MAY 2023
The photo shows children from the Curry Rivel school being told how to plant trees in the Autumn when they came up to the Trust land. on a very nice afternoon. Our trees have had to cope with a lot of different types of weather recently- an unusually warm November with little rain, a very cold December and then lots of rain with a bit of everything else in the New Year! However now, in late April and early May, we can see that most of the trees have survived and are actually doing very well. The hedgerows around the land are bursting; the expert hedge laying last year has resulted in excellent regeneration that will produce thicker hedges - ideal for nesting birds. Also in the hedges and grassy lane edges immediately around the Trust entrance can be seen a range of wild flowers -see Peter's blog with photos of some of them: /peter-s-blog/wild-flowers
Large numbers of Early purple orchids can already be seen very close to the entrance and you will be able to spot pyramidal orchids on our land very soon - there were large numbers last year
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Pyramidal orchid 
Early purple orchidSo, what's been happening in 2023 so far? There was a last planting session with the local scouts in January, when they planted the few trees that had not been available from Reimagining the Levels in the autumn.
They also helped with some mulching and sorting out the side of the footpath through the mature wood. SCC provided guys to clear the path and make it less dangerous by rerouting the stream of water from the spring - which just happened to follow the path! Since they left Alan and Peter have piped the stream for a little way and covered the pipes up so you wouldn't know they're there. However, there's no getting away from the fact that the path is steep, not easy to go down and harder to come up! I f you do make it to near the bottom you will see the large deer netting enclosure. We hope preventing access to this area by deer and other larger animals will allow saplings to grow and may provide a safe haven for smaller animals - possibly even the elusive dormouse! most recent blog: Scouts, trees and footpaths
We have now put up notices reminding dog walkers that dogs should be kept on a lead while on Trust land. We know there are hares making their homes in the tall grass and this is also true of several species of ground-nesting birds.
We also have our three trial plots. where different soil preparation techniques have been used, which will help us to decide how to proceed in making a wildflower meadow when we see the resulting flowers in the summer. Sadly the original pole and string surrounds were knocked down and the areas trampled earlier this year - maybe by dogs. We have now reinstated the surrounds with more substantial wooden stakes and hope the plots will be able to give us conclusive results in the summer. We have a meeting to look at them and at what's happening in the enclosed area in the mature wood arranged for June 3rd at 10.30, starting on the field, and anyone interested is warmly invited to come along. Email or leave a message if you would like more information.
ABOUT US
.The CWCT is a small local charity which was formed when 9 acres of farmland and mature woodland came up for sale on a ridge above the Levels. During 2020, in spite of the pandemic, we raised £60K , mainly from the local community, to buy the la have already planted 500 trees and shrubs on the farmland and the local community has enjoyed the wildflower meadow that has developed alongside them. In the 21-22 winter we obtained another grant for a further 400 trees and shrubs, with guards and stakes. Planting is now over for the season.
The weather was kind to us and our trees in 2021 as the early rain allowed them to establish their roots and we didn't need to water. Very few trees didn't grow. However, so far 2022 has also been obliging, so we have not had to use our rainwater store. The water capturing apparatus was constructed for minimal outlay and we now have 6m3 of water in large tanks. However, we need a means to get it from the tanks to the trees when needed. Various ideas are being considered, but they will all cost money. Our boundary in the woodland is now marked by white metal stakes on the east side but the other sides are currently not marked, though we have identified where they are from our documents. We need to mark them clearly and to protect saplings growing in the wood from being browsed by deer. As the woodland is on the steep slope to the Levels on the north this will not be easy!
Large numbers of Early purple orchids can already be seen very close to the entrance and you will be able to spot pyramidal orchids on our land very soon - there were large numbers last year
.
Pyramidal orchid Early purple orchidSo, what's been happening in 2023 so far? There was a last planting session with the local scouts in January, when they planted the few trees that had not been available from Reimagining the Levels in the autumn.They also helped with some mulching and sorting out the side of the footpath through the mature wood. SCC provided guys to clear the path and make it less dangerous by rerouting the stream of water from the spring - which just happened to follow the path! Since they left Alan and Peter have piped the stream for a little way and covered the pipes up so you wouldn't know they're there. However, there's no getting away from the fact that the path is steep, not easy to go down and harder to come up! I f you do make it to near the bottom you will see the large deer netting enclosure. We hope preventing access to this area by deer and other larger animals will allow saplings to grow and may provide a safe haven for smaller animals - possibly even the elusive dormouse! most recent blog: Scouts, trees and footpaths
We have now put up notices reminding dog walkers that dogs should be kept on a lead while on Trust land. We know there are hares making their homes in the tall grass and this is also true of several species of ground-nesting birds.
We also have our three trial plots. where different soil preparation techniques have been used, which will help us to decide how to proceed in making a wildflower meadow when we see the resulting flowers in the summer. Sadly the original pole and string surrounds were knocked down and the areas trampled earlier this year - maybe by dogs. We have now reinstated the surrounds with more substantial wooden stakes and hope the plots will be able to give us conclusive results in the summer. We have a meeting to look at them and at what's happening in the enclosed area in the mature wood arranged for June 3rd at 10.30, starting on the field, and anyone interested is warmly invited to come along. Email or leave a message if you would like more information.
ABOUT US
.The CWCT is a small local charity which was formed when 9 acres of farmland and mature woodland came up for sale on a ridge above the Levels. During 2020, in spite of the pandemic, we raised £60K , mainly from the local community, to buy the la have already planted 500 trees and shrubs on the farmland and the local community has enjoyed the wildflower meadow that has developed alongside them. In the 21-22 winter we obtained another grant for a further 400 trees and shrubs, with guards and stakes. Planting is now over for the season.
The weather was kind to us and our trees in 2021 as the early rain allowed them to establish their roots and we didn't need to water. Very few trees didn't grow. However, so far 2022 has also been obliging, so we have not had to use our rainwater store. The water capturing apparatus was constructed for minimal outlay and we now have 6m3 of water in large tanks. However, we need a means to get it from the tanks to the trees when needed. Various ideas are being considered, but they will all cost money. Our boundary in the woodland is now marked by white metal stakes on the east side but the other sides are currently not marked, though we have identified where they are from our documents. We need to mark them clearly and to protect saplings growing in the wood from being browsed by deer. As the woodland is on the steep slope to the Levels on the north this will not be easy!
