A wildflower meadow, fringed with willow and oak, is Black Notley's millennium tribute to its most famous son, the 17th century naturalist John Ray, regarded in the scientific world as one of the founding fathers of natural history. SUSAN KING finds out more.

It is as if time has stood still on the John Ray Millennium Green.

A sea of yellow flowered hawkweed fills this corner of the Brain Valley, a scene almost untouched since John Ray walked these fields in search of the secrets of the natural world.

The green, one of 450 new village greens set up across the country to mark the millennium, was opened recently by television naturalist and author Roger Tabor.

The green, once arable land, will be encouraged to return to its natural state, Roger explained, providing a green space for villagers and visitors and a variety of habitats for flora and fauna.

The green is already home to a bewildering variety of wildlife, with over 100 plant species alone.

Gatekeeper

While ragwort and ramsons fill the grassland, the green is edged by the beautiful Guelder rose. Barns owls and green woodpeckers have been seen here, with butterflies including the Essex skipper, gatekeeper and meadow brown. Foxes also make their home here, with yellow neck mice, wood mice, bank and field voles.

The diversity of wildlife stands in tribute to the natural sciences John Ray helped create, for it was in his home village of Black Notley that Ray returned in the later half of his life to pursue his studies.

His three volume Historia Planterum is recognised as the great pioneering work of botany.

Last century

Roger said: "The green is perfectly sited, because John Ray lived on both sides of it."

The great man was born in a cottage, which is still standing in Baker's Lane, he would retire to Dewlands that sadly was lost in a fire at the turn of the last century.

His interest in the natural world was fired by his mother a herbalist, but the boy was soon singled out by local clergy who educated him for what would become a distinguished academic career at Cambridge.

A period of illness led John Ray to chronicle the natural history of the area around Cambridge, later, falling foul of 17th century religious turmoil, he retired to Black Notley.

Roger said: "Ray took the herbalists' understanding of plants and turned it into modern botany and that happened first of all here in Black Notley."

Other firsts included the coining of the word "petal" - before Ray the term was coloured leaves - the first eating of maple syrup on English soil and the first natural history of the Americas.

Once known as the "most travelled man in Europe," towards the end of his life ill-health kept John Ray in Black Notley. Helped by his wife Margaret and four daughters he worked tirelessly to record every living thing in the fields and woods around his home.

"John Ray would have known the fields around the village intimately," Roger said. "His research on how springs work was done at the little brook which runs along the edge of the green. His daughters brought him a purple emperor butterfly, the first to be recorded in Essex

Home village

"We know from his writing that hawkweed was in this meadow 300 years ago.

"There is round-leaved mint here too, very rare, which was discovered by John Ray at Faulkbourne.

"I think it is very probable that John Ray himself brought this plant to Black Notley.

"This could be a relic of John Ray's work, a direct contact with him."

Until the opening of the green, John Ray's remarkable life has gone almost unmarked in his home village.

Roger said: "We are trying with the green to recollect this international regarded man who is to botany what Darwin is to revolution."

"This is an incredible story, but in his own village John Ray was virtually forgotten until comparatively recently."

"Ray affected everybody in the scientific world but I think it came as quite a surprise to Black Notley that it had such a celebrity in its history."

"This green at Black Notley will have the village green atmosphere of 300 years ago,it will be a real oasis and I think that John Ray would have enjoyed it, a great thing for Black Notley and a wonderful inheritance for generations to come.

Buried inside

"Throughout his life John Ray remained modest about his achievements, even in death he didn't think highly enough of himself to be buried inside the church.

"I think he would have loved the green because grand monuments didn't impress him,'' he said.

"What mattered to him was a love and understanding of the natural world - to recreate a bit of that world is the best thing Black Notley could have done both for now and for the children of the future - John Ray would have loved it,'' he added.

Original book: Roger Tabor with the original book written by John Ray, the 17th century naturalist.

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