Volunteering at CRT

First visit to Countryside Restoration Trust

2013-06-28T19:00:00Z

This was the introductory session - we spent half an hour learning about the work of the CRT from Vince Lea, a monitoring officer for the organisation, who also organises and supervises the volunteers. We were informed about the work we were going to be doing - we were told about the Himalayan Balsam, and why we had to remove it, and then we were sent out to collect a pair of waders, and driven to Bourne Brook, where, once we had been equipped with a staff for depth testing, we were sent into the water, straight into a patch of the plant. We were split up into pairs, and sent in opposite directions in search of the plant. Navigating the brook was interesting at times, when nature decided to intervene with our efforts, and the banks were difficult to climb, as the mud was wet and slippery. Nettles were a notable obstacle, with some of us looking like we had contracted a new disease with the amount of stings that we had aquired. I'm not going to talk about the dead rabbits... We removed large amounts of the plant, but our efforts were to be quickly undone by the plants prolific nature. It provides us with lots of future work, but teaches us that nature is exceptionally good (almost too good) at what it does.

http://tinyurl.com/kx9yc7n to see the location of Birds Farm, the headquarters of the CRT, and the site on which we are working.

Helping with car parking at CRT open day

2013-07-21T10:30:00Z

For two hours on the 21st of July, I helped with car parking for the CRT open day. I was, with one other person, the first person on shift - we were given fluorescent jackets, and safety instructions, along with, of course, instructions on how to park the cars. We were told to organise them in rows, but, when I was instructing them as to exactly where to park, the neat line did begin to falter a little... Fortunately the other member of my team of two was able to straighten the other lines out, to avoid a knock-on effect. The aim of the day was to help people better understand the link between farming, wildlife and the food that we eat. They feel that it is important that people are educated in matters that concern them. It was an enjoyable day, with lots of people attending. The CRT say that their mission is to rotect the farmed countryside, its wildlife, and the people with the knowledge and skills to look after it – and to communicate that together these represent a strategic resource vital for our future food security. The objective of the day was to re-enforce that statement, and to communicate to the public how important the work that they do is.

Second visit to Bourne Brook

2013-07-24T18:00:00Z

This time we all knew what we were doing a little bit more - it was a beautiful day, and very pleasant in the shady brook. After collecting our waders, we headed out - one of our party ended up with waders that only went up to the top of his thighs - needless to say he ended up rather soaked! In our little group, there seemed to be less balsam to find, but it was still there. I fought my way up onto a nettle-infested bank to remove some of the plant. News that there was a wasps nest on the bank ahead did little to put people at ease - it induced paranoia in a few, and fears of an allergic reaction in another. There were a team of Silver DofE volunteers with us that day - they started off close to the wasps nest - lucky them! I learned that I need to work harder on looking for the plant, as Vince pointed out, I did miss a few.

The last Himalayan Balsam

2013-08-16T20:28:09Z

Well, my days of removing Himalayan Balsam are over - today we had a particularly good haul, even if it was only me and Ofek there. We were sent to sweep the ditch on the borders of the farm, meaning that we have cleared it all. I found some massive ones today - lots over four feet tall! The flowers made them easy to see. I managed to avoid the nettles better today, which was good. My waders sprang a leak, so my whole right leg was soaked! At the end of the session, we got into a dry section of ditch that was full of Himalayan Balsam, and with our sticks we beat it all down to the ground! It was very fun. I learnt more about HB today - turns out that competition for space with native plants is only half the problem - because it is only annual, when it grows on river banks, removes all the other plants, and then does, nothing is holding the soil together, so it erodes, thus dramatically altering local geography over time. It is good doing work for a charity, because, not only am I completing my DofE, but I am also helping a charity, and I think that's pretty good, as it is rewarding for me, too.

