Greena Moor nature reserve

Habitat type: Grassland and woodland Size of Reserve: 37ha (91 acres) OS Map No. 111 Grid Ref: SX 234 963 Best time to visit: All year
Cornwall Wildlife Trust encourages the use of environmentally friendly forms of transport wherever possible. Click on the locator map above to go to the National Cycle Network website and view an Ordnance Survey map of this reserve highlighting nearby cycle routes.

Directions:

Greena Moor is 1 mile (1.5km) south of the village of Week St. Mary. From the A39, 5 miles (7.5km) south of Bude, take the turning for Week St Mary. In Week St Mary, turn right towards Week Green, then fork right. Access to the reserve is via a path off to the left, 0.75 mile (900m) along this road.

Access:

Pathways cross the fields, but not the heathland. The surfaces are uneven and can be very wet and muddy. Stout footwear is recommended.

Classification

Description:

The site is mainly culm grassland with some broadleaved woodland, scrub and streams. The main wooded area in the centre of the reserve was originally a plantation, and hazel may well have been coppiced in the past.

Characteristic wildlife of this reserve:

Culm grassland develops on poorly-drained acid soils which stay wet even in the driest weather because of the rock structure below - a mixture of shales, slates and sandstones laid down about 300 million years ago. Culm grassland is characterised by plants which have adapted to the dampness.

Meadow thistle and whorled caraway are two key species associated with the purple moor-grass and rushes that dominate this place. The meadow thistle is an elegant plant growing to almost 3 ft in height and with only the softest of prickles. In Cornwall, it is restricted almost entirely to the culm grasslands. Whorled caraway is a medium-height perennial with white, domeshaped flowerheads. Its oblong leaves are finely divided with segments arranged in rings around the main leaf midrib.

Other information:

A low mound on the stream's slopes may be the remains of a Bronze Age barrow - there are many barrows around this area.

The site is jointly owned and managed with Plantlife, the UK’s only membership organisation dedicated solely to the conservation of wild plants in their natural habitat.

The reserve was purchased in 1995 with grants from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and Esme Fairbairn Charitable Trust.

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