Stunning but windswept areas like this are home to Ireland's last remaining Corncrakes. Early cover is at a premium so some landowners work with us to create beds of cover such as nettles beds.

This spent mushroom compost will be spread >10cm thick and sown with rhizomes. 1/3

The prepared strip should be well rotated first to kill of weeds- and for nettles, weeds are grass which choke the nettles. The depth of compost is very important- the deeper the better. 2/3

The nettles provide a lush matrix of cover which gives the birds shelter, security, food (nettles are amazing invertebrate areas) and a nesting site early in the summer.

High quality early cover is paramount in corncrake conservation.

Nettles are not the only option (though they work wonderful). The birds will use areas dominated with flag iris, umbellifers (Common Hogweed or Cow Parsley) and even areas sown with mixes such as kale and fodder radish. The key is canopy and penetrable under story vegetation.