Abingdon Green Gym Blog

This was the our second session at Jarn Mound to continue with the restoration of the wild garden, originally laid-out in the 1920's and 30's. To show us what was needed to be done, Rachael from the Oxford Preservation Trust was on hand and outlined two main objectives.  The first of these was to lay gravel on parts of the path that had become very muddy, including an area at the entrance to the site.  The second objective was to clear willow which had invaded an area which was  once  a small lake or pond.   We split into two groups, with the pond clearing group having some extra help from some friends of Rachael.  The pond workers made good progress and collected six or seven drag bags of vegetation which were removed from site, ready to be collected later. The gravel laying was certainly a good physical workout, with six of us and three wheelbarrows.  The gravel was transported quite a distance - 200-300 metres from where it had been dumped, up...

Eleven Green Gymmers met opposite the Merry Miller pub for our session at Cothill Fen. We were joined by Judy Webb, who was in charge of the task, and Stephanie, an NNR  trainee.  This time we were not going on to the fen itself but cutting back scrub and small trees from the far end of the fen alongside the footpath. The weather was fine, though colder than the previous week but we soon warmed up as we set to work.  There was a lot of hawthorn, wild raspberry and hazel to be cut back. Judy is hoping that clearing the scrub from the edge of the fen will encourage wild flowers to grow. There were also some larger trees to be felled, so we had brought along hard hats for that task. We added the brash and smaller branches to the dead hedge we had made over two years ago. As we worked and during our break we heard a cuckoo, a green woodpecker and a warbler, though none of us could tell what kind by its call. By the end of the session we had cleared a lot and ...

Here are a few more photos from last Saturday's session at Withymead Nature Reserve, all taken by warden Keith Tomey: James digging out an old ramp Janet pulling up nettles by the fence Graham and Kate building a new ramp the finished ramp

At last! The sun was shining on the Green Gym team as they arrived at Withybush Nature Reserve at Goring. Eleanor Dangerfield was leading, and our tasks were set by the Wardens, Dorothy and Keith. who we were sorry to learn were moving on shortly to work in Cumbria. One of the first jobs was pulling out weeds from amongst the hedge-plants which Petra and Janet addressed with enthusiasm. Margaret collects suitable small branches to be used as markers for paths through the boggy parts of the site. Our coffee break was a real contrast to a lot of our recent experiences of having them standing up in the wind and rain. We managed to have a walk round the site. A notice at the gate warned about the toxicity of the algal bloom which can be seen on the fairly static water. In the background can be seen the beautiful and rare Lodden Lilies which are a feature of the Reserve. Everywhere young wild plants are making the...

We assembled at the Tesco end of the Ock Valley Walk for the final session of April.  The weather was, thankfully, dry and mild, and perhaps as a consequence, our turn-out was larger than usual! Twenty one of us made the effort, and we were pleased to welcome along Jessica for the first time, and also Kristina's son Giles who was down to visit. Margaret was leading on this occasion. As soon as we had transported our tools and other paraphernalia across the road to our usual encampment spot,  she outlined our tasks for the morning. This location is arguably not the most exciting on our programme, but we feel that we make a real difference in enhancing the environment here.  Thus, as usual, a litter-pick was the main priority, along with trimming back some tree branches encroaching upon the path and also some early Himalayan Balsam pulling! Since our last visit, the path itself from Tesco to the footbridge and beyond to the Tithe Farm estate had been tarmacked. ...