Nuts and berries for the birds

On visiting the Biodiversity Area today, I could see that many of the trees now have ripe berries for birds and small mammals.  One of the packs of trees donated by the Woodland Trust was specifically chosen for this purpose.  We have rose-hips, dogwood berries, rowan berries, hazelnuts and whitebeam berries.

Dog Rose

Rowan

Hazel

In turn the mice which eats these fruits and nuts build nests which will be used by future bumblebee queens, and are in turn eaten by owls.

Dogwood

Haven for pollinating insects and butterflies

In early August, on a warm sunny afternoon I went to carry out a count of butterfly species for the Big Butterfly Count.  The main grassland species Meadow Brown, Ringlet and Gatekeeper were present, but in smaller numbers than earlier in the year, due to the warm summer they had emerged early.  I also saw Small Copper, Large and Small Whites and several Small Skippers.

Large White on Common Knapweed

There were also a lot of bumblebees, feeding on the Knapweed.  There were a lot of Red-tailed, Common Carder and White or Buff-tailed Bumblebees. I saw at least one Queen Red-tailed and several males.

White-tailed

Red-tailed Male

White-tailed Bumblebee

Red-tailed Female (Queen)

 I also found the colourful Cinnabar Moth caterpillars.

 There were other pollinators too, including this Soldier Fly.

On July 13th, I went to visit the area and found that there were lots of wild flowers in bloom.  As we are only topping the grass once or twice per year, and we do not have the possibility of raking the grass cuttings, it is heartening to see the development of so many flowering species, thriving in competition with the grasses.

Marsh Woundwort

Yarrow

Meadow Buttercup and Silverweed

Oxeye Daisies and Marsh Thistle

Catsear

There are also a lot of Common Knapweed which provide a lengthy season of nectar in July and August.

All the new trees are planted now

On Saturday morning it was a beautiful sunny day so Penny and I completed the planting of the rest of the 100 trees (sent to us by Woodland Trust as part of the Memorial Woods plantings).

So far, since December 2012, volunteers from Winkleigh area have planted approximately 350 native trees on the site, and the Spiral Maze hedgerow has eventually become clearer 'on the ground'.  Thanks to the cutting of the grass round the path, it can also be seen from the satellite images on Google.


Here are some more photos of the maturing trees.

Rowan planted 2012

Wild Cherry planted 2014

 ...and the volunteers planting the new ones.

Spring 2019

Trees are flowering once again in Spring

Today, I went up to the Mound again to continue planting around the Spiral Maze Hedgerow.  Sue came along to help me and we planted more than 30 trees in around an hour.

Thanks to the Woodland Trust, we were given a further 100 trees this winter, 30 of which I planted with Sheila, Sue (W) and Andrew last November.

We put in some silver birch, hazel, cherry and hawthorn.  It was a beautiful Spring day and a pleasure to be outdoors.  We saw a wren, blue tits, a ladybird, bumble bees and also - rather exciting - a pair of stonechats on brambles and sloe.

Female stonechat

The trees I photographed last year have really grown significantly.  Cherries and Goat Willow are in blossom, with Dogwood nearly in flower already.

Pussy Willow Catkins

Wild Cherry with Blossom

Spring has arrived on The Mound

This weekend the warm weather has brought out some of the flowers and insects in the Biodiversity Area.  The grass is about knee-high at most, and so it is possible to walk around the spiral maze.

The first trees to flower are the hazels, wild cherries, the elder and the rowan.  There is also some sloe blossom in the old hedge-bank.  The Pussy Willow catkins are good sources of nectar for bees.

Wild Cherry planted April 2014

Rowan planted April 2014

Goat Willow (Pussy Willow) 2016

Elder - existing hedgerow

I also saw a black ladybird with red spots (possibly a 2-spot), three Great Tits, a Small Tortoiseshell butterfly, a wren, two brown Carder Bumblebees.  There are also a lot of Red Admiral caterpillars in their nettle tents.

Caterpillars hidden from predators inside their 'tents'

Some early flowers are dandelion, celandine, lady's smock - the food plant of the Orange Tip butterfly.  The leaves are opening on the Alder Buckthorn, but no sign of Brimstone butterfly eggs yet.

Keeping the grasses down 12 May 2017

Now that the grass has been topped, Maggie, Ian and I went up and spent a morning strimming (electric and petrol cutters) and scything by hand.

Maggie enjoyed the scything, while Ian and I had ear-defenders on due to the noise.

This will help to keep down the coarser grasses and creeping thistle and allow the trees some space.

Keeping the grass down - May 2017

We are very grateful to Chris and Gail who brought their tractor and topper to top the grass paths of the spiral maze today.  Without this help, it was difficult to see where the trees were growing. 

Grass Path - First Lap

Grass Paths - Lap One and Two

Grass Path - Lap Two

Top of the Mound - 2012 Trees - Lap Three

We will also use some brush-cutters to trim around the trees within their hedgerows later this week.  The ground is still rough, but at least we can walk round the spiral maze now.