First try at removing Ragwort

2013-09-10T21:29:21Z

So it was time to take a break from wading in a brook, and take to the fields instead - equipped with gardening gloves, and a special ragwort removal fork, we set to work. It was, as we quickly learned, imperative that all of the plant is removed, otherwise it is quick to proliferate. Ragwort is toxic to animals, but they know to avoid it; it becomes an issue when the ragwort becomes incorporated into the hay - this is when poisoning occurs, when they cannot distinguish the plant. It is an accumulative toxin that causes liver failure, so repeated doses are a problem. Removing it with a fork is the most efficient way, as weed killers are not as effective, and cause collateral damage, too. I have to say that I enjoyed removing the Himalayan balsam more... Probably something to do with the wading in streams, and pulling plants from the ground in vast numbers... Only time will tell if pulling up ragwort is more enjoyable.

Second time removing ragwort

2013-09-23T20:52:22Z

This time I decided that I would take a break from constantly using the rag-fork; it turned out that I was considerably better at removing ragwort with just some gardening gloves, even if more of the roots were left in. It was more difficult, though, as it has to be said that the plant does not come quietly. I made much more progress along the meadow, with my patch looking much clearer by the end, and many bags full of ragwort. I also had the pleasure of finding a pile of burst balloons and streamers - clearly they had been landed there, and it looked like that had been burst elsewhere; still an interesting find. Overall, it was similar to last time, but I am starting to enjoy it more than I did before.

Final time removing ragwort

2013-09-26T18:40:49Z

Today was my last time removing ragwort - I finally mastered the rag-fork - I was no longer leaving sizeable craters in the ground whenever I attempted to remove a plant! The plant does not come quietly, as I may have said before - it takes some effort to remove it from the ground, and this can be problematic at times. As winter looms, my last ragwort session is over - the task now changes to coppicing willows, which will be a nice change. Another thing that I have mastered (again, just in time to finish!) is actually identifying what plant is actually ragwort, and what is not - on the first session, I capably removed many other species of plants with deceptively similar yellow flowers, none of them being ragwort. Fortunately, I was able to fill a couple of bags with the correct plant today, which was good. I have to say that, this is possibly slightly less rewarding than removing Himalayan Balsam - it was nice to see your hard work strung up over a branch, but, seeing masses of your work in masses of bags, and then throwing it away is rewarding too. Anyway, that is the last time that I will be filling bags with ragwort - next time I will be hacking trees to the ground, hopefully with as little collateral damage as possible.

First time coppicing

2013-10-01T21:20:00Z

It was time for a change of tact, and to exchange my gardening fork for a saw and some loppers, and head to the bank of the brook to coppice osiers. Osiers are, in essence, willows that are grown to have particular characteristics, specifically very pliable branches that are used in construction, specifically basket making. Coppicing is the process by which all of the branches are removed, but the trunk, often only about a foot high, is left, so the branches can regrow. When we coppice entirely depends on the weather, and other factors that affect how quickly the trees grow. Often, half a year or more is left between coppicing sessions, but this does not, of course, limit the times we can coppice; there are always more trees to coppice. In this first time, the longer, six foot sticks that we acquired were being sold to a scout troop, but they do, of course, have many other applications. Coppicing, in a way, could be compared to harvesting fuel for a biomass power plant. Although you are doing damage now, the trees will always regrow, and so you are harvesting a renewable resource that has lots of applications. Each tree has a trunk that is a foot or so high, and lots of thin branches - no more than two inches thick, protruding from the top. Thinner branches are dealt with with the loppers, and the larger ones are handled by the saw. Those long enough will be turned into, for example, six foot staves, practical for more sturdy construction, while the smaller ones can be used in things such as fence building or traditional style basket making. I am yet to see whether this will surpass either of the other activities, but I have high hopes.

Second time coppicing

2013-10-11T18:51:00Z

It was a much bigger turnout today - it seems that rainy weather attracts children... not something I would have predicted. Anyway, this time, accompanied by my friends, I set to work, and was considerably more productive than last week, primarily due to my being equipped with some better loppers, albeit an inferior saw to last time. I managed to process at least five trees with the help of my friends, but I was left primarily to myself at the end. The weather was worse this week; it was windy, but fortunately we were sheltered in amongst the trees. We were lucky with the rain - it held off for the entire session (and my cycle ride home!). By the end of the session we had all managed to clear quite a path through the trees, but it seems that there will be much more work to do. I have concluded that this is the best activity yet - it involves the least water, and is, beneficially, the most physically active, which is always good.

