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can you help me find an easy way to turn waterlogged waste land into pleasant area to look at

gneale5705gneale5705 Posts: 4
in Wildlife gardening
I've got tiny garden with fence separating it from waterlogged scrubland. Trees have recently been hacked back by the owner (a company)so they didn't fall on my house and the whole area looks messy with brambles & branches.  As this land isn't used Im thinking of how I can clean it up & enjoy looking at it.  I'm thinking of taking my fence down. How should i get rid of the brambles & branches? should i try planting some ferns. Nobody is going to care about this land or indeed see it except for me.  I have lots of wildlife there which keeps me entertained.
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  • pansyfacepansyface PEAK DISTRICT DerbyshirePosts: 21,207
    edited March 2020
    Hello,
    Well, if it’s full of wildlife that entertains you, I think you should leave it be, at least until the nesting season is over. As I’m sure you have noticed, the birds are gathering nesting material now and frogs and toads are coming out of hibernation, as are earth nesting bumblebees.

    Any “improvements” you make now will be destroying the very things that please you.

    To quote a bit of Gerard Manley Hopkins
    Apophthegm -  a big word for a small thought.
  • gneale5705gneale5705 Posts: 4
    thanks - what about later on in the year?
  • pansyfacepansyface PEAK DISTRICT DerbyshirePosts: 21,207
    Will it not still be a home to all the wildlife?
    Apophthegm -  a big word for a small thought.
  • gneale5705gneale5705 Posts: 4
    yes so are you saying do nothing?
  • pansyfacepansyface PEAK DISTRICT DerbyshirePosts: 21,207
    edited March 2020
    Yes.

    Also, it’s not your land. It may look dreadful but that doesn’t give you the right to make it look better.

    Rather than take down your fence, I’d extend the screen even higher with the use of pergola or trellis.
    Apophthegm -  a big word for a small thought.
  • madpenguinmadpenguin Isle of WightPosts: 2,448
    Can you give us a photo so we can see what you see?
    “Every day is ordinary, until it isn't.” - Bernard Cornwell-Death of Kings
  • PosyPosy Isle of Wight.Posts: 3,601
    Even if it is not in use, you should get permission before you do anything. Also, there may be plans to drain and build, or develop as a wildlife area or it may soak up water that could otherwise cause flooding - all sorts of things you may not have thought of. If you ask first, you won't get any unpleasant surprises.
  • cornellycornelly Posts: 968
    If you enclose the area and keep it for 20 years without any parties objecting it will be yours through prescriptive rights, so I would hop over and start clearing the brambles etc.
  • steephillsteephill Posts: 2,618
    https://www.gov.uk/squatting-law/squatters-rights-to-property  Always best to check with the authorities before assuming anything. As the land has recently been cleared I suspect the owners would notice any intrusion.
  • gneale5705gneale5705 Posts: 4
    Thank you every one for your comments. I contacted the corporation who own the land as I was afraid the branches from the trees were going to come crashing through my roof in all the bad weather we recently had. They obviously didn’t want that to happen so came & hacked them down. Now I have lots of light coming into my tiny garden👍🏼👍🏼But the area looks messy. They aren’t going to come back for another 20 years or when I request them to is my guess as the ground is no use to anyone.
    As I say thanks for all your thoughts on this 😊happy weekend 🤪
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