On Tuesday 28th November, five volunteers travelled from as far afield as Portsmouth and Barnsley to help prepare the area at the south end of the Millennium Woods, which the Greener Padbury Group is hoping to help transform to meadow. The volunteers (Craig, Hortense, Julia, David and Rory), who had all taken time off from their regular work for the waste-disposal company Veolia, were co-ordinated by villager and GPG volunteer Craig Dinwoodie.
With the help of a ride-on brush cutter from Paragon Tool Hire (Buckingham), roughly half the open area at the south end of the wood was cleared of scrub and tall vegetation. The cuttings were then all removed from the site. Removal of the cuttings is vital if the nutrients in the soil are to be reduced to levels low enough for wild flowering plants to thrive.
There were field mice, field voles and toads, and occasional notes from a song-thrush could be heard. We were very lucky to have had bright sunshine and clear blue skies for most of the day, and it was a pleasure just to spend time there.
This was an important first step, and it sets in motion the process of developing the meadow area. Future steps include sowing Yellow Rattle seed to reduce the vigour of the grasses, bi-annual mowing, and the sowing of native flowering plant seed.
Greener Padbury Group is very grateful to all who volunteered, in particular to Craig Dinwoodie for organising and coordinating the volunteers from Veolia, as well as to all those who very kindly offered the use of their rakes and wheelbarrows.
If you have any comments, questions or feedback on the work Greener Padbury Group is doing in the woods, then we’d love to hear from you. Please do get in touch: agreenerpadbury@gmail.com
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