October 1, 2015 by Julian
This past weekend was our final residential weekend of 2015. Working as usual with the Peak Park Conservation Volunteers, we helped to clear and burn invasive rhododendron on the banks of Tittesworth Reservoir. The reservoir’s water level was looking lower than any of us could recall seeing it, but that gave us a good space on the shore for our bonfire of cut material. The removal of the rhododendron will help to avert the monoculture which is otherwise developing along some of the bank, and encourage native species to flourish. We were blessed with fine and warm autumn weather to enjoy the scenic location. In the evenings and in the breaks from work, the weekend followed the usual sort of course: great meal in The Lazy Trout on Saturday night, good chats, crossword attempts, entertaining post-dinner tabletop games (Saboteur, Coup, Avalon, Werewolves!) and a home-made cake to celebrate a recent wedding!
Rhododendrons before clearing
Volunteer at work 1
Starting the bonfire
Volunteer at work 2
Volunteer at work 3
Fly agaric
Tittesworth reservoir
Bank revealed after removing rhododendron
Celebration cake!
Posted in Invasive species, Ponds and lakes, Residential weekends | Tagged Peak Park Conservation Volunteers |
September 13, 2015 by Julian
For today’s activity on a sunny September day, the focus was less on ecology and habitats and more on heritage conservation. Hare Hill has an extensive system of culverts (on which we’ve worked many times in the past), but today we were working on a structure which might have been part of a sheep dip, dating perhaps to the first half of the nineteenth century. A lot of the construction was overgrown or buried under soil and turf – so we were doing what we could to clear and reveal the original stonework and, where part of the structure had collapsed, try to identify its original line and formation. This led to a lot of interesting archaeological and architectural theorizing (“Are these buried stones part of a collapsed wall? Would there have been steps? Is this rusted length of metal part of a rail? Could there have been a sloped descent to the water at this point rather than a wall?”)! We don’t know that we came up with any of the right answers but the speculation was entertaining!
The
National Trust is arranging for the revealed stonework to be assessed by someone with more expertise and it might follow in due course that there is a plan for more exploration and restoration of the structures here – so we’ll keep an eye out for future developments!
The overgrown wall 1
The overgrown wall 2
The revealed wall
Volunteers at work
Part of the revealed structure
The exit channel and cleared top of the stonework
Stonework revealed 1
Stonework revealed 2
One side present, one side absent
Stonework revealed 3
Posted in Culverts | Tagged Hare Hill, National Trust |
August 23, 2015 by Julian
Another late-in-the-season bashing of Himalayan balsam was the order of the day today, this time in Priory Gardens (approximately SJ797926) on behalf of the Red Rose Forest. Some of the balsam will already have flowered and set seed, but there was plenty to go at which hadn’t yet seeded. Alongside this, we were also doing some woodland work, reducing some of the density of saplings, particularly sycamore, to open up the woods and allow more light to some parts of the woodland floor. A fine and hot summer’s day but gradually building up to refreshing rain – although the clouds helpfully held back until our work was done!
Working in the woods
Loppers
Himalayan balsam and trees
Himalayan balsam flower
Volunteers tackling Himalayan balsam
Seeds of common hogweed
Posted in Invasive species, Woodland management | Tagged Priory Gardens, Red Rose Forest |
Invasive species were given a battering today when SACV volunteers were out with the Friends of the Bowdon Bollin. Our main aim was to clear Himlayan balsam (Impatiens glandulifera) from a stretch of the Bollin near Ashley Mill Lane (approximately SJ761855), but there was also a chance to have a go at injecting herbicide into Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica), which is another common alien invader along the banks of the river. Giant hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum) was not the main focus of today’s activities but we had to be aware of this harmful plant as it can also be found here, although the Friends have been doing a good job in recent years of treating it and reducing its presence. A lovely sunny day to be on the banks of a river, and we hope to have done some good in the ongoing battle against these damaging species!
