Task Reports

We continued our orchard management, weeding to prepare areas to make beetle banks as part of our organic methods of pest control. Beetle populations have declined because of loss of habitat including decaying wood, so hopefully we will encourage more into the site. 

Volunteers worked on the roof garden and meadow, weeding, sowing seeds, potting up seedlings and repairing cloches and other structures to give protection to vegetables, and general sorting and tidying. 

Volunteers completed the path area around the apple store, laying and compacting a layer of sandstone on top of the hardcore laid the day before. 

The area looks very impressive, the sandstone colour complementing the trees in blossom. 

Constructing paths around the apple store.

Volunteers continued the task of preparing the hew hardcore area outside the apple store. They transported four tonnes of hardcore from the site entrance to the orchard, before and laying and compacting the hardcore in the area dug out the previous week. 

Volunteers worked really hard today to dig out the foundations for a new hardcore area around the apple store. This will make the ground more robust in bad weather and safer in periods of heavy use such as Apple Day, or with school groups. Other tasks included weeding and tidying/ renovating an old raised bed.

We sowed a variety of wildflower seed harvested mainly from Bowling Park Community Orchard and the UNR. Volunteers also sowed sweetcorn, tomatoes, beans and leafy crops such as spinach and chard, as well as weeding and tidying the site. 

We  sowed some wildflower seeds   in the meadow and planted wood anemone and dog violet plugs in the woodland and cleared  and weeded the site. 

Winter tasks for the orchard include pruning fruit trees and soft fruits, coppicing, transplanting plants and hedge laying.

If you would like to join us please  meet us at the orchard, or be at Culture Fusion ready to set off by 10am, we will be travelling by minibus if it is back from the garage, or walking if not. 

If you would like more information please get in touch. 

We added some crush and run  to our prepared revetment area by the pond platform and defined paths in the woods, to reduce straying from them and erosion of the woodland.

We  prepared an area around a new pond platform and created paths in the woodland.