Conservation work with sheep and cattle

Conservation work with sheep and cattle in great surroundings and sightseeing in the big city! Both of these can be experienced during this camp on the outskirts of the metropolis of Hamburg. You will be working in the Hoeltigbaum nature reserve, a former training ground. A varied mosaic of different habitats has developed on the nature reserve since the last Ice Age. As a result, different successional stages of open soils, grass or mule corridors, and even some shrubs, can be found here, along with many rare and endangered animal and plant species. Where there used to be tanks, there is now vast, savannah-like grassland. Today there are sheep herds, goats and Galloway cattle in the area grazing all year round. Through this grazing, the areas are kept open, bushes are prevented from overgrowing and the biodiversity is preserved. You will support the animal "lawnmowers" at work and remove foreign plants such as bracken, lupins, Jacob's ragwort or small birch trees in order to prepare the ground for the underlying and displaced heather. Through this action you will be making an important contribution to nature conservation work, since using heavy equipment for the same tasks would destroy the heath. The work will take place on the pastures in the nature reserve. If you are lucky, you will see the cattle and sheep at work too. In addition to the practical work, you will learn a lot from the “Haus der Wilden Weiden“ employees: about nature and environmental protection in general, and the nature conservation concept of a semi-open pasture landscape in particular. You will also learn a lot about the local flora and fauna, about year-round grazing as well as cattle and sheep farming in the field of landscape maintenance. More information (unfortunately only in German) about the Hoeltigbaum nature reserve and the “Haus der Wilden Weiden“ can be found here: www.hoeltigbaum.de