Eighteen of us, including some welcome new volunteers, met at Chambers
Farm Wood on a dull but dry day.
The Wood has patches of 'indicator species' of wildflowers, which confirm
that some areas of the woodland can be classified as ancient. One of these
patches is near Little Scrubs Meadow where there is a small area of Greater
Butterfly Orchids. We hold regular tasks at the wood but we hadn’t worked in
this part before.
Some years ago there were many flowering orchid plants but as the tree
canopy and understorey (plants and small trees growing among the bigger
trees) have spread they create more shade and the number of flowers has
decreased. Our task was to cut back the understorey.
John got the bonfire underway. We had a tools and safety talk, paired new
volunteers with more experienced ones, and got to work. Our leader was
optimistic that we would finish by tea break, or perhaps by lunch, and then
move to another part of the wood to cut back encroaching scrub from the edge
of one of the rides running through the wood.
But
his optimism was misplaced as there was a lot of understorey to clear. It
takes a while to fell even small trees and longer to cut them up ready for
the bonfire. So the work scheduled for the morning took all day and the tea
and lunch breaks were very welcome and a chance for a chat. As always we had
an enjoyable time in a beautiful part of the wood and hope that we will make
a real difference. The orchid plants will be monitored to see what happens.
Jude