A change of plan! - Work at the barn:19-03-13

Today we were meant to be learning the art of 'willow spiling' in order to prevent the erosion of the banks of the River Laver. However, due to the bad weather yesterday, the river level was too high for the task to go ahead. That task was postponed for a couple of weeks, so you will have to wait for a while to find out what willow spiling actually is! 

Instead 10 NCVs met at our barn in Bewerley to do some routine maintenance. There were plenty of jobs to keep us busy for the morning. Colin did the most important one - he arrived early and lit the wood burner - essential on this cold day. Thanks Colin!

Anita, Chris, Emma, Tony and Colin then set to, cutting points on the ends of 40-50 hazel stems in readiness for the hedge laying task to be carried out next week. The stems were the by-product of coppicing work we did in Bryan's Wood a long time ago. We had brought them to the barn so that they could be used by the Bewerley Park Education Centre as den building material, but not all were needed. It is nice to know that they continue to come in useful for other tasks.

Hazel stems sharpened and
bundled ready for next week.

Jan, Dave and Julia cleared out the end room, throwing away anything that wasn't needed and stacking boxes of AONB literature ready to put onto the new shelving that Jan and Dave are kindly going to make for us. It will be so good to have somewhere to finally store these boxes - they have had a rather nomadic existence in the past which, although it has helped develop my arm muscles no end on many occasions, I will not be sorry to see end. 

Julia also made sure that the little 'kitchen' area (this description is being used in the loosest sense) was brought up to current EU health and safety standards whilst also doubling up the facility as a small reference library. Meanwhile, Dave moved onto adapting the three new leaf blowers so that they can be used as seed suckers instead. Now they will come in useful when collecting seed for the hay meadows project.

Now - this tube fits in this hole...
I think!

Whilst all this was going on Gill and I carried out an audit of the tools. Considering how tools are regularly taken into the great outdoors and used in all kinds of terrain, it  was good to find out that very few items from the original list have been lost (although some items took a while to locate - or even identify!) Tools that had everyone stumped were listed as '5 large spits'. Nobody knew what a spit was and nothing seemed to be there that could be described as one. It is unlikely that the list is referring to items for roasting hogs, or anything unsavoury related to saliva, so if by any chance the NCVs that put the original list together can remember what these items are, perhaps they could post a comment to shed some light on the matter - we are all intrigued! 

Gill and Ros hunt for the elusive
'spits' in one of the tool racks.

Of course we couldn't just audit the tools - we had to tidy them too. This had a knock on effect for the hazel stem sharpeners who kindly added to their work load by getting into the nearby stream to wash the spades and the buckets. 

 Bucket cleaning in the great outdoors.

Foreman Chris S directs the delicate
operation from the river bank.

By lunch time the barn looked really neat and tidy (I wonder how long it will stay like that?!) Lunch was eaten alfresco - sitting outside the barn with chairs and a table. Fine dining indeed (if rather cold with the snowy fields around us!) 

Paul, Ros and Anita sport their new AONB NCV
woolly hats - welcome additions in the cold weather. 

The flapjack this week (sufficient for morning break and lunch) was provided by Anita - and very delicious it was too. Thanks Anita!

Chris S., Anita and Julia soak up the sun
and eat up the flapjack at break time.

Ros E.

Hedge Laying at Low Lindrick Farm: 12-03-2013

Once more unto the pleach!

Tuesday was a momentous day.  First my triumphant return to NCV activity, from which I have been absent for far too long and, second, we were hedge laying! 

So to be clear:

The location: Low Lindrick Farm

The weather: Crisp but sunny

The activity: Hedge Laying

We were met at the farm by Charlie, a professional hedge layer and our tutor for the day.  Once assembled we were ferried to the site, which I discovered on arrival was also a competition site, conveniently and professionally laid, and we would be carrying on laying the rest of the hedge; so - no pressure there then!

Charlie launched into the safety brief and introduced us to the tools that are used in hedge laying.  Bill hooks, axes, bow saws, mallets, loppers and, if all else fails, a chainsaw.  All equipment we are familiar with... So far so good!  

 

The tools of the hedge layer's trade - sharpened and at the ready. 

