This task was what I call a multipack. Not one job to do but several smaller
ones. Quite difficult to lead as you have to deploy the right number of
people to each job then keep an eye on each one to try and ensure they all
get completed by the end of the day. So on this particular task the jobs to
do were - cutting back long grass from around a new hedge, using the cut
grass to make a number of quite large piles in the meadow area which Grass
Snakes might hopefully use to nest in, removing redundant tree guards from
around a cluster of trees and bushes planted near the hide and in other
places on the reserve, cleaning the reserve interpretation boards, cleaning
off graffitti from the walls of the hide, cutting back encroaching
vegetation from alongside the path through the reserve and removing the
spiral guards from the now established hedge alongside the road. So quite a
little list!
We split into two groups, one tackling the grass round the hedge and the
other removing the tree guards, the first led by Nick and the other by
Jonathan. We got on quite well with the tree guard removal and the ones near
the hide were all done by tea break, whilst the other group cracked on with
cutting the grass around the hedge. We'd only just resumed after tea when
emergency rations arrived in the form of ice creams and lollies courtesy of
the daughter of one of our volunteers who lives nearby in Fiskerton. Which
was nice. And another batch arrived a little later in the day. It was a real
treat on a hot sunny day.
Lunch was unusual in that we had it in the hide, for a bit of welcome shade
from the hot sun, and also that we had our Annual General Meeting whilst
having it. Julian did an excellent job of chairing the proceedings and it
was good to have a few more people there than for past AGM's. The Swallows
swooping in and out of the hide to and from their nest in the ceiling also
added to the event.
After lunch we resumed our work and got most of the tree guards removed and
cut back the grass from most of the hedge line and created a number of the
grass piles for the Grass Snakes. But we had to abandon our attempt to
remove the spiral guards on the roadside hedge plants as they all proved to
be inhabitated by biting red ants so we beat a hasty retreat!
A productive day with an amazing turnout of 22 volunteers, a record for a
summer task.
Richard
However
On the evening of Wednesday the 20th of July some 14 of us went back and
finished off all the loose ends we hadn't been able to quite complete on the
3rd. Working from 7:00 until 9:00pm we finished removing the long grass
around the hedge, rearranged the grass piles a bit to make them bigger,
removed some tree guards we'd missed, cut back encroaching vegetation from
alongside the path and gathered in all the redundant tree guards and wooden
support stakes that we'd previously removed. And then we went to the pub in
Fiskerton for a well deserved drink! Nice evening.