Isle of Wight Green Gym - Official Blog.

Wed 25th Jan 2012 - Corf Camp, Shalfleet.

2012-01-26T09:16:00.003Z

We are not even out of January and we have made our second visit to this site this year! Once again the weather was kind to us, dry and reasonably warm which encouraged a good turnout for this GG session. As permission still hasn't been granted for more extensive work, we were still restricted to hedge trimming, dead tree removal and digging out some of the drainage ditches around this beautiful area. Particular attention was given to the boundary hedge along the approach road and it certainly looked a whole lot better when we came to leave! It is amazing what 30 plus people can achieve in 3 hours on a Wednesday morning. After the work was completed, several GG members were seen to heading down to the creek area, complete with binoculars, to view the wide variety of birds both on the water and the surrounding banks.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs this week.

Wed 18th Jan 2012 - Mundsley Bog, Godshill (and Ryde).

2012-01-19T12:07:00.003Z

Mark's Photograph.

Carrie's Photographs.

This week we had two Green Gym groups working in different places. The smaller group were assisting Helen Butler of the Wight Squirrel Trust to plant some trees in Ryde, and the large group were at an old GG favourite Mundesley Bog. The weather was certainly a huge contrast to the lovely spring day last week at Corfe Camp. Typical January - drizzly, damp and misty, but undaunted the group set about tackling the removal of the bracken which has grown up yet again, and also some of a large willow in one corner of the site. There has recently been some work with a digger to raise the earth level in a couple of places, and it is certainly looking more like a bog than it has done for some time. We did leave some cover near the wooden boardwalk for the lizards, so when they have been basking in the sun on it (ho ho) they still have somewhere to hide from predators.

Many thanks to Carrie & Mark for the text and photographs this week.

Wed 11th Jan 2012 - Corf Camp, Shalfleet.

2012-01-12T17:29:00.003Z

Only the second GG session of the new year and we are already off to pastures new! Almost anyone who as been a Boy Scout on the Island would have no problems finding their way to the new site this week as it was at the Scout Camp, Shalfleet. This wonderful site is on the eastern side of Newtown Creek and is a wildlife paradise. As it is designated an area of special scientific interest, the tasks we could undertake were suitably restricted so as not to disturb the area or wildlife. A large contingent of GG (possibly 40+) were soon deployed around the footpath areas, lightly trimming back the undergrowth to allow safe access, cleaning out ditches and generally giving the place an early "spring clean". It was an absolute joy to walk down to the creekside and see the numerous birds then to try and find your way back to the central area via the various pathways. The weather was a pleasant 12C with long sunny periods - just how much longer can this mild weather hold on this winter? (I am now taking bets on how deep the snow will be next Wednesday.....!!!)

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs this week.

Wed 4th Jan 2012 - One Horse Field, Totland.

2012-01-05T09:05:00.005Z

Mark's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

Let's start with a "Happy New Year!" to all the readers of this blog. After our Christmas break, it was back to work for Team GG and this year our first venue was One Horse Field. It certainly wasn't as cold as it was at the start of Jan 2011 and a good turnout of GG members were soon working off those extra pounds we all seem to attract over the Xmas holidays. Regular readers of this blog will know that we visit this site several times a year and have made good inroads into making what was once overgrown scrub land back into open meadow. We continued with this ongoing project by raking up large areas of scrub (that had been cut earlier) which should reduce the nutrients released into the ground from the rotted down cuttings. This may sound counter-productive but it does allow the natural wildflowers to outgrow the grass and encourages all sorts of insects and wildlife. I will try to post a picture during the summer so readers can see how successful we have been! We had a good turnout of GG members and our tea break was enhanced by trying to eat some of the food that had been left over from the Christmas Bash at Shide....!

Many thanks to Carrie & Mark for the above photographs.

Wed 14th Dec 2011 - Shide Quarry, Newport.

2011-12-15T09:15:00.005Z

Mark's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

It now seems to have become a tradition for Green Gym that our last meeting of the year is held at Shide Quarry, so that was where we all met up on this Wednesday morning. Considerable planning is needed to ensure that everyone brings along all that is required then man handling everything from the road down into the quarry. Just to add to the Christmas "feeling" - this year we had a heavy hail storm just as the fire was about to be lit but it would take more than that to spoil the Christmas Bash...! The working party were soon attacking the overgrown area to the east of the site and while the cooks were working their magic on the hot soup and another fire was lit to deal with the cut material. Although the sun shone through later, it was noted that warming oneself by the bonfire was a popular pastime. After a shorter than usual tea break, it was back to work whilst the soup finished cooking on the open fire. Everyone seemed to be more than happy once the bowls of hot soup were handed around accompanied by all the usual trimmings of crusty bread, sausage rolls, cookies, mince pies etc, etc. The numbers attending were down a little on previous years (perhaps the weather?) but a quick head count showed around 25 Green Gymers were there - with many of them sporting Yuletide head ware.

