Please release me, Let me go....
It was back to West Lane, above Pateley Bridge, for the vols this week. If you remember, they made an excellent start removing tree tubes from a couple of plantations but didn't have time to complete the job. As they left the site they could hear the trees that still needed attention wailing the Englebert Humperdink favourite "Please release me..." It tugged at the heart strings.
So - it was back to work with the Stanley knives......
There was this area in
the lower half of the field
and another, similar sized area
higher up the hill.
Some were in a bad state...
...and many revealed whole, slimy
microhabitats under the tubes.
Into the bag with you lot.
A small number of older
trees were surrounded
by chicken wire cages.
These were difficult to remove
as twigs had grown through the mesh
and the bottom edge of the cages
were embedded in grass and soil.
That's this one free.
Let's roll it up.
By coffee time the job was completed.
Hurray!
Time to go home?
No such luck!
Liz decided to move on to
Throstle's Nest farm, a little way
down the road, to do the same thing!!
Not only was this a steep hillside,
two large piles of tubes, taken off dead
trees by the landowner, were also
awaiting processing. All the
posts were still attached.
At least the view was stunning.
We even found a banana tree.
OK. It really is time to go home now.
More still to finish next week!
Walling Update
Day Ash Farm - 15 April
It was a pleasantly warm and sunny start to the day as we gathered on Day Lane at Thornthwaite, daffodils still in bloom and the adjacent copse alive with birdsong.
The removal of ivy revealed a
wall in a poor state - the the whole stretch
needed taking down.
Dave & Simon remove the remains of a tree stump
We soon had the stones laid out,
some of which were quite substantial,...
...and the larger of these provided
a sound base on which to build.
With limited space on the wall, Barry spent the rest of the morning clearing the nearby stile of thorns and ivy, and setting a lower step on the far side to ease the descent.
A couple with binoculars called by on their way to monitor nesting curlews, and a local resident walking her dog were the only visitors. Good progress was made on the rebuild and the wall was topped off, and the site cleared by 2pm before the threatening rain appeared.
Finished wall from both sides.
The three small gaps on the roadside wall up the lane were left for another day.
Please release me, 
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