Kennington Memorial Field, 27th February 2016
It was our annual visit to Kennington Memorial Field for this week's session. The meeting place was the car park for the playing field. We arrived just before the Saturday morning kids football teams who use the pitches adjacent to the work site here. We were met by a couple of local volunteers, who showed us what needed to be done. Namely, to cut back the encroachment of blackthorn and brambles with the idea of encouraging the grass to grow for the summer-grazing cattle. It is the intention that the animals will keep the bushes from returning by nibbling away at any new shoots that may emerge. We set about the task with loppers to tackle the thick and tough shoots, wearing thorn-proof gloves and eye protection. Otherwise, dragging out the long strands of brambles and needle-sharp spikes on the thorn stems could inflict a painful reminder of our visit! Once the cut stems had been piled up, it was a question of moving these piles gingerl...