Autumn Worky Day

Saturday marked the first weekend 'Worky Day' of the Autumn. 20 volunteers braved the wet and windy weather to help improve one of the most important habitats on the reserve.

Preparations for the day began last week when staff and volunteers brushcut an area next to Spigot Mere. This patch of the reserve was recently declared by an Ecologist as a habitat of international importance in terms of biodiversity due to the rare combination of Purple Moor Grass and wildflowers. It is managed like a hay meadow but is inaccessible to tractors and machinery so is very labour intensive to manage.

The cuttings were left for a few days to give the wildflower seeds a chance to spread but then had to be raked up and removed. This will prevent too much goodness from going back into the ground as wildflowers prefer a nutrient poor soil. The cuttings were raked into rows and piles by the band of dedicated volunteers.

It was a huge task but as the saying goes many hands make light work!

In some places the long vetetation had made an exceptionally deep layer which was difficult to rake.

Grasses were heaped into large sacks to be dragged away from the meadow.

There was a great deal of team work and determination!

Young Gorse from the banks of the mere was also cut back and burned on a bonfire.

From a distance it looked as though a steam train was going accross the moor!

In the traditional Foxglove way, a delicious hot meal was provided as a thank you. This time a warming curry served with a smile!

The group headed out again afterwards in the worsening rain to finish the task in hand.

As always, a huge thank you to everyone who gave up their Saturday to lend a hand. If you are interested in joining in on one of our 'Winter Worky Days' details are on the events page. Please note that booking in advance is essential to help with catering.