Llandigige Fawr

Llandigige Fawr is a farm a few mile outside St. David’s, in Pembrokeshire. Potatoes and barley are grown on the farm and animals are reared for beef.

The farm is near the coast and the sea can be seen from some points.  The surrounding landscape is very flat but there are a couple of small hills nearby, including the one shown in the watercolour below.

Peregrines and ravens nest in the area and often fly over the farm. Red kites have also been seen. Along the sides of the single-track road which passes through the farm there are banks and rather thin hedges typical of the area. The lane itself is rich in plant species such as yellow rattle, purple loosestrife, pale toadflax, hemp agrimony, betony and many others.

There is a lot of moorland in the area and the boundary of the farm meets with  Tretio Moor, a S.S.S.I. The moor is a good place to watch for barn owls and merlins and for finding plants such as southern marsh orchid.

Woodland isn’t common in the area, except in sheltered places, but there are deciduous trees - mostly sycamores and ash - around the farmhouse and yard and there are plantations of coniferous trees on the farm.

Two irrigation ponds and other areas of marsh and standing water provide habitats for water-birds, invertebrates and bog plants such as yellow flag and marsh pennywort. A little egret has been seen on a pond belonging to a neighbouring farm.

Stone buildings and walls provide habitats for invertebrates, lichens and ferns. One species which grows on the walls and is typical of the area is wall pennywort. There are numerous bats on suitable evenings but many of these use the roof-space in one of the newer buildings in preference to the old ones.

Badgers and foxes are seen regularly.

Moth list for Llandigige.