Cawston Greenway

Restrictions lifted but still no group workdays. Only small actions like litter picks and snipping back in pairs of two people.

Should hopefully have more news in a couple of weeks.

This week we just carried on snipping back, as part of our daily exercise.

We just have the last leg (The Bear to the start) left to do. And then we desperately need to litter-pick.

Local resident, Kate, kindly gifted us a picnic bench.

With a little TLC it will become a useful addition to our picnic bench collection. With the benches we try to make an experience for each one. It might be a bluebell or wildflower clearing or a fantastic view across the heath.

On this section of the path, we are going to cut very deep scallops into the south-facing bank, and then sow locally collected wildflower seeds.

Obviously this will be after the bird nesting season, and when we can have full work parties back. I also want to uncover some of the waterways and just keep the water flowing in the correct places. I think this will enhance the path no end.

Lastly, we rested our secateurs and enjoyed a coffee and macaroon. Loads of people using the path and everyone chatty and happy.

Loads of good stuff in the pipe-line. Just holding off as much as we can until we are allowed. Also got a lot of stuff planned for our Young Autistic Adults. Watch this space and everyone more than welcome to get involved as soon as COVID restrictions allow.

Paul

We rediscovered one of our drains this week. There is another one on the other side of the track-bed underneath all the scrub, which needs uncovering. We also cleared the inlet. We need to be extra careful not to disturb any nesting birds.

We need to keep the drains clear to stop the flooding. It will also increase the biodiversity if we have open running water available for wildlife.

Looking up and down and we are just starting to green up!

We carry on with just gently snipping back next week. We are allowed to share a coffee and macaroon for now. Hopefully things start to ease in the next week or so.

We also need to take a look at the bluebells around the Bridleway clearing. They are not the standard English variety so as much as it pains me, they really need to come out and be replaced with the real deal. I think I will let them flower and then remove them. I can replant in autumn.

We have loads to do over the spring and summer but trying to hold off as much as possible until we can meet in proper work groups.

Great to see so many people using the path for their daily exercise.

Paul

It probably is safe to make some tentative plans as we are allowed our freedoms back. The biggest thing will be having a family workday on a weekend, once a month. This allows people who are busy in the week to join in.

I am guessing that from April 12th we will be able to start proper workdays. At the moment it has just been a socially distanced two of us, snipping back and thinning trees, picking up litter and planting seeds.

Of course, as we come out of lockdown, the bird nesting season is well and truly underway, so, ironically, we are restricted in what we can do until September!!

However, I am sure there will be loads of snipping back, general tidying, and looking after bench areas by improving the views and staining the benches…

…wildflower recording, butterfly spotting, coffee to be drank, biscuits to be eaten and jokes to be shared.

So to recap – once a month, a weekend family workday, three Wednesdays a month the normal morning midweek workday.

Everyone welcome, no previous experience needed, just sturdy footwear and gardening gloves.

Paul

General tidy and a little snip back this week.

We put our Valentines rocks out at the weekend as well.

Please feel free to like the rocks facebook page https://www.facebook.com/MaggyAnneRocks

That’s it for this week. Hopefully get some good news on Feb 22nd and we can get back to normal.

Paul

We had to uncover the old ballast path today. We tried digging channels to let the standing water drain a little, but it was not going anywhere.

Possibly a bit wider that I would of liked, but I would hate for someone to slip over in this lot. It gets much worse further down.

Luckily, the growth over the ballast ridge is all quite recent, so it was not such a big a job as it looks

This is how it looks on the embankment.

The positive is that more sunlight will help to dry the path out quickly.

That is it for this week. A bit of a kneejerk but I think we are doing the right thing.

Paul

Ivy, love it or hate it… We have too much and it is stopping other things growing. It is also growing up tree trunks and into the canopy, which blocks out sunlight and can weaken the branches.

Before and after shows how little we are removing. Plenty left for insects, birds and foraging animals.

We continued with thinning out the small saplings to give the bigger trees space to grow and mature.

It just feels so much more open and welcoming. The more sunlight that we let in, the more biodiverse and interesting the understory will be.

This is a bit that we haven’t snipped back.

I know what I prefer to look at.

There is still plenty of really wild scrub all the way to the edge of the railway line, and on the other side of the path, as well.

Paul