Spring 2017

2012 Rowan in bloom

On Friday 28th April a group of us went to check on the trees and pull out some of the grasses from their base.  They have grown well already this Spring.  Some of the older trees from 2012 and 2014 are well above head-height.  I think the tallest Rowan is now 8 feet high.  One Rowan has its first flower-head.  Similarly the Red Dogwood has flowers.  These will provide pollen and nectar for insects and later on, berries for the birds.

2014 Red Dogwood with flower buds

We still have two Alder Buckthorn bushes, planted in 2013, which is the food-plant for the bright yellow Brimstone butterfly caterpillar.  This Spring there is no sign yet of any eggs or caterpillars on them.

Alder Buckthorn 2013

In a Biodiversity Area, plants considered as weeds in gardens, have a value.  The dandelions provide early nectar for bees, whereas the dandelion clocks provide seeds for goldfinches, which I have seen in our patch.

Dandelion clock

There are lots of Red Admiral butterfly caterpillars on the nettles, enclosed in their nettle 'tents' and I found an interesting brown spider asleep on a holly leaf - possibly an Orb spider.

Nearly there! Over 90 trees planted so far.

Another productive morning planting 30cm whips along the line of the Spiral Maze, filling in the gaps left last year.  These trees are part of the Centenary Woods in memory of the First World War.

 

Seven volunteers with me behind the camera!

 

To help the seven volunteers, I drew out a map of the design, so that we could see more clearly where we needed to plant.

 

Andrew also had the idea of tying tape to each cane, so that Roger will be able to see the line of trees, when he tops the grassy paths.  This has made it a lot clearer for us all to see where the hedgerow is.

 

Each cane now has a red and white flag

 As well as the 30cm whips, supplied by The Woodland Trust, we also planted Goat Willow and Red Dogwood cuttings.  If these survive they will help to fill out the rows, while the smaller ones are catching up.  

 

We found several caterpillars low down in the grass, showing just how mild a winter we are having, with hardly a frost yet.  One was the caterpillar of the Ringlet butterfly which breeds on this site.

More trees planted today

First Tree Planting - another planned for next Sunday (13th December)

Well. the weather forecast was for mild, dry weather - but it started drizzly and then got heavier!

Nevertheless, three hardy volunteers stuck with it and we have planted 16 new trees in the wildlife area - hawthorn, silver birch, oak, rowan and blackthorn.

Graham from Winkleigh Parish Council watches Phil and Penny at work

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
As these trees were given by The Woodland Trust to plant as a Centenary Wood in memory of those who served and died in the First World War, we were glad that 'Major Ron' of the Winkleigh branch of the British Legion, was also able to visit us.  He was very encouraging and fully supports what we are doing for our community, for future generations and in remembrance of our grandfather's generation.

http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/support-us/support-an-appeal/centenary-woods/


I also took the opportunity to do some maintenance of a dozen or more trees which were planted in previous years.  Here is one of the first Oak trees which were planted on top of The Mound exactly three years ago in December 2012.  This one is about 4 feet high (1.2 metres).  They were planted to celebrate the Queens Jubilee.

Jubilee Oak 2012

Tree-planting

Tree-planting

in the

Wildlife Area behind the Sports Centre

Sunday 6^th and 13^th 

 

^{December 2015}

10.00 onwards until midday

No previous experience necessary – all ages welcome!

Bring gloves, wellies, and spades if possible.

For further information:via Facebook

Trees donated by the Woodland Trust to commemorate the First World War

Next Tree Planting - December 6th and 13th

We have 100 or so trees, 30cm tall to plant out in the wildlife area.  They consist of oak, hawthorn, silver birch, blackthorn, and rowan.  Hawthorn and Rowan have already grown well in our soil so far.  The silver birches we planted got mown over by the lawnmower, so it will be good to replant some of these beautiful trees.

Join us on Sunday 6th or 13th December from 10.00am. until lunch-time in the Sports Centre Car Park.  The area is just behind the building.  Bring wellies, gloves and a spade if you have one.  Everyone welcome!

One hundred more trees to plant

More trees to fill the gaps in our spiral hedgerow

We have been given a further 100 small native trees to plant in the wildlife area by the Woodland Trust.  We will be planting them later this month or in early December.

These trees are given to commemorate the First World War, which claimed the lives of at least 27 men who served in the armed forces.

The wildlife area behind the Sports Centre now has a pedestrian gate beside the tennis courts. If you are visiting the area, please shut the gates after you. Sometimes stray sheep manage to find their way in, and then all our young trees get nibbled! 

This summer the area was again full of wild flowers and there were plenty of Ringlets, Skippers and Meadow Brown butterflies which breed on grasses.

In June a group of Beaver (Scouts) came to help put down shredded bark mulch to keep the weeds down round the trees.

If you would like to join in with our activities, we don't charge a membership fee, and everyone is welcome. You can send a message via this page.

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.