Charlie then set us our first task of the day, stripping out excess branches/twigs from the hedge to leave suitable straight stems for laying. Even better, most of us are never happier than when lopping and sawing and we spent the first half of the day stripping out and tidying around the base of the hedge.

Expert tuition from Charlie, for the novice hedge 

layers, on how to 'front up' a hedge ready for laying. 

Jan demonstrates how to check your hedge is well 'fronted' - 

it has to be almost completely scalped to allow a person to fit through

Just before lunch we were stopped for the second demo, pleaching and laying the hedge... Crunch time!  We watched Charlie demonstrate the techniques, then returned to finish up stripping out before stopping for lunch which was spent in the shelter of the adjacent woodland where we shared flapjack and admired our surroundings.  The various styles of laying were discussed (we were learning the Yorkshire style) and it was decided that perhaps we were creating the Nidderdale style.

When we returned to work we were armed with bill hooks and ready to start laying! Charlie definitely made it look easy, first you make your pleach at a height roughly twice the height of the stem diameter.  When Charlie did this it took a few well placed strokes with the bill hook; when it was our turn, suffice it to say that on the larger specimens this took a little longer and the end result was, for want of a better word, feathered!  (At least it was for me.)

 Ros K and Angela start pleaching and 

laying the remaining stems.

Once the pleach is successfully in place the stems can be laid to the back of the hedge line.  It wasn't easy but with each pleach (nicely rhyming!) the quality of the cutting was improving.  After a few stems were down it was time to start weaving. This was achieved by hammering (hand sharpened!) stakes into the line of the hedge and then weaving the stems between them. Again the theory is simple enough but in practice manhandling blackthorn and hawthorn in a direction it doesn't want to go is not for the faint hearted. As evidence I found scratches all over my arms and legs at the end of the day.  

Chris G and Ros E quietly contemplate the pleaching 

and weaving they have done. Although it looks as if they 

have completely destroyed the hedge it should regenerate 

into a thick, stock-proof barrier (they hope!)

Hannah and Dave ended up with an 

impenetrable hedge - top marks 
for these two experts!

John stands back to admire the 
newly laid hedge as it takes shape.

Charlie was on hand throughout the day, chainsaw at the ready for the tougher stems and dispensing aid and advice to the novices among us. The work was carried out along the hedge in sections (two of us to each) until by 4pm the task was completed and the site tidied. All in all a fabulous day, with new skills learned in excellent company and we must extend our heartfelt thanks to Charlie who dealt with our questions and pleas for help with patience and enthusiasm.

That's all from me for now, till next time, 

Em 1

Editor's note - it was decided that hedge laying blog entry was ripe for an additional glossary. Em 1 starts us off with the following:

To pleach - to make a diagonal cut close to the base of the stem

Pleaching - the process of making the cut

Pleacher - one who is pleaching

Pleachee - the stem to receive the pleaching cut

Impleachable - a stem capable of being pleached

Un-impleachable - a stem incapable of being pleached

A hedge laying related song from bygone days: ‘Son of a pleacher man’

Any suggested puns on the word pleach should be submitted in the comments section!

Tree Planting at Studfold Farm: 05-03-2013

(Editor's note - a special entry - our 30th! How quickly time flies by when you are having such fun.

The preparation for today's task was kindly carried out by Paul, Jan and Howard during the previous morning. They had inserted tree posts where they were needed - all labelled according to a strict code and site map - and placed tree tubes over each one in readiness.)

The day dawned grey and misty and headlights were all that could be seen over Blubberhouses Moor. The sun, looking like the moon, was clear and white in a dull misty sky. As we came through Greenhow and up the valley to Lofthouse, the sun broke through the clouds and it began to feel like spring. The warm sunny weather held all day as we planted a total of 500 trees on 3 sites. 100 Oak, 150 Downy Birch, 150 Hazel, 50 Rowan, 20 Alder and 10 each of Hawthorn, Crab Apple and  Bird Cherry.

The trees were bought by Harrogate Rotary Club and 4 members turned up to help us plant them, plus 13 NCV's as well as Howard, a Tree Warden, 6 NY Volunteers and their co-ordinator, Catherine. Marion and Ann Challis had organised this event (and a further 700 trees to be planted on Sunday). The trees are primarily being planted as a cover for shooting and 2 "shooters" turned up to help us plant.

