Flowers and insects galore - report from evening walk 22 June

We had an excellent walk last week with Rupert Higgins of Wessex Ecological Consultants - he really made us look at the meadows in particular with new eyes.

Left is a bee orchid that we found in the Lower Meadow.

Our next event will be an afternoon Biodiversity Walk on Sunday 18 July, starting at 2pm from the Shire Way gate.

Experts in all sorts of flora and fauna will help us learn more about this fascinating area.

Please come and join us - no need to book, just turn up!

Wapley Bushes Nature Reserve - evening walk, Tuesday 22 June, 7pm

Please come and join our evening walk round Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve with Rupert Higgins of Wessex Ecological Consultants, the expert who has just revised the Reserve Management Plan. This will be an opportunity to find out about how the Reserve is looked after and our plans for the next five years. Everyone welcome - meeting at the Shire Way gate. Please wear suitable footwear.

Educational events at Wapley

Sure Start is the Government’s programme to deliver the best start in life for every child by bringing together early education, childcare, health and family support. Wapley has recently hosted two Sure Start forest skills training events and a Dad's Group event.

As part of the Healthy Schools Initiative Abbotswood School is now joining in work with the Reserve's Nature Journal, like the schools that took part last year.  As well as regular class visits to the reserve there will be a Parents Group session in June.


The Wapley Bushes Conservation Group and Dodington Parish Council are glad to see these community education programmes making use of the Reserve, the Common and the Picnic Site, which are managed to provide opportunities for conservation, education and recreation.

Dates for your diary - Nature Reserve events

Tuesday 22 June 7pm – Evening walk round the Reserve with Rupert Higgins of Wessex Ecological Consultants, who has just revised the five-year Management Plan

Sunday 18 July 2pm – Biodiversity Walk with experts on various types of flora and fauna

Sunday 5 September 10am – Conservation Group Work Morning (ditch clearing etc)

It has been decided that future work mornings will alternate between Saturday and Sunday mornings to suit people who can't make one or the other. Further work mornings will be held on Sat 20 November, Sunday 23 January and Saturday 5 March.

All events start from the Shire Way gate. More details will follow on all these events.

New edition of the Reserve Management Plan on the way

Rupert Higgins of Wessex Ecological Consultants has been busy revising the five year Management Plan for Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve.

You can find out more by joining us on a evening walk with Rupert on Tuesday 22 June. We'll be meeting at 7pm at the Shire Way gate.

Report from 8 May work morning - good news and bad news

Our keen volunteers spent their Saturday morning clearing up litter on the meadows and in the woods. The good news is that there wasn't a lot of it - half a dozen bin bags.

The bad news is that there were half a dozen or more fire sites with smashed glass, melted bottles and cans - all dangerous for children and wildlife. We're talking to the Police and the Fire Brigade about the problem.

Wapley Bushes Work Morning this Saturday, 8 May - come and join us!

We're having a Saturday work morning this week, especially for people who can't make our usual Sunday morning sessions.

We will be doing a general spring clean of the Nature Reserve and cutting back some excess growth from the paths.

Please come and join us - we'll be meeting at the Shire Way gate at 10.00 am. please wear suitable footwear, but we'll provide the tools etc.

Bluebells galore

There are masses of bluebells at Wapley at the moment, particularly in the woods and hedgerows. The best place to see them is along the lower path in the main wood. Spring has really sprung!

Evening birdsong at Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve

It's surprising what you can record with an ordinary mobile phone. This recording has just been slightly cleaned up and amplified using Audacity.

We came, we saw, we planted

We had a big problem to deal with - an ugly corrugated fence at the bottom end of the Western Wood, put up by the adjoining landowner.

The morning of Sunday, 14 March saw an enthusiastic work party gather at Wapley Bushes for a coordinated planting operation on a bright, sunny day. Our task was to plant 60 shrubs and climbers. This is a particularly difficult area to plant in so the plants were specially selected to be both shade tolerant and good for wildlife.

Fortunately, we had a very good volunteer turnout and the task was completed well before midday ; congratulations to all involved in this very successful workday. Here are just a few parts of the stretch that was planted - we'll keep an eye on its progress and report back in due course:

The next work morning will be on Saturday 8 May, specially for people who can't make Sundays. We'll meet at 10.00 am at the Shire Way gate as usual - please check back here for more details in due course.

Work morning - Sunday 14 March

Come and join us for a morning of hedgerow and boundary planting. Tools will be provided, but please wear suitable footwear. We will be meeting at 10.00 am at the Shire Way gate.

For more details please ring Paul Hulbert on 07771 562505 - or you can just turn up on the day!

Grow Your Own Fence!

24/1/2010
Photo: Some of the Conservation Group regulars building up the dead hedge
Originally uploaded by paulhulbert

We had a very successful workday today. A dozen of us coppiced a lot of the excess trees in the Centenary Wood, and dragged the material down to the lower end of the main wood.

There we constructed some fifty metres of dead hedging to protect vulnerable areas of the wood. Not bad for a morning's work!

Wapley Work Morning - Sunday 24 January - come and join in!

Our next work morning will be on Sunday, 25 January. We will be doing some traditional woodland management - coppicing, in other words removing excess growth of self-seeded ash - in the Centenary plantation.

Then we'll will bring the brash - the cut material - down to places where we need to reinforce and rebuild dead hedging. Dead hedges are barriers made entirely from natural material, that we use to protect sensitive areas. Stakes are driven into the ground at intervals, and longer cut branches are woven between the stakes.

Please come and help, no experience necessary. We're meeting at the Shire Way gate at 10.00 am. You'll need to wear suitable footwear and warm clothing, but tools will be provided.

You can ring Paul for details on 01454 315851, or just turn up on the day.

Another note for your diary - the following work morning will be on March 14, when we shall be doing some hedgerow/boundary planting near Chris's Bridge.

A Christmas cracker

BBC Breathing Places Christmas song video :-)

Wapley in the snow

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Pictures from our Fungus Foray

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Fungus Foray - Tuesday 3 November 2.00 pm

Come and join our exploration of local fungi with expert Justin Smith - meet at the Shire Way gate. There are many kinds of fungi about at the moment - these photos were taken only yesterday.

Blown away

Unfortunately today's Wapley work morning had to be cancelled. It wasn't so much the rain, more the wind - we had planned to do work in the woodland, and that's not safe when there are high speed gusts.

Wapley Bushes autumn events

Lots of things are happening on the Nature Reserve over the next few days:

Saturday 31 Oct 9.30 am - have your say about the Management Plan for the next five years - walk around the Reserve with our consultant. Everyone welcome.

Sunday 1 November 10.00 am - work morning with members of the Conservation Group. Please come and help us!

Tuesday 3 November 2.00 pm - a Fungus Foray with expert Justin Smith. There are lots of fungi on the reserve at the moment, some the size of small plates. Come and find out all about them.

All events are free - meet at the Shire Way gate.

An excellent workday - report from Sunday 20 September

We had a very good workday last Sunday. We cleared the stream that flows down through the middle of the wood during heavy rain, cleared paths and cut back vegetation in the main wood and at the picnic area, and did a lot of litter picking.

We were very glad to have three local guides with us who are working for their BP Badge - many thanks for your help, girls!

Our next work morning will be on Sunday November 1st.