Jaywick Marsh (EHER 48482)

A large area of grazing marsh with good survival of characteristic features including sea walls, counter walls, raised causeways, relict salt marsh, creeks, ditches and a scheduled decoy pond, which were formerly part of the much more extensive St Osyth marshes, linked to a series of medieval farms or wicks e.g. Cockett Wick, located on the marsh edge. A preserved timber trackway has been identified. The vegetation is high-quality, species-rich grazing marsh.

2014. Historic Grazing Marsh Project. Historic environment character: The marshland was reclaimed by the time of the Chapman and Andre map of 1777 <1>. The area is unimproved grassland with extensive lengths of curving former sea walls, straight water filled ditches and raised causeways across ditches. The sea walls and an occasional counter wall survive as earthworks and are the dominant historic landscape feature in the area, are likely to be medieval or post medieval in origin, and will retain evidence for date and construction. A scheduled post medieval duck decoy with surrounding vegetation is prominent on the marshes eastern side, which may contain waterlogged evidence for its construction and operation. Potential for deeply buried palaeoenvironmental deposits. The relict salt marsh surface is visible in many places with former creeks and rills showing in varying vegetation. Character of vegetation High quality species-rich grazing marsh. Dominated by Sea Couch Etyrigia atherica and False Oat-grass Arrhenatherum elatius, with Spiny Restharrow Ononis spinosa, Sea Clover Trifolium squamosum, Meadow Barley Hordeum secalinum, Sea Beet Beta vulgaris subsp. maritime and Bent Grass Agrostis spp frequent. Sheep’s sorrel Rumex acetosella, Narrow-leaved Bird’s-foottrefoil Lotus glaber, Yarrow Achillea millefolium and Lady’s bedstraw Galium verum also occur. Sea Club-rush Bolboschoenus maritimus and Common Reed Phragmites australis dominant in ditches with Dittander Lepidium latifolium and Water-cress Rorippia nasturtium-aquaticum also abundant. Small areas of Gorse Ulex europaeus and Bramble Rubus fruticosus scrub. Threats Threatened by drying out, scrub encroachment and land take for development. Shoreline Management Plan Could be subject to Managed Realignment from 2055. See <2>.