Cancelled - balsam bash at Dunham Massey on Sunday 26th June 2022 due to high winds forecast

Today's balsam bash at Dunham Massey, with Nat the Ranger, sadly had to be cancelled due to the forecast of high winds.

Message from Nat sent to us yesterday:

I'm very sorry to say that I need to cancel the task tomorrow due to forecast high winds of 35mph+.

The winds have been forecast to remain high and it would be unsafe to linger/work under trees on site.

We warn visitors of high winds 35mph or above via on-site signage on all access gates and it is predicted 35 and 36 most of the day and therefore I must cancel the task to keep us all safe.

Balsam isn't worth us getting squished.

Gutted to not work with you all again but hope to see you very soon. 

All the best

Nat

Dock and thistle bashing at Hardcastle Crags on Sunday 19th June 2022

Six of us made the one-hour drive to Hardcastle Crags in Yorkshire to do a job the ranger described as ‘pulling stuff up’.  At this time of year that usually means Himalayan balsam but today James greeted us with a bit of variety - docks.  Docks are very prolific and can produce thousands of seeds but provide 40% fewer nutrients than grass.  The field we worked in will be cut for silage so reducing the docks will increase its food value.  Docks can regrow from the roots and it was surprisingly hard work as the soil was very hard and compacted.

Looking for the leaves amongst long grass gave the back a welcome break from bending down.  After lunch we had some more variety - thistles.  More bending down but easier to see.

The occupants of the field appreciated us providing them with an unexpected late lunch.

Lots of stuff pulled up on a surprisingly warm and dry day.  Many thanks to James (2 legs) and Hamish (4 legs) for an enjoyable time, but we did miss the balsam!

Jean

Brash bashing at Chirk Castle on Sunday 12th June 2022 - a joint workday with the Merseyside group

Today we joined our Merseyside colleagues for a trip to Chirk Castle with the task for the day still to be decided.

We met ranger Keith in the car park where he gave us a quick run down of jobs he had lined up.  The first was a request from his facilities department to have an area behind the shop and toilets cleared of over grown bushes and brambles etc.  This is to enable them to look at using this area for a new cafe as the current one, up in the castle, is no longer big enough whereby they have long queues most weekends in the summer.

Once we had cleared the area we split into two groups, the first helping Keith load the cut bushes into the pick up, the second group headed to the woodland walk.  Here we used thrashers to clear about a half metre of brambles and unwanted plants from either side of the path.  This is usually done at this time of year to keep the path clear otherwise it would soon become overgrown.

We had a really good day, lovely weather, lots of people saying hello as they passed and it was nice to meet up with the Merseyside group again.

Thanks to Keith for a good day and to my colleagues for their hard work.

Christine 

Staking the Dahlia Walk at Biddulph Grange Garden on 29th May 2022

Eight of us met Leslie in the Biddulph Grange car park at 10:00. Some were delayed a bit by the traffic jam of the classic car show at Capesthorne Hall - I’ve never seen a powder blue VW Beetle before! The job for the day was putting stakes in so the gardeners could plant up the Dahlia Walk, one of the major flower displays at Biddulph.

The gardeners had already done some preparation work for us. The tulip bulbs from the previous display had been dug up, the guide posts for the first row stakes were in place and the rest of the stakes needed were in bundles.

Stakes were hammered in and string used to ensure a straight line and a stick to evenly separate the rows.

Most sections have two tiers of three rows in a 9-8-9 pattern, the pattern ensuring full coverage when the dahlias are in flower.

The gardeners will plant the dahlias in a few days time so we ‘tickled’ or turned over the soil to make it look neat and easier to plant.

As a cook would say ‘here’s one I prepared earlier’. This picture shows the Dahlia Walk in full bloom in 2019.

We had a very enjoyable day and the weather was good enough to eat lunch outside, Leslie providing biscuits as she did last year. We had plenty of opportunity to talk to the visitors and some of those who had never heard of the Dahlia Walk were already planning a return visit.

Well done MNTV!

