Gentleshaw Common

On Gentleshaw Common

Gentleshaw Common is an area of common land situated in Gentleshaw on the northern side of Burntwood in Staffordshire.

The common is considered an important habitat for native plants, and 212½ acres have been declared a 'Site of Special Scientific Interest' for biological interest as it is an area of globally rare lowland heathland.

The common plays host to a series of fun public events throughout the year, including scrub bashing and countryside walks.

Geography

• OS map: SK050111
• Location map: 52°41’53"N, 1°55’34"W

The site occupies the west flanks of a low hill on the southern slope of the Cannock Chase upland plateau. It lies south-west of the village of Gentleshaw and overlooks the town of Burntwood to the south (and within the parish of Longdon). The land slopes down from 676 feet above sea level in the north-east to 490 feet on the southern border.

The common is underlain with superficial deposits of gravelly boulder clay, which in turn is underlain by Triassic Keuper Sandstone. The geology of the area has provided the site with weathered and impoverished acidic soils which has contributed to the unique flora able to grow on the site.

Redmoor Brook rises in the south west flowing eastwards and eventually joining the River Trent.

Flora

The lowland heathland vegetation present at Gentleshaw Common has been classified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a Site of Biological Importance (SBI) as it is one of the largest surviving areas of this reduced habitat in Staffordshire. The floristic character of the site has elements of both oceanic, western and northern heaths, as well as a well-developed transition from dry to humid and wet heath.

Most of the site contains free draining soils which support a species-poor dry heath acidic grassland which has been extensively invaded by bracken. The main flora present on the site areheather, |wavy hair grass (Deschampsia flexuosa), bilberry, mat grass (Nardus stricta), cowberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) and other grasses. Similar flora is found elsewhere in the Midlands, however Gentleshaw Common is unique in displaying a combination of low altitude and a sunny southern aspect which enables a floristic overlap with heaths typical of the warmer western lowlands of Great Britain|Britain. This florisitic overlap is demonstrated by the abundance of bell heather (Erica cinerea) and western gorse (Ulex gallii).

In the southern part of the site soil drainage is impeded which has caused a significant area of mixed humid heath and acidic grassland to thrive. The main flora present in this part of the site are purple moor-grass (Molinia caerulea), cross-leaved heath (Erica tetralix), degenerate heather, heath rush, compact rush, green-ribbed sedge (Carex binervis) and crowberry (Empetrum nigrum).

A shallow valley draining into Redmoor Brook in the southeast area of the site has peat soils, which support rare wet heathland species. Species present include; bog mosses, common cotton grass (Eriophorum angustifolium), star sedge (Carex echinata), round-leaved sundew (Drosera rotundifolia), cranberry and bog asphodel (Narthecium ossifragum).

Fauna

The fauna present on Gentleshaw Common is not as rich as its flora, however meadow pipit, common lizard and green hairstreak have been recorded.

Outside links

• Lichfield District Council: Gentleshaw Common