This tiny meadow repesents a fragment of the wildflower meadows that used to be
widespread in the Kennet Valley. Today, most of them have dissappeared - they have been
ploughed up, re-seeded with fast growing pasture grasses; dug up for gravel or built on.
St. Mary's Meadow is especially important for the rare Meadow Saxifrage, which forms
a carpet of white flowers here during May.
It is important that the meadow does not become overgrown by coarse grasses. For this
reason, the meadow is cut in July and mown until the end of the growing season. This allows
the Meadow Saxifrage to flower in spring and set seed in early summer.
The meadow is lloed after by the St Mary's Parocial Church Council and
Thatcham Town Council, helped by
Volunteers.
Sign designed and donated by The Nature
Conservation Bureau Newbury.
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