December 11, 2016 by Julian
Today was SACV’s last activity of 2016, and we were out at a new site for us: the Woodland Trust’s Spud Wood in Oughtrington, near Lymm. We were working with the Friends of Spud Wood to help with some coppicing; the cut material will be used in crafts or was left in habitat piles.
A fine final task for 2016, and we concluded our day with our usual annual seasonal get-together. A brazier, roasted chestnuts, mince pies and plenty more besides. Cheers!
Cut wood ready for other uses
A habitat pile
A coppiced tree
Volunteers at work
A coppiced area
Posted in Coppicing, Woodland management | Tagged Friends of Spud Wood, Woodland Trust |
November 20, 2016 by Julian
Today SACV were out in Priory Gardens on behalf of City of Trees. The main activity was the building of a hibernaculum – in this case, one close to a pond which it is hoped will provide a habitat for newts, frogs and slow worms!
Starting work on hibernaculum
Volunteers working on hibernaculum
Hibernaculum
The pond
Posted in Ponds and lakes | Tagged City of Trees, Priory Gardens |
November 6, 2016 by Julian
Today and a fortnight ago (23rd October) we worked with the Friends of the Bowdon Bollin. As well as doing some general tidying and maintenance of hedges we have laid previously, we did some work to open up and allow light to other parts of the footpath and to the riverbank. The original plan had been to work on the installation of two kissing gates but unfortunately this wasn’t possible for logistical reasons – although with luck the kissing gates can be planned for some future Sundays!
Overgrown hedges before starting
Increased light to the footpath and riverbank
After work to clear vegetation
Posted in Hedgelaying, Paths | Tagged Friends of the Bowdon Bollin |
October 9, 2016 by Julian
Today SACV members were out with the Friends of Chorlton Meadows. We haven’t worked on this pond for the past couple of years, but as in 2012 and 2013 our task was to clear some of the reeds and overhanging willow in order to maintain an area of open water. Without this, the pond will continue to close in and silt up, and might gradually cease to be the important habitat it is, including for the variety of birds – such as reed warbler, reed bunting, water rail and willow tit – which can be sighted here.
The pond before
Volunteers getting started
Pond clearance in progress
Volunteers at work 2
Getting started on tree-cutting
Volunteers at work 3
Tree-cutting in progress
The opened pond 1
The opened pond 2
Posted in Ponds and lakes, Reed beds | Tagged Friends of Chorlton Meadows, Mersey Valley |
September 26, 2016 by Julian
This past weekend was our last residential weekend of the year, working with the Peak Park Conservation Volunteers as usual, this time on the Pennine Way. On both days we did some footpath maintenance – improving the drainage on parts of the path with the aim of preventing future erosion (both from flooding and from walkers being forced to divert off the route). So plenty of work with spades and mattocks – and some especially enthusiastic digging from a couple of canine volunteers!
Volunteers getting started on the footpath and drainage
Improving the drainage from the path
Re-aligning the path
The improved path and drainage
Maintaining the path
Canine volunteer
Canine volunteer
A well-earned rest
Posted in Paths, Residential weekends | Tagged Peak Park Conservation Volunteers |
September 5, 2016 by Julian
Yesterday SACV got to spend a lovely late summer day helping members of the Cheshire Wildlife Trust at Birch Moss Covert. The task was to make a start on establishing new paths around the reserve; the previous paths were destroyed in recent work done on the site to convert it to wet mossland. Since that work, the CWT have found good signs that water-voles are establishing themselves at the site, which is very good news indeed and increases the reserve’s wildlife importance.
Clearing the path
Tools
Fungi
Clearing the path
Flowering heather
Posted in Paths, Woodland management | Tagged Cheshire Wildlife Trust |
August 23, 2016 by Julian
In what is becoming an annual activity, this past Sunday we were out in Chorlton Water Park helping with the maintenance of the woodland walk. We got a good section of the path done, so thanks to those who turned out in what had been looking to be a weekend of variable weather!
Wheelbarrows on woodland walk
Speckled wood butterfly
Human and canine volunteers
The path before maintenance
Path maintenance in progress 1
Path maintenance in progress 2
Volunteers at work
Posted in Paths | Tagged Chorlton Water Park, Mersey Valley |
As in recent tasks, more Himalayan balsam to tackle yesterday, but this time with the Friends of the Bowdon Bollin! (Our planned constructional work on a gate or two, which the original idea for yesterday, has had to be postponed to the autumn.) The Friends have had some good success clearing balsam from some of their sites, including the woodland we worked in during the afternoon, where the previous very dense balsam is now greatly reduced. And it’s not often we conservation volunteers get to have lunch on a beach!
Himalayan balsam in the woods
Bridge over the Bollin
Lunch by the Bollin
Posted in Invasive species | Tagged Friends of the Bowdon Bollin |
Well it’s been a while since we put out an update, but that doesn’t mean SACV hasn’t been busy! In the last month or two we have worked in the quarry area at Tegg’s Nose Country Park (Sunday 12th June), when a damp day didn’t stop us from getting lots of heathland management work done; done some path maintenance work at Sale Water Park (Sunday 26th June) for City of Trees, taking care not to destroy some of the banks of wildflowers; and worked with the Cheshire Wildlife Trust at Birch Farm Ponds (Sunday 10th July) tackling the invasive Himalayan balsam. Here’s hoping the rest of the summer continues in the same productive vein!
Volunteers at Tegg’s Nose
Volunteers at work at Sale Water Park
Widening the path at Sale Water Park
Himalayan balsam at Birch Farm Ponds
Himalayan balsam at Birch Farm Ponds
Himalayan balsam at Birch Farm Ponds – after clearing
Posted in Heathland, Invasive species, Paths | Tagged Cheshire East Rangers, Cheshire Wildlife Trust, City of Trees, Sale Water Park, Tegg's Nose Country Park | 1 Comment »
We had a residential weekend in the Peaks back in January, when we helped clear encroaching hawthorn from a site which is being restored as a grassland habitat. Here are some pictures – courtesy of ranger David – of how the wildflowers have lately been looking on the hillside on which we worked!
Early purple orchid
Wood anemone
Cowslips
Lady’s smock
Posted in Grassland, Residential weekends | Tagged Peak Park Conservation Volunteers |
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