Carrie's Nature Lesson.

This week's find was an Oak apple, the common name for a large, round, vaguely apple-like gall commonly found on many species of oak. These range in size from 2-5cm, and are caused by chemicals injected by the larva of certain kinds of gall wasp in the family Cynipidae. The adult female wasp lays single eggs in developing leaf buds, and the larvae feed on the gall tissue resulting from their secretions. Oak galls have been used in the production of ink since at least the time of the Roman Empire, and from the Middle Ages to the early twentieth century iron gall ink was the main medium used for writing in the western world. In folklore it is said if a 'worm' is found inside the gall on Michelmas Day then the year will be pleasant and unexceptional; if a spider is found then it will be a bad year with shortages and ruined crops; if a fly is found then it will be a moderate season, and if nothing is found then serious diseases will occur all that year.

Oak Apple Day (or Royal Oak Day) is a former public holiday in England on 29 May, that commemorated the restoration of Charles II in 1660. The popular name refers to the event during the English Civil War when Charles hid in an oak tree. The commemoration persists in some areas today, although festivities have little to do with the Restoration.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs and nature lesson - not only for this week but all the other blog pages she has contributed to throughout the year.

All that is left to say is....

and we look forward to seeing you all in 2012......!

Wed 7th Dec 2011 - Munsley Bog, Godshill.

2011-12-09T14:16:00.003Z

Many thanks to Mark for the photographs.....!

I have just logged on to write up the blog for this week......but unfortunately I don'y have any material...! Your blog editor was suffering from the "dreaded lurgy" on Wednesday and didn't want to spread it around you all as it is NOT the best of Christmas pressies to give! If anyone has anything, pictures or editorial, then either e-mail it directly to me or forward via Mark.

PS Health is improving so should be along to the Christmas Bash next week.

Wed 30th Nov 2011 - Wetland Walk, Adgestone.

2011-12-01T09:29:00.005Z

Mark's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

A huge rainbow appeared just as we were going to this week's Green Gym but fortunately the weather held reasonably dry with just a light shower. As this is one of the sites that we visit on a regular basis everyone is aware of what needs to be done so Team GG were soon spread across the area and tackling the most important tasks. One area that needed particular attention was the hedging along the southern boundary as this had become very overgrown. To make the best of what was existing, it was decided that around 15m to 20m would be treated to hedge laying which would tidy it up and encourage new growth where needed. The area was cleared of bramble and weeds then the standing hedging was trimmed back prior to "pleaching" the trunks and branches. Pleaching is where the diameter at the base is cut back to allow the wood to be leaned over whilst still being attached to the base. Once the hedge has been laid in one direction then the excess branches are trimmed away and the hedge is held in place with stakes. To tidy the whole thing up a woven set of thinner branches (called "heathers") are used to bind the tops of the stakes together.

The above picture shows what the finished hedge should look like but I hasten to add that this is NOT the hedge we laid...! The stakes and heathers that we used were coppiced from over at Mill Copse as there is no suitable hazel available on site.

During the session other teams were working on undergrowth removal, hedge planting, tree planting, litter picking and trimming back overgrown areas along the pathways. Wow.....what a busy Team GG we were ......!

Many thanks to Carrie and Mark for the work in progress photographs.

Wed 23rd Nov 2011 - One Horse Field, Totland.

2011-11-25T16:35:00.005Z

Mark's Photographs.

'Mark jokes that here we have the two Janets '.... tis a little joke the ladies will understand....???

Carrie's Photographs.

Once again Team GG found themselves heading west on Wednesday morning - this time all the way to One Horse Field in Totland. We have visited the site many times in the past and it is always interesting to see the outcome of our previous tasks. The jobs this time included the refitting of a repaired wooden bench, the planting of five new trees, raking up more of the previously cut bracken and planting cuttings to "fill in" existing hedge rows. With a good attendance and unseasonably warm weather, the workforce were soon spread around the field working hard and enjoying being out in the fresh air. The pictures above show the infill planting team hard at work.

Many thanks to Carrie & Mark for the photographs this week.

Wed 16th Nov 2011 - The Pond, Bonchurch.

2011-11-18T12:19:00.003Z

Once again Team GG found themselves at another new venue for our Wednesday Workout! If you had to choose just one letter to sum up this week then it would have to be "B" - standing for Bonchurch, Buddleia, Bramble, Bamboo & Bracken. Once we had managed to find somewhere to park then it was off for a walkthrough this beautiful area so the various tasks could be pointed out. The team were basically split into two working groups - some working alongside the roadside wall and the others over the far side of the pond. It soon became apparent that had we worked there every day for a week then there would still be plenty left to do! Having said that, many of the "locals" that passed by seemed to think that we were doing a grand job and the edge of the pond looked far more defined by the end of the session. One of the most difficult problems tackled was a huge clump of bamboo that was blocking out views of the pond from the road. Some was taken down to ground level but the remainder had to be trimmed down to size, so perhaps this work could be continued if we return there. The "shoreside" team were busy cutting back the overhanging foliage to reduce the amount of water pollution and to give access for sunlight. The team working along the roadside had to contend with dragging all the cut material some considerable distance so it could be piled on a composting area. The weather is still amazingly mild for the time of year and we had a great turnout to work at this wonderful site.