The morning was exhausting, digging, carrying, climbing, hammering and walking up and down steep banks. 

The misty start, posts and tubes at the ready.....

.... and then the sun came out...

... meaning Paul could be spotted
whenever he took a photo!

Ros E leans on her spade hoping no-one
notices she's having a quick snooze.
Meanwhile Bob practises his yoga forward bends in the background.

Will decides to utilise a nearby
tree tube as a coffee cup holder.

Then lunch time arrived - Hooray!   Anita began networking, asking us all to collect plastic bottle tops for a recycling project. Ros K. lay down to day dream, while Ros E. thought Howie's leaking flask was the possible result of too much " plunging ".

A perfect lunch spot

Like flowers we all turned our faces to the
sun instead of the beautiful view behind.

After lunch we left the Blayshaw Crag site and planted up the campsite field, at last the ground was fairly level and planting was quickly done.

The last three stragglers are chivvied
down the hillside to the campsite by Paul in the Jeep.

Job's done!

The day itself was quite beautiful and peaceful with the sound of the river breaking over the rocks as it rushed ever downward on its way. It was an easy place to be lost in ones own thoughts, only to be disturbed by the distant sound of idle chatter and Spike, the border collie, rushing excitedly past. There was a strange silence to the land around us, the distant hills, the remains of the old smelting works, the strange feeling  viaduct, the eerie sounds of times and peoples long since past. Thank you, AONB, for booking such a lovely warm day for this, our 30th blog.

Hannah

Kettlesing Felliscliffe School re-visited: 25-02-2013

Before I tell you about today’s venture, I have to report that Paul and Jan have finally completed the tree planting at Fir Tree Farm, Grewelthorpe, a task that was started 2 weeks ago. 
(Editor's note - Well done to Jan and Paul - you deserve an extra piece of flapjack next time!)

Today ten volunteers arrived for a 10am start at Kettlesing school where there were 3 tasks to be completed, but first we just had to admire(!) our fence and walling handiwork from before Christmas, which has now bedded in and looks very much part of the landscape. The quagmire had dried out around the new gate and a cluster of brave daffodils were growing up in the gate entrance. Much as these would look very attractive in bloom here, they created task no.4 - move them to a safer place! Colin took care of this one.

Gate entrance plus Colin =  Moved daffs. 

Task 1: Five volunteers offered to put in the new hedgerow –the plants consisted of honeysuckle, field maple, guelder rose, holly, hawthorn, buckthorn, hazel and dog rose. These had to be planted in 2 “reasonably straight” rows, so we staked out canes and set to. Each plant had to be approximately a boot length apart, both along the row and from the other line of plants. Due to a few stones below the surface and the differing sizes of volunteers' boots, this did not always make for an accurate or harmonious result- Dave was a stickler for “ the line”, but Hannah was convinced that curves made suitable wind breaks for wildlife. We made compromises; the planting of the hedgerow, together with the cane supports and protective tubes was eventually completed to everybody’s liking!

The planting of the hedge - Dave keeps a beady eye on the straightness of the line.

Task 2: was to construct a stile in our new fence which would make access to the field much easier. I think Howie would have liked this to have been completed sooner- it was not an easy move to clamber over our fence in order to plant our hedge! Anita and Will took the stile on and achieved a great 2 step result with hand support.

Task 3: This was to stack the remaining stones that were removed from the wall when we put in the field gate. These had to be placed neatly and safely alongside the walls on either side of the gate. Although this sounds quick and easy some stones were extremely heavy and needed muscles (!) and teamwork to move them. A few stones were also pummelled down with a lump hammer where the daffodils were removed, so the entrance to the field is now “paved” with hardcore with a nice slope for easy access- a very professional look!

After lunch 14 children arrived with their class teacher to plant some Dog Rose and Hazel trees, (which the school had provided), in the far corner of their field. They also planted a few hedgerow plants alongside the new fencing. They all did this with great enthusiasm and are looking forward to seeing the growth of the new plants popping out of the top of the tubes- eventually!

Shortly after 2pm all was completed and we had an early finish for good behaviour!  Some of us got rid of any surplus energy by tossing a couple of tennis balls around that we found in the field. Sadly, the moles put paid to any accuracy in bowling balls at an improvised cricket bat (a spade)!!

Ros K