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Sunningwell Village Green and Pond   -   Saturday 15th November 2025

Blog by Eleanor, photos by Sally, Helen, Michele and Eleanor

We always enjoy going back to Sunningwell, and today fifteen of us assembled in the Village Hall car park for our briefing by Bob Evans, resident in charge of the project. The day was cloudy and slightly damp feeling, but fortunately the torrential downpours of the previous day had passed.

There were three main tasks: to clear the stream at the bottom of the field and create an area of open water, to clear weed from the village pond and barrow it across the road to the ditch alongside the Village Green, and to continue hedge laying at the top of the Green.

Briefing from Bob


Sally and Simon set off to do the hedge laying, as they know how to do it. Andy from the village was there in chest waders to clear the pond, and Philip gallantly volunteered to don Green Gym's thigh waders and help him. James, Dieuwke and I went with pitchforks and barrows to transport the cleared pond weed and the others went to start work on clearing the stream.

Before photo by the stream







 

Work around the stream, Bob, Helen, Henry







Margaret and Rosie clearing the stream




An unusual duck!




Working by the wall. Duck is still there.



Meanwhile, the hedge layers had found some trees and shrubs which were still not too big and they could use a billhook and hand saw.

Hawthorn before hedge laying




Lichen on hawthorn




Hawthorn after laying - partly cut through and bent over




Work continued on the pond. Andy and Philip raked off the pond weed and put it on the edge, ready to be carted off to the dumping site. The water didn't quite get up to the top of Philip's waders, though he did recommend that we bought chest waders for Green Gym.

Andy in the pond




Philip in the pond



The pond is not a static one. Water flows in from a spring higher up, then exits under the road to the stream the other side.

At 11a.m. it was time for break in Bob's garden, with tea, coffee and a lovely spread of sausages, sausage rolls, quiche and cake kindly provided by Andy's wife.

Teabreak time



Bob's dog, Gwen

Reluctantly, we went back to work, as there was still a lot to do. Endless barrow and drag sheet loads had to be transported to the dumping heap in the ditch.

Eleanor with a wheelbarrow full of pondweed




  
Barrows and drag sheets



It was time to stop people scything and dragging out pondweed so we could get it all moved to the heaps before the end of the session. We had achieved a lot and thank our Sunningwell hosts for making it an enjoyable morning.

After photo


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