David Bearfield & John Sears
As a child John Sears lived in Bushey and at the beginning of his talk he looked back to the late thirties when his family moved to Glencoe Road and John visited Finch Lane fields more than any other area.   He particularly enjoyed wandering in the dog daisy field and he remembers the Dell as a haven for wild life, the Long Pond fringed by trees and the old Elm drive which led from a lodge in Finch Lane to the place where Bushey Grange once stood.  This large house had been pulled down in 1930 and by 1940 even the foundations could not be seen.  The Lodge and the drive were destroyed in 1948 and the trees which lined the drive were infected by Dutch Elm fungus and were sawn down in 1977.  However stately cedars still stood their ground and stinging nettles bear witness to previous animal and human habitation.

Bushey Grange was built in 1840 and from 1900-1930 it was the home of the Reverend Burchell-Herne. Going on through the fields and bordering Little Bushey Lane stood Bushey Grange Farm, a timber-framed building, and Burchell-Herne cottages.  The land was farmed by Mr Hedges who died in 1957. During the war German POWs, Joseph, Eric and Adolph were billeted in the cottages.  Eric married a local girl and settled in Bushey after the war.  Unfortunately the farmhouse was destroyed by squatters in 1958/59 and the cottages destroyed in 1952/53.

Time, Dutch Elm Disease and the destructive nature of man led to the ecological decline of this area which had been such a rich environment for those who value and remember what John referred to as the “Green Fields Era” from 1930-1965.  For example the Dell and the Long Pond were infilled and many lovely trees destroyed in 1965/66 leaving a mass of earth mounds which were not even useful as grazing land.  The orchard was cut down, the Dog Daisy Field ploughed up and hedges removed.  While it was necessary to  cut down trees infected with Dutch Elm disease, in May 1972 John had been horrified to see mature Horse Chestnuts in full bloom wantonly destroyed parallel to Finch Lane.

Conservation is now very much on the agenda.  In 1974 Inspector Post took the initiative to have Finch Lane stopped up for motor vehicles at the Aldenham Road end.  In 1979, 1992 and 2004 Awareness and Education days were run by WEA and BADFA and in 1983 the North-East fields were saved at a public inquiry.  John outlined the present objectives: to conserve existing features of historical and ecological interest, mediaeval hedgerow, mature trees, and rare and local species (eg Butchers’ Broom).  Re-excavating the Long Pond was mentioned and because Finch Lane has been closed to traffic for around 30 years Chris Beney said that it could be beneficial to open it up a fraction to allay the dark and gloomy atmosphere, perhaps the County Council could lend a hand here. A careful watch must be kept on proposals for restrictions used at the end of footpaths to prevent 4-wheel drives etc., for example the suggested (by the farmer) use of blocks of  concrete was discouraged!

John entertained us by showing an excellent selection of slides which provided a fascinating glimpse of the past:  Bushey Grange House (there was a debate as to which way the conservatory was facing), bluebells found in the deepest part of the Dell, it was a place where they extracted gravel and these flowers prefer gravel to clay. In a 1930s sepia picture of 2 boys on a cross-bar gate and stile in Finch Lane, you could see the Chestnut trees and a there was a postcard of the Lodge knocked down in 1948.

We were interested to see a picture taken in the late 70s when signs of Dutch Elm disease are showing and an old photograph of Farmer Hedges flailing the hay with Suffolk Punch horses.  John showed slides of Wall Brown butterflies feeding on the nectar of the Yarrow flower and Violets found in Finch Lane photographed in 1974.

Just before we reached the interval for coffee John had an anecdote to tell, he showed us a slide of a dead cherry tree in the deepest part of the Dell with woodpecker holes. He and his friends were playing and had lit a camp fire.  John returned home but later learnt that as his friend was sitting by the fire the cherry tree had suddenly fallen across it missing him by inches - a lucky escape! 

John finished with a recording of a Sedge Warbler, a bird which would have frequented the Long Pond, followed by a beautiful poem by Edward Thomas dedicated to that bird . . . “the song that lacks all words but melody . . .”.

More excellent slides were shown after the interval and then we took our picnic lunches to the stretch of grass at the beginning of the footpath which borders the site of Finch Lane fields to discover some of the plants and indicators of ancient hedges and woodland which still remain in this area.  To name but a few we found: 
Field Maple, the only maple native to the British Isles,
Cleavers,
Herb Bennet,
Wood Melick,
Elder,
Hedge Wound Wort,
Hazel,
Blackthorn,
Wild roses of various kinds varying from almost white to deep pink. 
John told us that W H Hudson talked about the Briar Rose in “Hampshire Days” saying that it shouldn’t be put in a vase. 
We found Black Bryony and as we walked along the footpath  John pointed out the stately Wellingtonia and Cedar of Lebanon which had graced the grounds of Bushey Grange.  We saw Hedge Elm, Woody Nightshade, the famous Butchers’ Broom

Butchers' Broom

and White Bryony.  We noticed six Scots Pines to the right of the footpath going towards Little Bushey Lane.  By the old kissing gate a Walnut tree survives, a non-native species and Chris Beney pointed out the first kissing gate installed by BADFA and we were reminded of the late Norman Hedges’ connection with this site.  We saw the posts which in earlier days led to the meadow, John remembered a small pond next to the site of the cottages where the German POWs stayed, and noticing the presence of Creeping Buttercup he said that this plant is an indication of damp ground.

John identified the song of a Garden Warbler as we made our way back along the path ending our study of this interesting area on a beautiful afternoon in June.