The first ever wildlife survey of the Liverpool home where John Lennon grew up has revealed a garden teeming with nature.
National Trust ecologist Peter Brash, who carried out the survey, will be joined by naturalist Mike Dilger on tonight's The One Show (7pm, BBC One) as they try to discover what lurks in the garden of John Lennon's childhood home (also known as Mendips).
Peter Brash, National Trust ecologist, said: 'Gardens are really important places for nature with a host of species lurking in the borders and compost heaps. This wildlife survey at Mendips uncovered a garden which has been undisturbed for years with lots of nearby green spaces including Strawberry Fields, creating ideal corridors for wildlife.'
Moth traps, pitfalls to catch insects and beaters were used to survey the back garden where John Lennon would have played when growing up and penned lyrics to early Beatles tunes. Four species of beetle were found including the wasp beetle Clytus arietis, which mimics a wasp, and three species of ladybird (part of the beetle family), such as the two-spot Adalia bipunctata.
The L-shaped garden is dominated by an expanse of lawn with apple trees, a dead cherry tree (ideal for insects) redcurrant bushes and border plants such as honeysuckle and red campion. Wildflowers such as lesser trefoil and common cat’s ear were found in the lawn which contained springy turf moss, Rhytiadelphus squarrosus, a good indicator that the lawn could be good for fungi such as waxcaps.
There was plenty of activity from birds in the garden, which could be seen or heard, including wrens, swifts, goldfinch, swallows, housemartins and the dunnock. A common frog Rana temporaria was spotted in leaf litter and the star was a wood mouse Apodemus sylvaticus which popped up to feed on geranium seeds and the holes in the compost heap at the back of the garden suggest possible breeding.
Peter Brash, added:
'We can only speculate on the wildlife that would have occupied the garden in the 1950s when John Lennon lived with his aunt and uncle. But it’s clear from the lush green surroundings of the Woolton area of Liverpool that bird song and butterflies would have been an everyday part of his life.'
The National Trust biological survey team, which celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2009, is responsible for documenting species and habitats at National Trust properties. This information helps to inform the way that sites are managed to encourage wildlife. More than 90 per cent of National Trust land has now been surveyed.
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