As the weather picks up again we have a few projects on the go:
The bin at the bridge by the dam: we are hoping that this will create somewhere for people to put odds and ends that they pick up when walking in the valley. And drop a hint to the general public that they could put their litter somewhere other than in the bushes. It’s been well-used since inception.
We fished a fridge out of the Beck last week in our little survey of the downstream stretch below the dam:
Must’ve taken quite a bit of effort to get it into the Beck in the first place!
We are preparing plans to tackle litter and plastics along the Beck more comprehensively in the coming months. And collecting wildflower seed to redistribute around the less flowered parts of the valley.
In the more salubrious parts of the valley, the final wildflower show of the summer is in bloom: banks of Scabious in the horse pastures.
Devil’s Bit Scabious: covered in butterflies and hoverfliesThe name relates to its historical medicinal use in treating scabies
The swans have left the main lake at the dam and ventured to the more weedy pond on the golf course:
They’re pretty tame: you have to hope that they don’t fall foul of dogs in their travels. I imagine they must have walked over to the golf course.
It’s been a phenomenal summer for mushrooms: hot and intermittently wet.