conifers can also be valuable in adding variety in shape, texture and colour. Large, long-lived tree species, in particular oak, should be included in all woodland planting schemes.
|
|
Conserve and enhance tree cover through the replanting and regeneration of hedgerow trees |
The regular pattern of medium to large-scale hedged fields forms a dominant feature across most of the region. A relatively sparse distribution of hedgerow trees is associated with this enclosure pattern with ash, oak and willow the principal species. Greater densities of hedgerow trees occur within the smallerscale pastoral landscapes adjacent to settlements. These tend to be more mature than the trees found within the larger-scale, arable-dominated farmlands. The enclosure pattern is, for the most part, strong and well-defined, and the establishment of more hedgerow trees would help to emphasise this further whilst allowing filtered views across the farmlands to wooded edges. Hedgerow tree establishment should therefore form an important part of the overall strategy to increase the tree cover within the region, along with medium to large-scale woodland planting initiatives. The existing hedgerow tree cover should therefore be maintained and enhanced, either through selection and natural regeneration, or the planting of individual hedgerow trees in gaps.
|
|
Conserve the traditional pattern of hedged fields |
The pattern of hedged fields is an important and distinctive feature of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge. The retention of field pattern is crucial if the character of the landscape is to be maintained. Every effort should be made to retain and strengthen this pattern by managing hedgerows in a way which maintains both the stockproof function of the hedge and its landscape value. This would include allowing hedges to grow thicker and taller, and planting up individual gappy hedges. Existing incentives for replanting and traditional hedgelaying should thus be more actively promoted. Where fields need to be enlarged priority should be given to retaining primary hedgelines that form the essential structure of the landscape. These are the field boundaries that can be traced for a distance of two or more fields. They include roadside hedgerows, the hedges that define farm and parish boundaries, and the curvilinear hedges which in places mark the edge of river flood plains.
|
|
Maintain and enhance the value of hedgerows as wildlife corridors |
Field hedgerows provide a valuable refuge for wildlife in the countryside. Most hedges are closely trimmed, however, and many are gappy or dying out at the base. There is a need, therefore, for more appropriate management, in particular to move away from hedges being excessively tidy and low cut. All hedgerows would benefit from being allowed to grow thicker and taller, and where possible management should favour trimming at three to five-yearly intervals to improve wildlife interest. Consideration should also be given to traditional hedgelaying, or coppicing, where hedges have grown spindly, or become gappy at the base. Existing incentives for hedgerow management and the replanting of individual gappy hedges should be more actively promoted. The creation of expanded field margins along primary hedgelines would also enhance farmland biodiversity. Options might include wildlife fallow margins to encourage wildflowers, and grassland margins to manage as meadow or rough pasture.
|
|
New or replacement hedgerow planting should be designed to complement the existing pattern of fields |
New hedgerow planting should be undertaken in those parts of the region where the existing pattern of fields has become fragmented, or is in decline. Priority should be given to reinstating primary hedgelines along roadsides, public footpaths and farm or parish boundaries. Where possible a minimum of three years’ maintenance should be provided for, in order to ensure the success of the new planting. In all cases, new or replacement planting should complement the existing pattern of hedged fields. Variation in the species composition of hedgerows occurs through the landscape. Hedges are predominantly hawthorn but are more species-rich in the smaller-scale pastoral areas. Hedges should be planted predominantly with hawthorn, with perhaps up to 20% of other locally occurring native species. However, in the smaller-scale pastoral landscapes the proportion of hawthorn can be reduced. Hedgerow trees should also be included where possible.
|
|
Conserve and mange the remaining unimproved limestone grasslands and indentify opportunities to recreate limestone grassland habitats |
Permanent grasslands are uncommon outside the river corridors, and where they do occur they are often agriculturally improved and of little wildlife value. Where unimproved species-rich limestone grasslands do occur, for example near Teversal and Fulwood, they are extremely valuable in both visual and nature conservation terms. However, the level of value depends to a large extent on the way they are managed. If they are managed intensively the aesthetic appeal and wildlife value decline. Managing permanent pasture sensitively and seeking opportunities to create traditional limestone grasslands, especially close to settlements, will help to enhance the landscape’s character and maintain the biodiversity of the County.
