Grassland butterfly season is starting

The butterflies which lay their eggs on grasses, such as the Meadow Browns and Ringlets and the Skippers are all on the wing now.

Our faithful supporters, Roger and Andrew, have topped the grass around the trees which makes the area accessible.  Unfortunately there are still plenty of thistles and this makes walking around without boots a prickly experience.  The trees are growing well, considering the nibbling that has taken place this year already.

Rowan or Mountain Ash - will have berries for birds

Wild Cherry

We now have a pedestrian gate at the corner of the Tennis courts, so people can easily walk in and out without climbing the fence.

First Work Party for the New Year

On a cold and drizzly morning, I went up to The Mound with Penny and Philippa, to see how the trees are doing.  Unfortunately, we were greeted by one of our allotment-holder supporters, who told us that sheep had been in again, and indeed there was a lot of evidence when we arrived, and the ancient hedgebank has been eroded along the top.  It looks like a new section of fencing has gone up recently though, so we are still hopeful that at last our trees will get the chance to thrive.

We re-planted the Rowan trees, which we had been asked to move from outside our fenced area.  They are dormant, so we hope that they quickly re-establish themselves in the Spring.

Saw a lovely brightly-coloured bullfinch in the hedgerow. Thanks to RSPB for this photo of this stunning bird.

Our next step is to have a pedestrian gate put in, so that people can walk into the area more easily. 

Another work-party at The Mound (behind the Sports Centre)

Wednesday 6th August 6.30-8.00pm

Why not come along and join us.  No experience necessary, just some enthusiasm for the project.

We are putting up larger tree-protectors and pulling out thistles and grass from around the base to give the trees more growing space.

We suggest wearing gloves, and strong shoes.

Hope to see you there!

We have been developing this area for two years now - this blog tells the story (with pictures) - so have a look at how it has already changed so much.

Summer work-party at The Mound

Yesterday evening we met up to put some taller tree-protecters around the young trees.  They are growing well now, slowly recovering from the shock of being nibbled by sheep.

The area is a riot of flowers, mostly lilac and purple, from the Creeping Thistle and Marsh Woundwort.  We disturbed a few roosting butterflies including Small Copper and Common Blue.

Here is a happy band of volunteers on their way home after a short, but productive session.

 

 

The tree-protectors will help our grass-cutter to see the trees

Thanks to Matt Edworthy from North Devon Biosphere for the gift of 40 secondhand tree protectors.

 

In flower during July

Meadow Vetchling
Chamomile
Yarrow
Ragwort
Selfheal
Silverweed
Water Mint
Yorkshire Fog (grass)
Red Fescue (grass)
Creeping Thistle
Buttercup
Lesser Knapweed
Hedge and Marsh Woundwort
White Clover

Work Party - Thursday 31st July  6.30pm - weeding around the trees

Summer is really here, with long hot days and the flowers and grasses in the conservation area on The Mound are growing well.

Skipper on Knapweed

The trees have survived the sheep damage of recent months and now need weeding around the base (up to 1 metre).  We also have some larger tree-protectors and canes which will give them more growing space and help those cutting the grass to see them more clearly.

We need volunteers to help clear the weeds - everyone welcome, just come along.

I visited the area on Sunday and today to carry out butterfly counts.  I have seen more than 100 butterflies on these two visits, with 10 different species on the wing - see the Wildlife page for a more detailed record.

Spiral Pathway was planted today on The Mound

The weather was showery, with a strong breeze, but at last we have been able to plant the 100 native trees and shrubs which were given to Winkleigh Biodiversity Group by Western Power.

We have planted them, well-spaced out, in a spiral walkway which follows the contours of the mound behind the Sports Centre.

Five volunteers - Andrew, Sue, Philippa, Sheila and Kim (supplemented also for a while by Peter) planted up all the trees, with bamboo stakes and tree-guards.  We now have a spiralling hedgerow which includes whitebeam, rowan, holly, dog rose, cherry, dogwood, hazel, crab apple and field maple.

We are now hoping for Spring showers to water them in, otherwise we will have to do so.

At last we can plant the spiral pathway!

This week has seen developments.  On Wednesday a new fence was erected around the conservation area - thanks to Andrew and Roger for arranging the purchase of materials and putting it up. Funding for the fence has been given by a local charity and our District Councillor, David Lausen. Roger also cut the grass again ready for the tree-planting.  Today Kenton and I marked out the spiral maze with 60 bamboo canes - ready for volunteers to gather tomorrow to plant 100 native trees and shrubs, including whitebeam, rowan, hazel and holly.  The weather forecast is windy and showery, so I hope we do not get too cold and wet.

The new fence

The gateway to The Mound Conservation Area

Spring is here - birds are nesting

The warmer weather has arrived and the shoots are appearing on the trees we planted in Winter 2012.  All the silver birches and rowan have green leaves, and a few wild cherries on The Mound have survived the company of sheep.

We are hoping that a fence will soon enclose the area and keep it safe so that we can go ahead and plant a spiral maze on The Mound.