Himalayan balsam and Japanese knotweed on the Bollin
Volunteers after tackling a patch of Himalayan balsam
Volunteers preparing to inject Japanese knotweed
Young giant hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum)
Spades and visor
Himalayan balsam cleared on the bank of the Bollin
Posted in Invasive species | Tagged Friends of the Bowdon Bollin |
The Sunday before last (19th July 2015) a few SACV volunteers were out in Chorlton Water Park and planted wildflowers (such as cow-slips and self-heal) on the edge of a path surrounding Chorlton Water park (heavy work as the ground was hard!). After a well-deserved lunch, the next task was to lay woodchip on a woodland path, finishing off the work started at our visit here in early June. Finally there was some planting, including butterfly-friendly buddleia, in a bird-feeding area. A productive day!
Volunteers at work 1
Volunteers at work 2
Volunteers take a break
Posted in Paths | Tagged Chorlton Water Park, Mersey Valley |
Today some of us were out pulling ragwort, topping thistles and cutting bracken in glorious weather in the meadows at Tegg’s Nose. There were lots of lovely wildflowers to spot including orchids and field pansies. Well-deserved ice-creams for all afterwards!
Volunteers at work
Wildflowers
Volunteer at work
Work in progress
Posted in Meadows | Tagged Cheshire East Rangers, Tegg's Nose Country Park |
Yesterday was a day of maintaining the path through the woodland at Chorlton Water Park, laying woodchip and removing some of the encroaching vegetation. The woods were a good place to shelter from the intermittent rain, although by the time we had finished the skies were blue again!
Canine volunteer on the woodchip pile
Volunteer with wheelbarrow
The completed path 1
The completed path 2
The completed path 3
The sky through the trees
Posted in Paths | Tagged Chorlton Water Park, Mersey Valley | 1 Comment »
Last weekend was SACV’s second residential weekend of the year, working as usual with the Peak Park Conservation Volunteers (PPCV). Our activity for the Saturday was to help at Tittesworth Water with the renovation of a “butterfly beach”: this area is intended to encourage a range of butterfly species in the area and uses sand as ground cover because it reflects the light and can create the warm conditions that butterflies like for basking. Then, on the Sunday, we took part for the first time in the Pick-and-Play day which has been an annual event for a few years and is organised by Peak Mountaineering and PPCV; this involved doing some litter-picking in the morning and then being rewarded in the afternoon with a choice of outdoor activities. We SACV volunteers opted for the climbing and abseiling – and had a great afternoon! Many thanks to Peak Mountaineering for the provision of these activities and the excellent instruction!
Starting work on the butterfly beach
The butterfly beach and Tittesworth Water
Butterfly sign
SACV volunteer at work
Setting off on the litter-pick
SACV volunteer climbing 1
SACV volunteer abseiling
Climbing and abseiling
SACV volunteer climbing 2
Posted in Residential weekends | Tagged Peak Park Conservation Volunteers |
Yesterday was a day of maintenance on the Middlewood Way, working with Ed from the Cheshire East Rangers. We enjoyed the stretch of the Way just off Schoolfold Lane in Adlington, where we removed encroaching grass from the surface of the path and replaced some of the damaged steps at the descent from the road. It was good to see the route getting plenty of use from walkers, cyclists and horse-riders – the weather must have helped!
Volunteers at work on widening the path 2
Volunteers at work on widening the path
Volunteers working on repairing the steps
Work on the steps in progress
Posted in Paths, Steps | Tagged Cheshire East Rangers, Middlewood Way |
Today we were working at Priory Gardens on behalf of the Red Rose Forest, to remove a patch of invasive rhododendrons from an edge of the site near Dane Road. On starting, it looked as though the area to clear might not be too great, but in fact the rhododendrons were pretty extensive and established, so by the end our piles of cut material were fairly high! Doubtless we’ll have missed some of the invaders and some will re-sprout, but we’ll have opened up this part of the woodland for some time.
Volunteer at work
Clearing the rhododendrons
A removed root
Panorama of work in progress
Piles of cut rhododendron
Posted in Invasive species, Woodland management | Tagged Priory Gardens, Red Rose Forest | 1 Comment »
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