Early on 12th July, Martin met Lulu Urquhart, near one of the sources of the Somerset Frome in Witham Friary.
Bruton-based Urquhart & Hunt won “Best in Show” @ last year’s Chelsea Flower show for their “Rewilding Britain Garden”, featuring Beaver-chewed sticks and a Beaver Lodge + native plants.
Martin and Lulu talked about how the ’natural engineers’ slow the flow, while cleaning the headwaters of the Frome, helping to protect the town of Frome from flash-flooding, such as that experienced by villages on the nearby River Cam on 9 May.
They also discussed regenerative farming and ‘farming for nature’ in Witham Friary and the wider Forest of Selwood area. They saw logs being used to grow various species of mushrooms, to be harvested for sale in local shops and restaurants.
Beavers are vegetarians, and have taught people many things – such as possibly how to lay wooden trackways across marshes like the Sweet Track, and how to coppice Trees. Beavers can also regularly be seen on security cameras @ Asda in Frome, where they have another lodge.
