Showground Meadow, Callow Hill

Also within

Worcestershire County

Condition (Natural England)

Habitats

Hedgerow scrub

Geology & landscape

Geological Period: Carboniferous

Description

Description Showground Meadow, Callow Hill is situated in north Worcestershire, within a dispersed area of small holding settlements to the south of the Wyre Forest. The site overlies the Upper Carboniferous Coal Measures which give rise to neutral to acidic soils. The meadow forms the northern slope of a larger field unit which is used for various recreational activities. The special interest of the site is the vegetation which demonstrates a transition between the heath grass Danthonia decumbens sub community of the mesotrophic neutral grassland type characterised by common knapweed Centaurea nigra and crested dog’s tail Cynosurus cristatus and the acidic sheep’s fescue Festuca ovina – common bent Agrostis capillaris – heath bedstraw Galium saxatile grassland type. The base of the slope is more characteristic of neutral grassland, merging into free draining acidic grassland at the top. Sites supporting this transition have become increasingly rare and Showground Meadow is one of the most representative examples of this transitional grassland type in Worcestershire. The most frequent grass species are common bent Agrostis capillaris, sweet vernal grass Anthoxanthum odoratum, red fescue Festuca rubra and yellow oat grass Trisetum flavescens, with heath grass also present. Herbs found in the sward include yarrow Achillea millefolium, tufted vetch Vicia cracca, common knapweed, yellow rattle Rhinanthus minor, mouse ear hawkweed Pilosella officinarum, meadow buttercup Ranunculus acris, common bird’s foot trefoil Lotus corniculatus and cat’s ear Hypochaeris radicata. Indicators of acidic grassland include species such as squirrel tail fescue Vulpia bromoides, wild thyme Thymus praecox, wood sage Teucrium scorodonia and heath speedwell Veronica officinalis. The abundance in this open site of bitter vetch Lathyrus montanus, more usually associated with woodlands, suggests an ancient association with the nearby Wyre Forest. A notable feature of the sward is the abundance of the locally uncommon dyer’s greenweed Genista tinctoria. The meadow is only physically bounded on one side, to the north, where a species rich hedge occurs with Crataegus monogyna, hazel Corylus avellana and holly Ilex aquifolium.

Species mentioned

Insects to look out for

These moths, butterflies and beetles are known to feed on plants recorded at this site, and carry a notable UK conservation status — but a host-plant being present doesn't mean the insect has actually been recorded here. Treat this as "worth watching for," not a confirmed sighting.

Host-plant data: Cook et al. (2025), Traits data for the butterflies and macro-moths of Great Britain and Ireland, 2024, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology / Butterfly Conservation; and Padovani et al. (2020), Database of Insects and their Food Plants (DBIF), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (both Open Government Licence). Contains data supplied by UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology.

Plant communities