Gallery

Visit the gallery for photographs of the meadow and some of the species we've seen.

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2024

Tree planting #IDigTrees

3rd March

This morning ten of the group helped to plant fifty bare-root saplings around the meadow. These were provided free by the I Dig Trees initiative of TCV (The Conservation Volunteers) to whom our group is affiliated. This was a 'Wildlife Booster' pack to encourage all sorts of wildlife e.g. invertebrates, birds and mammals to nectar, berries and nuts. The tree species comprised hazel, hawthorn, blackthorn, dog rose, elder, spindle, dogwood and silver birch.

We enjoyed a rare dry, fine, sunny morning digging and planting them into gaps in our native hedge and alongside the cycle path. The task was completed with provided stakes and guards and photos were taken of the activities - see some of them in our gallery.

Lots of people and lots of jobs

4th February

It was very mild and very windy this morning but a dozen of the group were in the meadow.

The various jobs that were tackled included coppicing another hazel in the copse by the cycle path, cutting off and pulling down more bramble that was festooning the trees, raking up willow twigs from the verge, doing more hedge maintenance, and picking up a couple of sacks of litter from all around the meadow. All the cut material needed to be processed and stacked in various habitat piles and dead hedges.

New Year and new CEO

7th January

The group of us gathering in the meadow for the first task of the year met Beth, the new CEO of the landowner (Chippenham Borough Lands Charity). She was enthusiastic to hear about our work and keen to connect all the organisations concerned with the natural environment in the river corridor through town.

There were several tasks today: coppicing a couple of the hazel trees beside the cycle path, finishing brushcutting alongside the native hedge, spreading a few tree-chippings on the muddy entrances, pulling up nettles from the scrub belt, maintenance on the native hedge and a litter-pick.

A good morning's work in the cool, fresh air - a change from the constant rain of recent weeks!