Old Manor Stables, Letcombe Bassett, Saturday 1st July 2023
this weeks blog was written by Eleanor D This was our second visit to Old Manor Stables in Letcombe Bassett. Our task was to pull up ragwort, which is poisonous to horses. In its fresh form they avoid it but risk eating it when it is withered and dry. This time we were asked to park further up the hill, which meant negotiating a steep, single track, much potholed road. We were almost at the top of the Ridgeway and from that vantage point, we had a magnificent view over Oxfordshire. The field we were working in was a steep, sloping valley with two grey horses in it. We were surprised to find that much of the ragwort was not in flower and we had to look out for the small rosettes of leaves and dig them out with the specialised digging tools. The weather was mostly cloudy with only occasional, sunny intervals and we could see the rain moving along the far horizon but fortunately, apart from a few minutes drizzle, it missed us. At tea break time, we climbed wearily b...