Action of earthworms on flint burial – a return to Darwin’s estate

For thirty years, from the early 1840s, Charles Darwin documented the disappearance of flints in the grounds of Down House in Kent, at a location originally known as the “Stony Field”. This site (Great Pucklands Meadow - GPM) was visited in 2007 and an experiment set up in this ungrazed grassland. Locally-sourced flints (either large - 12 cm, or small – 5 cm dia.) were deposited at two densities within sixteen 1 m2 plots in a randomised factorial design. The area selected was distant from public access routes and remained unmown throughout the duration here reported. Fixed point photographs were taken at the outset to enable later photogrammetric analysis. After 6 years, the site was re-examined. The flints had generally been incorporated into the soil. Photographs were re-taken, proportion of buried flints recorded and measurements made of burial depth from a quarter of each plot. Results showed that large flints were more deeply incorporated than smaller (p=0.025), but more of the latter were below the soil surface. A controlled laboratory experiment was also conducted using Aporrectodea longa (the dominant earthworm species in GPM) to assess effects of casting in the absence of other biota. Results suggested that this species has a major influence on flint burial through surface casting. Combined with a long term, but small scale collection of A. longa casts from an area close to GPM, all results were consistent with those provided by Darwin and showed that rate of flint burial was within the range 0.21-0.96 cm y-1

In Darwin’s Garden: Temporality and Sense of Place

Chris Meigh-Andrews’ art practice involves moving image installations that aspire to create links between aspects of location, history, technology, landscape, ambient conditions and natural forces. Over recent years he has produced a number of digital video projections and site-specific installations that explore the relationship between iconic or historical photographic images, people or locations and contemporary views, perspectives and visualizations. His approach seeks to reproduce an exact framing and composition based on an historical photographic image and to explore ideas suggested by establishing relationships between the composition of the original and the present circumstances of that same view.Meigh-Andrews’ latest project is a site-specific, web-based installation in the grounds of Down House – the family home of naturalist Charles Darwin – in Kent, England. This project takes as its focus an old mulberry tree growing at back of the house, which serves to represent the relationship between the domestic life of the Darwin Family, the garden as a site for Charles Darwin’s careful and systematic observation of natural processes that he drew on in developing his theory of Natural Selection, and the slow but inevitable change in the cycle of life and the seasons. The work has been developed by the artist with the collaboration and assistance of Alan Summers (University of Chester) and Rowan Blaik (Head gardener, Down House for English Heritage)

Action of earthworms on stone burial – a return to Darwin’s estate

Charles Darwin famously documented the disappearance of stones in the grounds of Down House in Kent, over a period of decades at a location originally known as the “Stony Field”. This site (Great Pucklands’ Meadow - GPM) was visited in 2007 and an experiment was set up by laying locally-derived flints on the soil surface of this ungrazed grassland. The stones (either large or small of mean mass 1,100 and 250 g respectively) were arranged at high and low density (n= 50 or 25, and 100 or 50 respectively for large and small stones) within 1 m2 plots in a Latin square design. The area was distant from public access routes and went unmown throughout the duration here reported. Fixed point photographs were taken and location recorded at the outset. After 6 years, the site was revisited and examined. The stones had generally been incorporated into the soil. Photographs were re-taken and measurements made of depth of burial from a quadrant of each plot. A controlled laboratory experiment was also conducted over a period of 6 months using Aporrectodea longa (the dominant species shown to be present in GPM) to assess the amount of possible casting by this species in the absence of other biotic factors. Here a single flint was placed on the soil surface within a 2 litre vessel and 4 earthworms added. Flints in earthworm-free vessels were also monitored. A small scale collection of A. longa casts from a mown lawn area close to GPM was also conducted on a fortnightly basis over a period of 12 months. Results from these experiments are presented to show the action of earthworms on stone burial