Here is Jonathan’s message
Greetings All,
And a very Happy New Year to you. I trust this finds you in the very
rudest of spirits.
There’ll be a volunteer session at Fairfield Orchard, Fauna and Flora this
Saturday, January 12th, starting at 10.00am and finishing at 1.00pm or
thereabouts.
On the agenda for this occasion:
* Clear fallen leaves from around the shed.
* Tidy the strip between the apple trees and the Pads footpath hedge.
* In the Old Damson Copse, cut away and dig out bramble and clear around
each of our new saplings.
* Cut off suckers through the Orchard.
* Trim back the hedge between the Pads footpath and Big Meadow to the
south of the Orchard to Lucy Brook.
* Trim the hedge between the Long Pads footpath and Flora Field / Lower
Sowerholme.
And that’s about it for now, I think.
Best wishes,
Jonathan.
Here’s what we did
The Saturday volunteer session attracted 14 volunteers on a dull but dry morning.
• The shed area was cleared of fallen leaves and generally tidied.
• The saplings down the track from the shed to the Orchard were checked for supporting sticks and protectors.
• Habitat piles through the Orchard were tidied and stray brash added to them
• The Orchard was given a general ‘de-brambling’, digging out where practical, cutting off otherwise.
• Self-seeding suckers were cut back throughout the Orchard.
• The ‘channel’ between the fruit trees and the Orchard / Pads hedge was cleared of debris.
• Three post stumps, left proud by the path work, were cut down to protect the mower.
• The new saplings in the Old Damson copse were cleared of surrounding vegetation to maximise their growth chances.