This morning I spotted a pair of goldfinches collecting wool which had caught on brambles to line their nest.  I did not have my camera with me, so here is a photo of these colourful birds which feed on seeds such as thistle.

Goldfinches by ImogenX

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Good news...and bad news

The mound of earth behind the Sports Centre has been cleared and levelled by the generous efforts of Roger Hill, a nearby farmer.  This will make tree-planting and management of the area much easier to manage by volunteers.

The rowan and silver birches have survived the wet winter and most of them have buds ready to burst soon.

On the down side, the trees planted on the mound in December 2012 are in poor shape - as they have been sharing space with sheep which knock over the tree guards - some of them have been nibbled off.

Our next step is to erect a fence around this area to protect it from sheep.  It seems this is a necessary expense in order to ensure the safety of our future tree planting.

More news soon on when the tree-planting can go ahead.

The next batch of trees have arrived in Winkleigh.  But we have decided to postpone planting them until we have a safe place for them - as the sheep on the grass area which is let out to a farmer have damaged some of last year's planting.  More news soon!

Trees planted in 2012 - Progress in Pictures

Don't forget our next tree-planting event is on Sunday 1st December 10-12 noon.
Volunteers of all ages welcome!
 
On 4th November I went to review the progress of last year's tree planting.  For those who have been unable to visit them, here are some photos.

Rowan

Alder Buckthorn

Silver Birch

English Oak

Happily most of them have survived with only a little weeding and watering - thanks to those volunteers who have taken time to care for them.  As you can see the grass and weeds are still high - stiff competition for the trees.

On my visit, I met an allotment holder who had planted the native hedgerow as a windbreak for the allotments.  Their hedge is coming along well, and already has some rose-hips for the birds.

Windbreak Native Hedgerow

More tree planting on the Mound

On Sunday December 1st (10am-12 noon) we will be planting 100 more trees, mostly on the Mound at the rear of the Sports Centre.

Western Power has given these tiny trees as part of their environmental initiative for us to plant as a community project.  They will arrive with stakes and tree guards, and each one will be about 60 cm high.

We have chosen a range of native hedgerow trees, including hazel, hawthorn and whitebeam to plant as a spiral pathway from the top of the mound.  The trees will provide food and shelter for birds, caterpillars and mammals.

It is hoped that this will one day be a feature of the Winkleigh War Memorial Recreation Field and that future generations of children will play there.

Volunteer tree-planters welcome.  Come along and join in.

View of The Mound from the Playing Fields

Trees are growing well

The small trees donated by the Woodland Trust have nearly all survived the winter, despite some of the tree guards being knocked over by sheep.  On June 11th we went up to the Playing Fields to pull out some of the tall grasses and nettles growing around each tree.  We have plans for more tree planting this autumn on The Mound behind the Sports Centre.  Meanwhile volunteers will visit regularly to keep a space around each young tree free from weeds.

Here are some of our cheerful band of volunteers:

There is a large amount of Lady's Smock in flower at the moment, food plant for the Orange Tip butterfly.

We also found a mouse nest in the grass in April.  Could it be a harvest mouse?

We checked with someone who knows, and yes - it is a harvest mouse nest.  This is what she said:

"Hey, that is definitely a harvest mouse nest, so that is very good news!  The mice make several of these nests for sleeping, resting and rearing young.  They are usually 30 -60 cm above ground, attached to several grass stems.  Brilliant find!  I'm surprised any mice have survived the very cold winter we've had.  I think we just need to make sure there is plenty of long grass for them."

The website of the People's Trust for Endangered Species says that harvest mouse numbers have declined up to 70% in the past 30 years.

Harvest mice, or at least their distinctive round nests among tall grass were once a common sight in the British countryside. But in just 30 years, harvest mouse numbers appear to have decreased by as much as 70% - See more at: http://www.ptes.org/index.php?news=196#sthash.gx2FyrIn.dpuf

Harvest mice, or at least their distinctive round nests among tall grass were once a common sight in the British countryside. But in just 30 years, harvest mouse numbers appear to have decreased by as much as 70% - See more at: http://www.ptes.org/index.php?news=196#sthash.gx2FyrIn.dpuf

In April we also planted six Alder Buckthorn trees, which provide food for the caterpillars of the Brimstone butterfly.

Winter is ending...how are the trees?

This question is on our lips, as Spring is just around the corner.  So I went today to look at our tiny whips and check the rabbit spirals.  The ring of 8 silver birches by the Allotments are beginning to sprout green shoots.  The row of rowans by the tennis courts are still standing, but it looks like the sheep have escaped their enclosure at some point, by the dung on the ground.

The oak and cherry trees on the Mound are also still standing, but half the canes and spirals were not.  There have been sheep grazing up there, and either they knocked them over, or the wind blew them - or a combination of both.  We need to think about protecting them from sheep in future.  Thankfully, only one tree showed signs of damage from an opportunist rabbit.  The leaves on the Cherry are starting to open.

Here is a photograph of the vegetation on the Mound last May.  This reminds us that our trees will need to be kept well clear of competing growth.  So the next thing to organise is some weed-clearing to make sure they survive.