Cothill Fen, 23rd July 2016

By Andrew -
A trip to Cothill Fen for a session on one of the hottest days of the year!  Even as we assembled in the car park opposite the Merry Miller pub, it was obvious that the day would be rather a scorcher. No matter, we carried our tools down to the fen and awaited instruction from site supervisor Judy Webb, on the morning's tasks.  Alongside our regulars, we were joined by a new member, Adrian.

The main objective this time was to rake up some of the recently cut reeds on the fen and stack them into piles. There was also some cutting back of vegetation encroaching onto the periphery of the fen, such as willow, alder and bracken. 

The ground was soggy and the sun was beating down with no shade for the most part, thus we worked at a steady pace, ensuring that we remained well hydrated!

There was evidence of high nitrates in the water as indicated by duckweed - not good for this fragile habitat or for the rare flora and fauna that it supports. Therefore we attempted to re-route some of the drainage channels that run through the site by careful positioning of the reed piles. However, a more permanent solution will require investigating.  

Fortunately in some areas of the fen, the wildlife appeared to be thriving.  Judy carried out some survey work and identified various species including the carnivorous plant, bladderwort, some dragonfly nymphs and soldier flies.

The refreshment break provided us with a good opportunity to cool off and Sally had provided some cake in honour of session leader Margaret's birthday next week!

We continued work and finished our raking task, careful to avoid the deep patches of water around the site. Unfortunately, I was not quite careful enough and managed to plunge my foot into one of the dampest areas - in and over my wellies! 

We left Judy to continue her survey work at the 12:30pm end of session and we much relieved to finish, get home and have the chance to relax!
-Andrew



A hot and sunny start!
Looking across the fen
Margaret and Judy provide instruction
Off to work...
The raking gets started
One of the reed piles
Robert tackles some alder growth
Mid reed-raking
Hemp Agrimony
The edge of the fen
Back for refreshments!
The break
Bladderwort
A dragonfly nymph
The fen at the end of the session


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Pinkhill Meadow Nature Reserve, Farmoor Reservoir, 16th March 2019

By Andrew -
Image
Another week, another new site for the Abingdon Green Gym! We met at the car park at Farmoor Reservoir, a healthy turn out of 17 of us, including French father Sebastien, and his eleven-year old son, Maelo, who was joining us for a school project. The session was led by James under the instruction of Hanna Jenkins, the warden of Pinkhill Meadow Nature Reserve, so called because it is right on the banks of the River Thames, just near Pinkhill Lock. It was another blustery day. Will this crazy wind ever let up? We followed Hanna in convoy round the edge of the reservoir, which was choppy to say the least, and parked up on the other side where it was thankfully a little calmer, the high banks of the reservoir providing some shelter. Equipped with our tools, gloves and goggles, we made our way onto the spot on the nature reserve where we were to do our work. Hanna told us that the reserve had been formed in 1991, but some aspects had been neglected over the last ten years. The aim...
Read more

Kennington Memorial Field, 29th October 2016

By Andrew -
We have been working at Kennington Memorial Field for a number of years now, clearing scrub from the slopes so that the valley remains an area of grassland and wild flowers. This time Rachel from Oxford Preservation Trust was in charge and led us down to the lower end of the field, where we were to cut back the trees and bushes by several metres and burn the scrub on a bonfire. We were joined by some families with children of varying ages, the youngest only three, who had answered a local appeal for volunteers. We set to work and soon we had a bonfire going. Even the children who were too young to use loppers and saws joined in, carrying branches to the bonfire pile. Despite the drizzly weather they all worked cheerfully. At tea break time we enjoyed some delicious snacks that Rachel had brought and a tin of chocolates supplied by Michele. We found two old birds' nests in the course of the morning and cutting back the scrub revealed a log pile with a rabbit hole under...
Read more

Jarn Mound and Wild Garden, Boars Hill, 12th November 2016

By Andrew -
Image
Four weeks after our last session with the Oxford Preservation Trust at Boars Hill, we returned, albeit at Jarn Mound this time rather than the Elizabeth Daryush Garden; which had been our venue in October. We again met with  Rachel Sanderson of the trust, who along with our leader of the day, James, outlined the tasks for the morning.  Primarily, we were to clear the mound itself of scrub and tree saplings that had taken root there, with the intention of restoring it to its original state.  There were also some flatter areas of the garden that required clearing, for the less intrepid among us. Unfortunately, the day had begun a little on the inclement side.  Indeed as we arrived, the rain fell persisently, making many of us wonder if the session would go ahead at all!  But of course, the Green Gymmers are renowned for working whatever the weather, and the damp conditions did not deter us. A couple of problems were immediately evident due to the rain...
Read more