Jean

PS Paul Walton, Head Gardener, was please with our work. On the Thursday after our visit he wrote:

"Just a quick email to say a huge thank you for your help on Sunday, with all the stakes going in this allowed us to get the plants in on Monday/Tuesday

Please pass on my thanks to the team

very best wishes

Paul 

Head Gardener

Biddulph Grange Garden"

Footpath Clearance at Speke Hall - Sunday 22nd May 2022

Seven of us made the journey to Speke Hall on 22nd May, the workday was suppossed to be himalayan balsam pulling but when we got the there the balsam was too small to pull so ranger Ian organised for us to undertake some footpath work near the pond.

The soil/gravel footpath had become overgrown over a number of years and the rangers wanted it to be useable again.  When we arrived the footpath edging was hiding underneath lots of soil and overgrown vegetation so the task was to dig out overgrown vegetation and sweep away excess soil to uncover the original footpath.  It was like a 'time team' challenge!

                      Footpath at the start of the workday.  Two members working together to dig and sweep.

During the day we did a spot of litter picking around the area where we were working and you unearth some interesting items!

    

                                                                    Litter picking.

                                            

                           Groupwork digging out overgrown vegetation to widen the path.

                                        Clearning and exposing the fishing enbankement.

    

                                            Footpath cleared between two fishing spots.

    

                                            Completed excavation of fishing spot.

During the day the rangers joined the group to start clearing lily's from the pond using lily cutters purchased from America.

                                            Ranger showing us how it is done!

                                           

                                                   MNTV volunteer having a go a lily cutting.

                                                Nearing the end othe workday.

                                                    Path clearned at the end of the workday.

                                                        To be continued.....looks like the end of a disused railway track!

                                                                        Group photo.

Speke Hall have a regular group of volunteers that will be continuing the footpath clearance, not sure how much more will be done but we are back at Speke on 3rd July so watch this space.....

Thanks to Ian, his team and my colleagues for a great workday (but back breaking).

Denise

Dismantling a fence at Lyme Park on Sunday 15th May 2022

Well, despite the rain when I left home and again when I returned to Macclesfield we had a nice day at Lyme Park 10 miles away.

Eight volunteers gathered in the main carpark to meet Alex, the ranger.  He explained that the task was to remove fencing from around two patches of trees that had grown tall enough to withstand the deer grazing.

Before ...

... and after!

Andy S putting his back into it!

On our walk down the main drive we saw deer eating the new leaves on the trees by the house, standing on hind legs to reach the juicy bits!  It helped us realise why fencing is necessary round young trees.

We had a quick tool talk and got to work, first taking the wire netting off the posts and rolling it up for reuse them lifting the posts out the ground.  The corner posts needed digging out.  We did much of the first plantation by tea break (lovely choice of cake from Sue D).  Afterwards some of the group started on the second larger patch which we just about finished by the end of the day.  Just one corner post was left standing and another with some well hammered in staples. 

 

A good day's work from all involved.  We walked our weary way back to the carpark past the geese with their new goslings.  Spring has well and truly sprung.

Jenny

Work in the timber yard at Formby on Sunday 8th May 2022

Eight of us shared three cars for the hour’s drive to Formby on a pleasant Spring morning.  We met ranger Rob at the Countryside Offices and he briefed us on two jobs he needed help with - completely different from what we had expected!  So we split into two groups and got to work!

The rangers need a new wood store to replace the old one that had disintegrated due to old age.  Wood, sawdust and debris had to be cleared away.

Lots of shovelling and raking involved - a typical MNTV job!

By the end of the day saw a level, clear surface ready for the new shed.  Wood from storm-damaged trees will be stored to dry then be cut up and sold for use in wood burning stoves.  This is a useful source of income for a countryside location.

The second group got to work on the practise build of an art installation in the form of a "mandala", written in Viking runes.  Mandala is of a religious origin but in a modern interpretation it could be called an aid to "mindfulness".

Wood, again from storm-damaged trees, was sorted, with the help of Dog Ranger Chip.

Loppers and saws were used to cut branches down to a suitable size.

Then tied together to make a rune.  Here is the completed letter "O".

The final installation will spell out "All we need is love" and be used to add interest in fields behind the sand dunes.

It was a great day and useful work.  Rob now knows the art installation is doable as a community project.  Special congratulations to Jenny, Christine, Tim and Martin for their creativity.

Jean