Tewkesbury Ham

Abstract

Tewkesbury Ham, one of the gems of this market town, is a 72-ha reserve bounded by the Severn, Avon, and Mill Avon rivers. The ham, a Saxon term for a water meadow, is a traditionally managed and largely unimproved grassland with alder, hawthorn, and willow scrub and the occasional larger oak growing around the perimeter. A hay crop is harvested at the end of June and then the ham is grazed by sheep. The grazing rights are auctioned each year and the proceeds given to the Tewkesbury Commoners in lieu of their ancient rights to graze their own animals. This low-impact management helps preserve the botanical character of the ham and encourages its use by birds. The ham regularly floods in winter which serves to protect the town from damage and maintain the meadow’s unimproved condition. The ham became an island when monks dug the Mill Avon about a 1,000 years ago to provide a water source to power Abbey Mill and can be accessed either by a bridge from Back of Avon or across the weir at Abbey Mill.