First time hedge cutting

2013-10-24T18:08:28Z

Today it was time for a change; no longer was I cutting down trees by the brook, now hacking my way through brambles in a hedgerow. The electric fence (turned off!) is continually damaged by plants growing over it, so today we were carving a gap between it and the hedgerow, which sadly involved cutting through an impenetrable thicket of brambles, which cut my arms to shreds; my gloves proved to be insufficient, as did my shoes, as, on the way there we had to walk through mud that possessed a similar level of adhesiveness to PVA glue. Safe to say, it is walking boots from now on! Fortunately, the brambles were not to stay, as I was relocated to somewhere less sharp. I have doubts as to whether this will better any of the other activities so far...

Second time trimming hedgerows

2013-11-01T17:22:56Z

It was time for my second go at facing the walls of thorns in the hedgerows of Bird's farm today, as I grabbed my loppers and got to work. Fortunately, I was better attired this time - jeans are most definitely better than joggers when it comes to entering masses of brambles, and some tougher gloves gave me the option to grab handfuls of brambles and whimsically cast them aside! It was most definitely better. I was also more capable of handling the copious quantities of mud that lay between the farm and the hedgerows, now that I was equipped with some wellington boots. We completed the section of hedgerow that we were working on, which was good, but I'm sure that there are plenty more just like it! One of the two electric fences was broken today - probably due to some brambles being snagged on it, and pulled loose. I felt that I was much more productive today, capably hacking through at least ten feet of hedgerow to complete the tunnel, as it were. We might be doing this again, but I heard word of a potential bonfire soon, so who knows?

Third time hedge cutting

2013-11-09T15:16:35Z

It was surprising to think that there was any more hedge to cut, but there was, albeit a relatively small amount. We finished off the small stretch of hedge that we were cutting before, and went on to some different ones, which were comprised mainly of brambles. This was not a concern, as we had been administered with a tool that we were told was called a slasher. it was essentially a hooked spear, which allowed for rapid destruction of hedges. After the majority of the destruction was over, we had a fire to dispose of the waste cuttings from the hedges - it was at this point that it began to rain, which did not aid the situation with the mud on the field, which formed layers inches thick on our boots, and was the catalyst for a small-scale mud fight. We managed to do no damage to the electric fence this time, which is better than last time, the results of which being a large section of the wire having to be replaced! I assume that this was the conclusion of the hedge cutting, and I know that there are plenty more activities in store.

Final time hedge cutting

2013-11-17T20:39:01Z

Today there were plans for a much larger fire than last time - four of us set to work clearing away the final strip of hedge (with some assistance from Vince), thus providing even more fuel for the fire. This time the fire was considerably larger, and not hindered by the rain, and so with some assistance from members of the group, it was an impressive blaze. The brambles, however, were not in short supply, administering many small and thoroughly irritating cuts and scratches - this was not assisted by the persistent rain of hot ashes from the fire, many of which were still partially ablaze. It has to be said that, these last two sessions that I spent using some borrowed loppers were considerably easier, both because of the higher quality of the loppers and the ease in transporting them in a bicycle pannier and looking like you are going to damage something - I was never so sure (paranoid) that I would be receiving some interesting glances from passers by with some large loppers protruding from my pannier. Vince thinks that we may be coppicing osiers again next time... I won't miss the brambles!

Last assessed session

2014-01-04T13:19:02Z

Today we returned to coppicing osiers - I had forgotten how much fun it was (but I don't think it can beat wading around in a brook!). We were joined today by some of the adult volunteers, as a photographer from the Daily Telegraph was there, taking photos for an article about the importance of volunteering. I managed to be my usual adept self when the lens was pointed at me - fortunately, I think it all turned out fine. The weather was not the best, but thankfully the rain held off for us; a light drizzle picked up towards the end, though. While this was my last assessed session, I don't think that it will be my last. Even if my attendance is irregular from now on, I intend to continue attending whenever other commitments permit me to, as I have really enjoyed my time volunteering, and I am very glad to have had this experience. The opportunity to be active and helpful does not always manifest itself in my lifestyle, and so this was a unique opportunity to do good in the community, and get my DofE at the same time!