What a glorious day and perfect for conservation action at the Wetland Bunk on Leverhulme Park. especially as we were in the shade. The main aim of the day was to remove a large rhododendron from in admits the water way. Rhododendrons are not native to this country and, whilst have beautiful flowers, they have no value for our wildlife in terms of habitats and spread a great deal, hindering and suppressing other native fauna. Adele's family joined us today: Alex, Nhiamh and James. They got stuck in straight away!
The branches and logs from the rhododendron were then burnt so that the plant would not reseed itself. The fire was my job (Jasmine) and I relished the constant sculpture creating that the fire building allowed - in my element!
Behind our camp everyone else was busy enhancing a scrape ( a shallow pond). Alex, Adele and Niamh also helped to dig a channel to allow natural water to flow down the hill into the scrape. This was beautiful to see develop and should provide a habitat for all kinds of animals.
We enjoyed a fabulous picnic, provided by Natalie, which was all scoffed down with pop and mugs of tea. The perfect day for a picnic. Niamh even tried toasting meringues!
Right at the end Simon dug out a silt trap to make sure that the scrape did not clog up with silt in the future, a key feature for protecting this natural water feature.
It's fantastic to work in a team and to accomplish something that will make a real difference to the wildlife on our beautiful park. We look forward to more days like these.