Back in 2021, the Lancashire Wildlife Trust received funding from National Highways to restore, protect and manage areas of peatland situated near motorways across Greater Manchester. Since then, we have re-wetted peat, removed invasive vegetation, created new habitats and planted plenty of precious peatland and fen plant species.  

With the two projects now coming to an end, we would like to take you through the work that we carried out and the huge benefits it has had on these magical Manchester mosses. 

One project focused the restoration efforts on Red Moss, a peatland reserve on the doorstep of Bolton Wanderers’ football stadium in Horwich. Our other project covered multiple sites across the historic peat bog region of Chat Moss which included Little Woolden Moss, Cadishead Moss, Astley Moss and Cheshire Wildlife Trust's Holcroft Moss. 

Phase One – 2022/23 

The first stages of the projects were to prepare the peatlands for plant reintroduction and habitat creation. We started by improving the hydrology of designated areas by installing bunding, a type of peatland restoration technique that helps to naturally capture rainfall and retain water on a peatland, holding back both surface and below ground water movement. By restoring their naturally higher water table, this helps the spread of peatland plant life. 

Alongside the re-wetting of the peat soils, we also cleared unwanted scrub vegetation. These young trees would naturally be found on a bog, but in dry conditions it can dominate. They take up vital water from the ground, which supresses our peatland plants.  

Phase Two – 2023/24 

With the water now at a higher level, the following year we started reintroducing those precious peatland plants. Key bog species such as sphagnum moss and common cotton grass were planted together in the wettest areas, and in the drier areas, we planted bilberry, crowberry, cross-leaved heath, bog myrtle and common heather. This range of plants will massively boost the biodiversity in the area, helping the habitat establish itself and attract wildlife to the improved areas. 

On the Red Moss project, we also focused on improving 1.27 hectares of the fen habitat on the reserve, to increase species richness on Red Moss and neighbouring fen areas. We added four scrapes which will act as new bog pools and planted sphagnum and cotton grass around the edges which will attract dragonflies and damselfies. The aim is to improve the habitat around the pools for a specific endangered species called the white-faced darter, a specialist peat bog dragonfly that relies on sphagnum moss and cotton grass to survive.  

Phase Three – 2024/25 

In the final stages of the projects, we mulched and removed lots of purple moor grass, a species that can overwhelm areas of drier peatland. The grass outcompetes the peatland plants that should be found on a bog, so needed to be removed. As part of the project, we also cleared lots of non-native and invasive Himalayan balsam, which can get out of control if not managed correctly. 

Over 98 per cent of our lowland raised peat bogs have been destroyed in our region, so projects like these are incredibly important to enable us to restore and protect these vital habitats. We will continue to manage these habitats, and we are excited to see the work from these projects develop and grow.