Chambers Farm Wood, 5th October 2008
The weather looked decidedly uninviting when we set out for this Sunday's
task, lashing down with rain from a steely grey sky. It was therefore
very pleasing to see so many folk turning out for this double task.
The task was at the wildlife garden behind the visitors centre at
Chambers Farm Wood and we had a choice of digging a new pond or starting
some hedge laying on a rather old section of hedge at the back of the
garden. Seven vols started the back breaking task of digging out the
thick clay soil to create a new wildlife pond, while 5 of us started on the
hedge.
The hedge line had already been opened up by some judicious chain sawing, so
it was fairly easy to get at. However, much of it was thick Blackthorn
and Hawthorn, so much of that had to be cut away to expose suitable
pleachers to lay. We eventually started cutting and laying the hedge after
lunch and got two sections underway before the end of the day.
The pond diggers moved on a pace, with thick sods of soil forming a bank
around them. Amazingly the rain stopped by about 11am and had turned
into a lovely sunny autumns day by lunchtime.
In the end, it turned into a very enjoyable task, despite the unpromising
weather. We shall return later in the season to continue the hedge
laying and see if the pond has filled up and retains water.
Julian
