Abingdon Green Gym Blog

We celebrated leap year day with one of our biannual visits to Kennington Memorial Field. The area had been battered by Storm Jorge on Friday night, though thankfully the high winds and torrential rain had eased by the time that we gathered by the sports pavilion at the top of Playfield Lane. Lindsay from OPT was present to greet and instruct us as usual, with the main task being to continue our work cutting back the scrub from the edges of the field. There was also a large recently-fallen tree to be chopped up and made safe by the top gate, thus we divided into two groups and got started. It was another chilly morning, yet twenty or so of us Green Gymmers had turned up, with three hardy souls even travelling to site by bicycle! It was with some dismay then that Lindsay announced that we wouldn't be having our usual bonfire on this occasion. A mild shockwave rippled through the group as no-one could remember a visit here in the past without one. We would have to work hard to k...

Our new programme for Spring 2020 has just been published, which commences with a session at Abbey Fishponds next week.  See below or click  HERE  for a pdf version (opens in new window):

Today’s session was held at Farmoor Reservoir – our third visit to this site, comprising a nature reserve and which borders the river Thames and surrounds. It was a blustery day as we arrived in the car park, but thankfully the rain which had been falling earlier that morning had stopped. Sixteen of us turned up and we were greeted by Hanna in her ‘gator’. After signing the Health & Safety form, we discussed whether we wanted to go for the planned task of reed cutting – albeit the nature reserve was under quite a few inches of water so we would get wet – or for a dryer task. We chose to stay dry! As usual at this site, we shared cars and followed Hanna across to the other side of water along the concrete causeway.  We parked up in one of the anglers’ parking spots and got the tools ready. Really, there was one main task: that of cutting back years’ worth of growth along the fence that separates the reservoir from the Thames. Thick brambles, blackthorn, hawthorn, elde...

It was not so sunny at Sunningwell for our session this morning. With Storm Dennis threatening, we gathered in the car park, fourteen or so of us, for the various tasks we’d be carrying out throughout the village. The session was led by Eleanor, with Bob Evans coordinating. As well as the green gymmers we were joined by some locals. There were three main areas for us to work at today: Norm and Sylfest donned the waders, ready to tackle the duckweed in the pond. Wheelbarrows full of stuff were walked up the road from the pond to a compost heap at the edge of the green. Then some of us set to tackling the brambles and ivy around the church yard, and generally tidying up fallen branches. The rest of us headed onto the green, a large 10 acre site, to mark out areas for planting wildflowers using canes and tape. It was quite exposed on the green, and the wind made it tricky but once we had marked out some areas we then planted some cowslips from pots and lots of seeds which had been...

There were 14 of us for today’s session led by Margaret at the EDMG up on Boar’s Hill. Lindsay of OPT was unable to make the session so had sent through comprehensive instructions, including a map of what was to be done where, through to Margaret. After our briefing, we picked up tools and headed to our usual place under the sweet chestnut tree by the pond to set up base camp. We chose from the various tasks and spread out over the site. At the top end, between the fence and the road we were to cut back over-hanging branches and pile them into a dead hedge along the side of the ditch. There were a number of places around the field where brambles needed to be cut back, and in addition plenty of fallen branches that needed tidying into habitat piles which had already been formed. Margaret commented on the irony of doing this job today of all days when gale force winds are forecast for tomorrow! By break time we had made good progress and a weak sun was trying very hard to show its ...