Naturefund, together with HGON have purchased 297 square meters of land next to the river Sulzbach in Frankfurt - Sossenheim with the intention of converting the land into a small flood plain.

A small flood plain in the middle of a big city

The land that Naturefund, together with HGON has bought is situated in a district of Frankfurt am Main next to the river Sulzbach. With a little luck and the cooperation from some neighbours a small meadow will grow here.

Meadows consist of small groves that flank a body of water, for example willow groves, rowan berry bushes, black elder, willow and ash trees. Around ten percent of Germany was once covered with natural meadows and riparian forests, today this is only two percent.

Eighty percent of all riparian forests have been drained

Two thirds of all German plant communities occur in riparian forests. However, during the last centuries around eighty percent of the riparian forests in Germany have been cleared and drained.

Despite these profound changes the existing meadows are still important spaces for the survival of endangered species and for migratory animals such as birds, bats and roaming insects that use these areas as resting places on their travels.

297 square meters of land

The 297 square meters of land is about 50 meters long and almost six meters wide and is situated along a narrow tarmac path. To the north-west and south-east of the land there are extensively cultivated areas with old high-stemmed fruit trees.

These are predominantly apple, pear, cherry and plum trees, partially surrounded by blackberry and elderberry bushes. To the north-east of the land, the river Sulzbach flows for a distance of around 16 meters, and the south-west borders the city limits of Sossenheim.

Basic data

Location

Frankfurt am Main, Hesse;

Size

297 square meters;

Fauna

Blackcap, Great Tit, Sand Lizard;

Flora

Willow, Hazelnut, Lilium;

Features

The 297 square meters of land is about 50 meters long and almost six meters wide and is situated along a narrow tarmac path. To the north-west and south-east of the land there are extensively cultivated areas with old high-stemmed fruit trees. These are predominantly apple, pear, cherry and plum trees, partially surrounded by blackberry and elderberry bushes.

History

In the winter of 2006, Naturefund together with HGON wanted to buy, and protect an oak forest near Frankfurt am Main. This little oak forest was in the middle of a densely populated region and directly on the border of the Enkheimer Ried nature reserve, which lies on the former course of the river Main.

Despite having consent to buy the land from the owner, who we know, it emerged in the summer 2010 that there were other land owners in the area, and without their approval the purchase would not come into effect.

After we tried in vain to track down the other land owner, at the beginning of 2011 we decided to look for a new piece of land relatively close by which we could also buy and protect for nature.

With the purchase of the plot in Sossenheim near the river Sulzbach we had now found a similar sized piece of land. The 870 Euros in donations collected for the oak forest will now be used for the purchase and renaturation of the land on the river Sulzbach which is almost 300 square metres in size.

Partner

The Hessian Society for Ornithology and Nature Conservation (HGON) will become the owners of the land. They will implement the renaturation of the land as well as providing care for it in the long term.

Management concept

The future layout will retain a section of mesh wire fence which now surrounds the whole land but only along the area of the path to prevent the area from being used by people walking their dogs. The fence on the south eastern border of the land will be completely removed in order to allow easier access for a variety of animal life to the banks of the river Sulzbachs.