|
|
Enhance the visual and eclogical continuity of river and stream corridors |
Waterside trees and shrubs are a characteristic feature along the main river channels, becks and streams that drain the region. They help to pick out the course of the meandering water courses and provide a sense of unity, particularly where associated with permanent pastures and meadows. Willow, alder, ash and hawthorn are the principal species, providing a valuable habitat for wildlife. They should be conserved and managed to retain their interest. Significant stretches of river have limited tree cover and would benefit from a programme of tree and shrub establishment along the river bank. This should include natural regeneration and planting. The visual prominence and irregular form of the stream lines could also be greatly enhanced by such a programme, which should generally be restricted to the immediate waterside environment using locally native species such as willow and ash. The watercourses should also be managed to provide maximum benefit for wildlife by maintaining a margin of semi-natural vegetation on at least one side of the channel. This margin should be as wide as possible and ideally include tree and shrubs. In places the traditional practices of coppicing and pollarding are evident, adding to the character of the riparian landscape. To retain these attractive trees as part of the traditional waterside landscape, it is crucial that these practices are encouraged.
|
|
Conserve and enhance the diversity of wetland habitats within river corridors |
Wetland habitats, including ponds and marshes, have traditionally been present within the river corridors. Some occur naturally, some have been created for watering stock and others for holding water for nearby mills. As well as adding interest and diversity to local landscapes these wetlands are of high wildlife value, supporting a range of flora and fauna. The conservation and sensitive management of those which remain are therefore important. However, modern farming practice and the decline of local mills have eliminated many of these features. The result is uniform steep-sided channel edges with little space for emergent vegetation and little opportunity for colonisation by riverside trees and shrubs. In such areas opportunities should be sought to diversify the riverside environment. This might include reprofiling to create a more natural bank profile, or cutting a notch into the base of the bank to allow for colonisation by emergent plants. Identification of riverside enhancement opportunities should be based on detailed survey of individual river corridors.
|
|
Conserve the traditional pastoral character and diversity of river meadowland |
The alluvial meadows and meandering river channels provide a valuable habitat for a wide range of plants and animals, as well as being the essential features of the river corridor landscapes. In recent decades a large number of alluvial meadows have been lost, mainly through agricultural improvement and urban expansion. This has resulted in an erosion of the traditional character of the river meadowlands, along with a fragmentation in the overall structure and unity of the river corridors. In order to arrest this process and prevent further fragmentation it is vital to conserve all remaining areas of flood meadow and pasture.
|
|
Manage grassland in a traditional manner and consider options for converting arable land to pasture, particularly where it will extend the continuity of the river corridor |
The pastures of the River Meadowlands were traditionally used for haymaking and summer grazing using low-input forms of management. These methods created floristically diverse habitats of high nature conservation interest, supporting a wide variety of invertebrates and other animal life. While many of the pastures still have a high conservation value, others are now managed intensively, leading to a decline in their aesthetic and ecological value. Where opportunities arise, a return to traditional forms of management should be advocated. This will help to maintain and enhance the conservation value of these grasslands and improve their visual appeal. This may be achieved by the application of European and Government schemes that seek to reduce agricultural surpluses and promote environmentally sensitive forms of farming. The same incentives could also be used as a mechanism to take land out of arable production and return it to permanent pasture and meadowland. This should initially be directed towards extending the continuity of existing areas of pastoral river meadowland.
|
|
Prepare and implement landscape masterplans for conserving and restoring the visual integrity of historic parklands |
Ornamental parklands, estate woodlands and clumps of trees are a special feature of the Magnesian Limestone Ridge, creating localised areas of formal, well-wooded countryside. Apart from their historical significance, these features form an important structural element in the landscape, especially where parkland and woodland components have survived as a single cohesive unit. The break-up of large estates since the last war, however, has led to the fragmentation and decline of some of these historic landscapes, while others are disintegrating more gradually with the passing of time. Measures should be taken to address these issues through the implementation of landscape masterplans for individual parkland areas. These masterplans should respect the historical and visual integrity of the landscape within each area. This may involve bringing together a number of landowners where the whole area is no longer in single ownership. Priority should be given to the phased renewal of estate woodlands and clumps of trees.
|
|
Conserve the pastoral character of traditional parkland landscapes and consider opportunities to restore pastoral character to parkland areas |
Parkland landscapes have great visual appeal, much of this arising from the permanent grasslands which have traditionally been grazed by a range of parkland animals. Parkland grasslands often contain a diversity of wild flora and fauna, due to their antiquity and because the grasslands have tended to be managed in a traditional manner. The grasslands therefore are of historic, landscape and nature conservation importance: they should be conserved and where possible managed in a traditional manner. There are areas of parkland within this landscape which have been agriculturally improved through the ploughing-up of permanent grassland; where possible this should be restored.
