Appendix - Peak District National Park Authority

8.0 GREEN AND OTHER NATURALLANDSCAPE FEATURES8.1 The distinctive character of Hathersage isnot solely de rived from bu ildings. Trees, hedges,gardens, enclosed fields and other green spacesmake an important contribution to the historic andaesthetic quality. Gene rally spe aking, trees a ndhedgerows are inte gral to rural ConservationAreas as they form enclosures, screen structuresand are part of the hi storic landscape. They alsohelp mai ntain ru ral character and p rovide aharmonious t ransition fro m open countryside t obuilt environment.8.2 The Authority’s Landscape Strategy an dAction Plan (LSAP 2009) identifies Hathersageas bei ng lo cated within the Derwe nt Valley.More specifically it stra ddles two l andscapecharacter type s; Va lley Far mlands with Villa gesand Slo pes and Vall eys with Woodland. Anextract from the LSAP m ap for Hathersage isshown below, the bright green section i s locatedin Valley Farmlan ds with Villages a nd Slope sand the dark green areas are lo cated in Slopesand Valleys with WoodlandP8.1 Extract from the LSAP Map showing theLandscape Category Boundaries relevant toHathersage8.3 The m ajority of the Conservation Areaalong Mai n Road b elongs to the ValleyFarmlands and Villages category. T he LSAPdescribes thi s a s ‘ settled pasto ral l andscape,often with a low-lying topography associated witha network of streams and damp hollows. This isan e nclosed land scape, with vie ws filteredthrough scat tered h edgerows a nd tree -linedstreams. G ritstone-built villages with outlyingfarms and dwellings are set within small tomedium fiel ds that are often b ound byhedgerows.’8.4 The LSAP states that ‘Mixed hedgesinclude hawthorn, blackthorn, hazel and holly asthe main species. Ash and Oak are the principaltree species, giving way to willow and alder inthe wetter areas whilst on drie r groun d bra ckenand Birch ca n be found’. Alder an d Wi llow canboth be found growing alongside Hood Brook, onMill Lane, but other species are also present.P8.2 Trees and ivy alongside Hood Brook, MillLane8.5 The area s a round St Michael’ s Rom anCatholic Chapel, Camp Green an d The Dale fallwithin th e Sl opes a nd V alleys with Woodlandlandscape category. The LSAP descri bes thisas ‘A pastoral landscape with interlocking blocksof anci ent a nd second ary woodl and. On th etops of stee per sl opes gritstone ed ges withboulder slo pes below are a promine nt featureand there are patches of semi-improved and acidgrasslands with bra cken o n stee per slo pes.’ Itgoes on to ide ntify the main tree species as Ashand Oa k an d states that , ‘There is o ften goodwoodland ground flora reflectin g continuouswoodland cover for hundreds of years’.8.6 Hathersage Conservation Area i s n ottypical of these landscape types, largely becausethe settleme nt expande d significantly durin g thenineteenth a nd twentieth centu ries. As aconsequence, Hathersa ge co ntains a highpercentage of non -native o rnamental tre es.Conifers are particularly common, an d some ofthe more-m ature spe cimens a re li kely to havebeen planted in the nineteenth century.8.7 Evergreen specimen planting is typical ofthe Victo rian taste. Sp ecies would have bee nchosen for t heir picturesque qualities. It isimportant to note that many varietie s of co niferwould have been newly introdu ced to thiscountry from about 1 840 o nwards. The y woul dhave be en con sidered both ex otic an dfashionable. Good examp les can b e f ound atBank Top, p articularly around Eastwood Hou seand Cottage and St Michael’s church.8.8 St Mic hael’s churchyard contains somegood specimens of matu re trees including Lime,Holly a nd Y ew, some of whi ch ap pear to bemarked on t he 1 880 O rdnance Surv ey map.One of the Hollies is a weeping variety and someof the Yews are clipped and shaped.39