England
Written by: Julian Sansom
2026
Worplesdon has an extensive network of ditches, traditionally managed mainly for drainage and play. In 2025, the Club asked Surrey Wildlife Trust to survey the network and assess the ecological, drainage and golfing value of each section. The survey identified several important habitats. Ditches beside the 5th are rich in sphagnum mosses and wetland vegetation. The ditch crossing the 13th and running along the 14th was described as “irreplaceable habitat”. On the 15th, the survey recorded bog pimpernel and a silver-studded blue butterfly.
This has changed how the ditches are managed. In the most ecologically valuable areas, the greenkeeping team now deliberately does less. Vegetation is left largely undisturbed, rather than routinely cleared, while other ditches receive selective or rotational work where drainage, light or play require it. Around the 9th and 10th ponds, established vegetation also slows water and filters silt and nutrients. Each ditch is now managed for what it does and the habitat it supports, rather than simply being treated as a drainage channel.