|
|
All areas of ridge and furrow should be managed to maintain their historic interest |
Grasslands containing ridge and furrow landscapes are found in a small number of fields within the region. The ridge and furrow grasslands are remnants of mediaeval landscapes that were enclosed and set to pasture. Many ridge and furrow grasslands have been lost over recent decades with the ploughing-up and arable conversion of land. This has increased the historic importance and rarity of the remaining features. Where ridge and furrow survives, its very antiquity is an indicator that the grassland sward has never been ploughed and reseeded and it is often floristically diverse. Ridge and furrow grasslands therefore have high historic, landscape and nature conservation interest. All surviving areas should be conserved.
|
|
Farmland should be managed positively to enhance its landscape and wildlife interest |
A variety of options are now available to farmers within the current set-aside scheme. These range from short-term rotations through to longer-term schemes where the same piece of land can be set aside over several years. Land managed under habitat and forestry schemes can now count as part of the set-aside obligation under the Arable Area Payments Scheme. There is now considerable scope for land to be managed positively in order to enhance landscape and wildlife interest. Both wildlife and landscape features can be restored or created at the field scale, or as conservation headlands, wildlife margins and grass margins. Such areas are of greatest value where they provide linkages between existing features such as woodlands, hedgerows, streams and ponds. The longer-term options allow the restoration and creation of a range of features such as wildflower meadows and damp lowland grasslands. Woodland establishment schemes are now eligible to be counted as set-aside, offering significant opportunities to enhance landscape character.
|
|
Conserve rural character by retaining existing features in all development schemes |
The suburbanising influences associated with new development are an increasing pressure on the rural character of the countryside. These influences are having a subtle but cumulative impact, especially on all matters of design. Examples include: the external modernisation of buildings; the erection of corporate roadside signs; the replacement of roadside hedges with quick-growing ornamental screens; the increased use of security fencing; and even standardised landscaping schemes. Much more discretion is needed when applying design standards in rural landscapes. In particular, original features such as walls, traditional gates and pillars, roadside hedges and mature trees should be retained if at all possible. Where this is not possible, consideration should be given to moving or replacing such features.
|
|
The design of recreational and sporting facilities, such as golf courses, should reflect the character of the local landscape |
The Magnesian Limestone Ridge has a strong rural character in many areas, although urban influences are never far away. The introduction of large numbers of ornamental or coniferous trees, the removal of hedgerow or stream-line trees, or the erection of modern buildings using introduced materials would detract from this rural character, especially in the more remote areas. To minimise intrusion the design of recreational, leisure and sporting facilities should be done sensitively to retain and enhance the traditional character, features of interest and local sense of place. Any developments should make a positive contribution to the quality of the landscape, with a comprehensive assessment of the potential impact of any recreational or sporting development on the landscape character of the area.
|
|
Landscaping around utilities and other rural development should be better integrated into the wider landscape |
Landscaping around utilities and other development in the countryside usually involves screen planting in geometric blocks, or on raised bunds, to hide new development. Whilst these mitigation measures are better than nothing at all, the effect is often lost because the contrast between the landscaped area and the surrounding farmland is just as obvious. In rural areas the success of landscaping around sites, such as sewage works and other utilities, will depend to a large extent on how well they have been integrated into the wider landscape. Particular attention should be given to the treatment of the site perimeter to ensure that it is tied strongly into the adjoining field pattern. Similarly, tree planting within the site should be linked with new or existing trees beyond the perimeter of the site. Better siting and design of new buildings should also be considered in addition to landscaping works. It is better to soften a well-designed building with a few trees than try to hide an ugly building with screen planting.
