Boundary House Fen, Frilford Heath Golf Course SSSI - Saturday, 27 January 2024

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Blog by Helen and Henry, photos by Helen, Henry, Margaret and Sally

It was a chilly but dry morning when a group of 14 Green Gymmers arrived at the greenkeepers’ compound at Frilford Heath Golf Course, led by Sally. We headed off, with tools in hand, to work on Boundary House Fen at the edge of the golf course where our main tasks were to be scything, raking and cutting back brambles.
 
We met Rod D’Ayala at the Fen who gave us details of the work to be done. The five scythers in the group headed off to the far side of the stream where there was plenty of reed, rushes and sedges to be cut and cleared to heaps and bunds which form part of the fen management system.  A breach was apparent at the perimeter where deer had likely come through, causing a fast stream of water to enter the fen from the main spring.  Several people were tasked with moving old cut material to compact onto the breached zone. After a number of loads were delivered to the affected area, the flow was successfully stemmed!

There were also a couple of zones where brambles had started to encroach into the fen area.  A few Green Gymmers, armed with loppers and saws, set to work on cutting these back and forming a hedge.  Some of the brambles were quite old and thick in places!

For break time, Sally had kindly brought some cakes in honour of Lesley and Barbara’s birthdays.  We had all definitely worked up an appetite!

After break, we carried on with our tasks and by the end of the morning we had achieved a lot. The work of Green Gym is rarely ever ‘done’ and Boundary House Fen will still have plenty of work for the next session. But for today, we could set off back to our cars in the knowledge that we had played a part in maintaining and improving this very rare habitat.

Helen and Henry

Making our way across the golf course to the fen

How we'd left the fen at our last session with lots of little heaps of cut material to be moved

Henry and Susan proffer a load of cut material from our last visit for Rod to use to block the leak at the spring head

Lesley and Ursula chopping back the bramble which, if left unchecked, will encroach onto the fen

Henry and Graham having heaps of fun

A hive of activity

Susan and Graham raking up the arisings from our last session for use by Rod to block the leak at the spring head

James having a lopper, lopper fun!

Rosie and Roger enjoying scything in the wintry sunshine

Jim scything

Using the cut arisings from the last session to block the stream, which is acting as a ditch, to slow the flow of the water and help re-wet the fen

Pixie-cup lichen on a rotting log (we think it is Cladonia pyxidata)

Everyone in full swing

The birthday girls opening their cards at break time

Lots of progress made cutting back the brambles

Rake's progress

Turkey tail fungus on an old tree stump and one of the bunds for retaining water on the fen

Helen showing off our handiwork

The fen in all its glory


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