Anton Lakes is one of two local nature reserves in Andover.

The Lakes were formed as part of a gravel extraction works after WWII and is fed by The River Anton. The reserve also has the remanents of old watercress beds which can be seen.

The habitats include a wooded area, wetland meadows,watercress beds and chalk meadows.

These habitats play host to many dragonflies and damselflies, Southern Marsh Orchids,Kingfishers,water voles and butterflies like the Common Blue.

We meet in the car park then walk to where we will be working.

This is the stretch of the River Anton between the Troll Bridge and the old Stannah site.

For Sunday tasks parking is in the small, long term, car park at the rear of ASDA

For Saturday tasks please check website for parking arrangements

Bury Hill Meadows lies to the south of Bury Hill Ring and comprises 15 hectares of newly establishing wildflower meadow and woodland, in combination with mature hedgerows, standard trees and established grassland, which is to be managed as a Nature Reserve for the benefit of wildlife and people.

The site is divided into two fields and aims to provide a safe, accessible green space for the surrounding communities, through the use of mown paths to create an interesting multi user experience. The site offers several off road routes of varying length, incorporating breath taking views across Test Valley and onto the North Wessex Downs AONB. This historical landscape also offers views of the nearby Danbury Hill Fort as well as the adjacent Bury Hill Ring.

The car park is off Red Rice Lane.

Harewood Common comprises of nearly 10 Hectares of chalk grassland rich in flora and fauna. Managed by the Test Valley Borough Council’s Parks and Countryside Team, Harewood Common provides a refreshing contrast to the close mown landscape of the Urban Park. The site will be managed with wildlife at its heart, while providing access to the public.

Originally an agricultural field, Harewood Common backs onto the Ancient Woodland of Harewood Forest. Its past management as a hay meadow makes it an ideal place to encourage wildlife to thrive. During the spring and summer months the meadows will be alive with butterflies including meadow brown and marbled white, along with many other insects, and on a warm summer evening you will see bats darting across the field in search of a meal. Its close proximity to Harewood Forest will mean we are likely to see many other woodland animals the come onto the fields to feed, including deer and owls.

There is no parking at the entrance of the site. Please park adjacent to the P20 Co-Op store: ///backdrop.screamed.shallower, SU389452, 51.205382, -1.443376
 

Harewood Common Extension is a new area that has been added to the existing Harewood Common Site.

There is no parking at the entrance of the site. Please park adjacent to the P20 Co-Op store: ///backdrop.screamed.shallower, SU389452, 51.205382, -1.443376

Ladies Walk Meadows are a new edition to the Reserves we carry work out on. It is the only site we work on with no nearby water.

The walk itself was planted with 121 trees in 1863 to commemorate the wedding of The Prince of Wales to Princess Alexander.The walk also has an Iron Bridge crossing the road which was built by Tasker & Fowler in 1851, which had their Iron Foundary neary in Anna Valley.

The meadows are made up of remanent Chalk meadows and still contain many wildflowers like cowslips, field scabious, orchids and salad burnet. They are also home to Slow Worms and Common Lizards.

So far 3 of the meadows have been aquired to manage for wildlife.These are grazed by cattle, and most of the practical work so far has been scrub removal to save the remaining wildflowers. A lot of the trees along the walk have become rather old and decayed now and gaps have appeared in the hedgerow. TARCA and Andover Trees United have been replacing this hedgerow along the field boundary year by year with a native mix of hedging and standard trees.

We meet in the parking bays adjacent to the road to the Hedge End Road playing field. The location information for the parking is SU370449, ///sweat.dairy.sofa​. 

Situated within Picket Piece, Andover, Ox Drove Meadow is a north facing chalk grassland positioned on a slight incline. This land was given to the council to manage as a public green space as part of the Picket Piece development and for conservation purposes. Previously agricultural land, it is surrounded by a scrubby hedge, a known home to Hazel Dormice.

There is no parking at the site so we park in the car park for Picket Piece Sports Ground, SU393470, ///answers.suiting.wisdom
 

Rooksbury Mill Lakes were created by the extraction of gravel used during the construction of the A303 Andover bypass. Since it’s creation it was a trout farm before it became a nature reserve. It has been managed by Test Valley Borough Council Since 2001.

The site has also been designated as a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC)

The site consists of 2 Lakes and a newly created orchard providing habitats for many dragonflies, damselflies and species of Bat. It is also home to Brown Trout, Watervoles, numerous water fowl such as Water Rail and flora like Starwort, Watercress and Clustered Bellflower

We meet in the car park then walk to where we will be working.

Swattons Field,Charlton is a recently acquired area. It is found to the west of Chalrton Lakes Sports Ground. It consists of two meadows split in two by a colvert. The area was waste land put aside for dog walkers, but is now being managed for wildlife.

It is hoped that remanent chalk grassland will establishby removing a lot of the scrub. Butterflies, toads and cardinal beetles have been found on site so far, suggesting that in the future this could be a very rewarding site.

There is no parking at the site so please park in the car park near the BMX track: SU341468, ///spun.sticky.huts.

Do not park in the part of the car park nearest the BMX track as this will be locked.