Jubilee Work Party – June 2nd 2022

No fly past for us – but a lot of scything and raking and clipping. We (nine of us) met at West Beckham Old Allotments, then, while two stayed there to mow and tidy, seven of us walked to West Beckham Village Green, armed with scythes, rakes, shears and loppers. It was very obviously in need of a haircut, particularly around the entrance, but much of the rest of the wood (called a green but really a wood!) was fairly tidy and only needed pre-emptive cutting back of brambles, poised ready to shoot across the paths in the coming days and weeks.

Back at West Beckham Old Allotments, where Trevor had mowed all the paths, after a chat over coffee we took to dock cutting, removing the seed heads to prevent a plague of docks next year, though a few plants were left for the benefit of wildlife – ladybirds, weevils, beetles, spiders and many other invertebrates.

Meanwhile, Nick carted gallons of water across the field to refill the drinking pools.

When we had finished, we spent a little while admiring the beauty of the site, with its sea of yellow buttercups, and were in fact treated to a flying display of our own, as three Broad-bodied Chasers swooped across the pond.