Work Party - Sunday 6th September 2020

 

A beautiful morning in the woodland, and feeling a bit autumnal. Several degrees warmer at the top of the woodland where we installed a new owl box. Donated by a supporter and restored by Richard, who chose an ancient oak tree with a good  view over the field. 

That's the tree as a few little branches were trimmed off and the view over the field.

The  box was hauled up the tree with a rope and a bit of muscle, and put into position on a fixing point previously attached to the tree.  Then the front was put back on.

Meanwhile in the woodland we strimmed and raked a patch of long vegetation, and did some general trimming but the aim never is to have a tidy woodland. 

We also picked, and enjoyed eating the sweet yellow plums.

During the week, the village book group used the woodland glade to have a meeting. 

Work Party - Sunday 2nd August 2020

It was a perfect summer morning, nice and warm and sunny with a gentle breeze and pleasantly cool under the leaf canopy. 

There were quite a few of us and we got lots done, but we were so busy that I didn't take many photos. 

A small amount of vegetation was cleared was cleared by strimming around the buckthorn just to stop the competition.

The rest of the firewood was moved to storage and we found some more felled trees in the middle, visible now that the nettles have died back so they were tidied up too

The middle ditch was cleared of vegetation, ready for when it does rain properly again. Our ditch is fed by field drains which means that when it rains, the water gets absorbed by the soil first, then the excess reaches the drains and eventually the woodland so it will take a while.

Plums ripening on the tree

The honeysuckle was tied on to the ropes to try and make a bower over the table area next to the glade. A pigeon kept her eye on us.

Guelder rose berries

I need to make an apology for miss naming the bird which fledged from the nest box last month. They were spotted flycatchers and not pied wagtails as stated. Just me not concentrating.

Usual view of the main path get a bit of late summer colour now.

 

Sunday July 5th 2020 - Work Party

It's been a while, March was the last work party, because of lockdown, so it was good to get back in the woodland and do some work. Especially good to see everyone too. 

We cut and raked the grass from the spring meadow in the plum tree bed and put it on the compost heap at the top.

The vegetation was cleared around the fruit bushes which have done very well this year. 

Ripe gooseberries.

With help from Richard G and his quad bike, we were able to move some huge logs to make additional seating in the glade and the rest of the wood nearer to the entrance to be collected for firewood.

We also moved an owl box, restored by Richard B, and surveyed where it is going to go at a later date.

Other jobs completed were trimming the long vegetation on the path edges and planting some primroses.

While we have  been away, the wildlife has been busy. 

The green woodpecker has been finding  the insects in a rotten log in the glade and some pied wagtails successfully reared a nest of chicks in the top of the bug hotel.

June 2020

Still no work party this month although restrictions are easing now so we should be ok for July. The paths are being kept mown and the rest of the woodland is just green.

Dogwood flowers

Potential redcurrants

May 2020

Quince flowers

May was all about the cow parsley and frout tree blossom.

April 2020 - No work party!

Early April

There hasn't been a work party this April because we are all in lockdown due to the Covid19 pandemic. But, the woodland has continued to grow into it's spring glory, slightly shaggy round the edges with the paths kept mown by a close by volunteer.

The cherry blossom has been particularly good this year.

April has so far been mostly dry and sunny and getting steadily warmer. The woodland has been a popular place to take daily exercise. To add a bit of interest, I put up a bear hunt trail in the woodland.

The sunny weather has also meant lots of butterflies.

Speckled wood 

The watercourses have all dried up now and the vegetation is growing, filling in the spaces where the trees were felled.

Speedwell

Garlic mustard or jack-by-the-hedge

The one small patch of English bluebells

Cowslip

Will this be the year we get some redcurrants?

Apple blossom

We don't know when we will be able to meet for a work party but it is looking after itself pretty well at the moment.

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Work Party -Sunday 1st March

Primroses

The woodland was still really wet underfoot and the forecast wasn't great but there was a lot of wood to be moved so we got stuck in.

The timber and brash had been left in piles by the tree surgeons so we had a busy morning moving the tops on to the existing brash line and stacking the logs into piles.

 It was good to get the verge clear again and with several of us, not such a big job as I had first thought.

 We found another leaning tree, obviously uprooted in the storms since the tree surgeon came in early February. He has since been to take this one down too.

Wild daffodils

There is still a bit more to clear up next time.