Woodland Conservation Group - Fridays

Friday, 17th October 2025

Jack Wood - Wildflower Area and Pathway

Path clearance is very important in autumn when the temperatures drop and the rain begins to fall with greater frequency and in greater volumes.

The junction of the Green Chain Walk and Stoney Alley, just past the formal gardens in Jack Wood, not only becomes a mass of leaves as the trees shed for winter, but also can become as slippery as ice once the rain has fallen, washing mud and waste downhill to sit on top of them.

Friday’s Woodland Conservation Session was the ideal time to get to work on the tarmac opening stretch as the leaves had piled up but were still crisp and dry.  Additionally, the path had become very narrow as the brambles alongside flourished in the warm weather this year though, sadly, the fruits themselves didn’t fill out but died on the stems. Add to this piles of rotted leaf mulch and it was clear to us that something needed doing soon.

The path is now much wider and much safer.

One group of volunteers got to work, sweeping the leaves, shovelling up the mulch, cutting back brambles and rediscovering the full width of the path.  Great teamwork, clocking up 18 volunteering hours on this stretch alone, meaning people can now both walk safely along this stretch and enjoy walking side by side with others.

Meanwhile, habitat restoration was carried out by another 13 volunteers (lucky for us!) who clocked up an additional 36 hours in the bluebell/wildflower area, firstly clearing the waste left behind last session, then removing yet another couple of holly trees that were reducing light reaching the woodland floor and affecting the growth of one of our beautiful, mature oak trees.

The holly trees growing at the base of the oak tree have been removed and cut down.

Waste material remains in the area either in dead hedging or habitat piles, and will rot down and enrich the soil, benefiting woodland vegetation.

Cherry laurel was placed on the top of a habitat pile to prevent it re-rooting.

That’s the end of our habitat restoration sessions in this area for a while but we will be revisiting occasionally to keep the brambles and bracken in check, and we will be watching out for new woodland vegetation emerging over the next few years.

Great work team!