|
|
Diversify roadside character through the management and creation of flower-rich grasslands on highway verges |
Flower-rich meadows and pasture would once have been more common in these landscapes. In recent years such fields have often been agriculturally improved and consequently their landscape and wildlife interest has been reduced or lost. There may, however, be opportunities to re-create this interest by diversifying roadside verges. Roadside verges serve a number of practical purposes, including acting as a buffer between the road and the ditch/ hedge, and providing a safe place for walkers and riders and a convenient place to locate services. As well as these practical functions, roadside verges also perform an aesthetic and ecological function. Many are species-rich, similar in species composition to remnant hay meadows that have never been ploughed, reseeded or agriculturally improved. They still contain a variety of wildflowers and grasses which in turn support a wealth of invertebrate life, birds and mammals. The conservation interest of the verges should be maintained, and where possible enhanced through appropriate management. The creation of flower-rich verges containing native, slow-growing grass species would add to the visual appeal and diversity of the landscape, offer greater habitat potential for wildlife and require less management than many of the existing verges. The creation of new verges and the reseeding of disturbed ones offer obvious opportunities for this.
|
|
Conserve rural characteristics by limiting standardised treatments during highway improvement schemes |
The construction of new roads and the widening or realignment of existing roads can have a major impact on the character of the rural environment. Improvements to meet modern highway standards, for example, invariably result in the removal of existing roadside features and the introduction of new suburban influences into the rural environment. Traffic calming measures should therefore always be considered as an alternative option in rural areas. Where improvements are necessary, standardised treatments such as concrete kerbing, galvanised crash barriers, new or replacement street lighting, and the erection of modern road signs should be used only where absolutely necessary. Such features are not only visually intrusive but they generally look out of place in the countryside. As an alternative, consideration should be given to the use of more traditional materials such as stone setts for kerbing, wooden telegraph poles for street lighting, or reverting to locally distinctive road signs. Every effort should also be made to restrict work to one side of the road and to replace roadside features such as hedges, banks and trees.
|
|
All road improvement schemes should include a landscape impact assessment |
The construction of new roads and the widening or realignment of existing roads can have a major impact on the character of the landscape. The visual impact of new roads can often be reduced by careful route selection. It is important therefore that landscape considerations are carefully assessed at the start of all such schemes, as no amount of landscaping will disguise the impact of a badly chosen route. Where improvements to existing roads are necessary, an early assessment should also be undertaken to identify locally important features that need to be retained or replaced.
|
|
Restoration proposals for pit heaps should reflect the character of adjacent areas, defined by a detailed assessment of local landscape character |
There are a number of derelict mine sites in the area, a legacy of the declining coal industry. Most of these include pit heaps which were traditionally restored to agriculture. In recent years agricultural surpluses have rendered this unnecessary and alternative uses for disused pit heaps have been explored. Design proposals should take account of local landscape character, identified by a thorough survey of the surrounding area at the planning stage. As woodlands in this region are characteristically medium to large in scale, this should be reflected in the reclamation of pit heaps to amenity uses.
Species List
Magnesian Limestone Ridge
Dominant Species 
Other Species Present 
The following list includes native tree and shrub species that are commonly found within the Magnesian Limestone Ridge and are suitable for inclusion in planting schemes. These are important for determining the area’s regional character. A range of other native species may also be appropriate to particular locations or sites. In these cases professional advice should be sought. A list of organisations able to provide such advice has been included in the section 'Further Information'.
TREES |
Woodlands |
Hedges |
Hedgerow Trees |
Wet Areas/Streamsides |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Alder (Common) |
|
|
|
|
|
Ash |
|
|
|
|
|
Aspen |
|
|
||
|
Beech |
|
|
||
|
Birch (Silver) |
|
|||
|
Cherry (Wild) |
|
|
|
|
|
Crab Apple |
|
|
|
|
|
Elm (English) |
|
|||
|
Elm (wych) |
|
|
|
|
|
Lime |
|
|
|
|
|
Lime |
|
|
|
|
|
Maple (Field) |
|
|
|
|
|
Oak (Common) |
|
|
|
|
|
Willow (Crack) |
|
|
|
|
|
Willow (White) |
|
|
|
|
|
Yew |
|
SHRUBS |
Woodlands |
Hedges |
Hedgrow Trees |
Wet Areas/Streamsides |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Blackthorn |
|
|
|
|
| Blackthorn (Purging) |
|
|||
|
Dogwood (Common) |
|
|
||
|
Guelder Rose |
|
|
|
|
|
Hawthorn |
|
|
|
|
|
Hawthorn (Midland) |
|
|
|
|
|
Hazel |
|
|
||
|
Holly |
|
|
|
|
|
Osier |
|
|
|
|
|
Privet (Wild) |
|
|
||
|
Rosa Spp. |
|
|
||
|
Willow (Goat) |
|
|
|
|
|
Willow (Grey) |
|
|
|
