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The Marshes is a 2.2-hectare (5.4 acres) Local Nature Reserve
Statutory designation allowing principal local authorities to protect areas containing wildlife or geological features of particular local interest. south of Swallowfield in Berkshire. It is owned and managed by Swallowfield Parish Council.[1]
The partly wooded and partly marshland site was a gravel pit in the late 19th century, and was subsequently rented for grazing horses. Between 2001 and 2004 the parish council transformed it into a wetland area with the help of volunteers, creating two ponds, planting 1,500 native trees and shrubs, and creating a wildlife haven.[2]