Carrie's Nature Lesson.

This week's find was a Field Mushroom (Agaricus campestris), a widely eaten gilled mushroom closely related to the cultivated button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus). The cap is white, may have fine scales, and is 5 to 10 centimetres (2.0 to 3.9 in) in diameter; it is first hemispherical in shape before flattening out with maturity. The gills are initially pink, then red-brown and finally a dark brown, as is the spore print. It is common in fields and grassy areas after rain from late summer onwards worldwide, and is often found on lawns in suburban areas appearing in small groups, in fairy rings or solitary. Owing to the demise of horse drawn vehicles and the subsequent decrease in the number of horses on pasture, the old 'white outs' of years gone by are becoming rare events. The fact that we found this species in woodland is unusual, and the species is rarely found here.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs and nature lesson.

Wed 9th Nov 2011 - Afton Marsh, Freshwater.

2011-11-10T09:59:00.004Z

Team GG were back in West Wight this week and at a site we have visited many times in the past, the wonderful wetland walk at Afton. Past experience has shown that wellies are the preferred footwear for this venue and that was certainly the case this week! The group split into three working parties, the first tackling a ditching and hedge cutting job and the other two groups working on cutting / stacking trees and undergrowth. As we were working with the ranger, it wasn't long before we had a fire going and much of the bramble etc was soon reduced to organic ashes. The larger pieces were stacked neatly to form habitat piles for the local wildlife to enjoy. Once again the weather held good for us, the low cloud at the start of the session soon lifted to allow the sun to show through. With mid day temperatures around 15/16 C who would think it is almost mid November.....?

Carrie's Nature Lesson

This week's find was a beautiful Fly Agaric (Latin Name Amanita Muscaria), which is often found in pine woodlands, and also around the base of birch trees. It is found throughout the UK from September to November, and has a cap which measures up to 25cms across. It has tiny, hair-like roots which attach to tree roots, and in this way the toadstool can siphon off some of the nutrients from the tree, although this does not seem to damage the tree in any way. The caps are round when young and become flat as they nature, the white spots drop off with age. The fly agaric is poisonous and is known to cause hallucinations, violent stomach upsets, uncontrollable muscle spasms and could be fatal. It has been used as a fly killer - hence the name - where small pieces of the fungi were added to saucers of milk and when the flies came to feed they died.

Did you know? that the toadstool did not get its name from being a piece of amphibian furniture, but is from 'toad-stuhl' a German name, which means seat of death.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs and nature lesson.

Wed 2nd Nov 2011 - Granny’s Meade, Freshwater.

2011-11-03T11:39:00.005Z

Carrie's Photographs.

Eddie's Photographs.

Yes, another new venue for GG members to spend their Wednesday mornings working on. It was out to West Wight (again!) on a bright and warm Wednesday morning to work on this meadow site. We were expecting to do quite a lot of tree and hedge planting on this session but due to the warm weather, it was decided to put this back a couple of weeks to give the new trees & shrubs a better start in life. The field had recently had the hedgerows cut back with a mechanical flail type machine which had left a considerable amount of debris across the grass. One team set about raking this aside and sowing grass seed to cover the exposed areas and another started preparing the ground for the hedge planting that will take place later. Part of the meadow is to be planted with more mature trees so to give them a good start in life we erected some 30 - 40 metres of chestnut fencing complete with the supporting posts. Three trees were planted up with the remainder to follow at a later date. This session was also attended by people from the local area and it is hoped that a "Friends of Granny's Meade Group" can be set up to deal with the day to day running of the site. During the morning lots of wild flower seeds were placed around the field so by next summer it should be looking like a "proper" English meadow. We look forward to returning when everything has become established.

Many thanks to Carrie & Eddie for the pictures this week.

P.S. There is a nice group shot of some of the GGmers (page 25) and a mention of our work at St Mary's, Ryde (page 28) in IoW County Press dated Nov 4th 2011.

Wed 26th Oct 2011 - St Mary’s RC Primary School, Ryde.

2011-10-28T11:43:00.003Z

I just knew I shouldn't have mentioned Green Gym's good luck with the weather in the last blog - as we had a wet morning this Wednesday! At least it didn't pour down all morning - more like short, sharp showers. It was nice to return to this site and see how the children had been developing the grounds since our last visit. Everything was looking very good but we were tasked to work on 3 main areas. The "natural" area had become very overgrown with brambles so these were cut back and the roots dug out. The willow trees to the south of this area were cut back to allow the sunlight access and allow regrowth (hopefully NOT brambles!) The pond area had the perimeter hedge trimmed back and the pond weed was skimmed off and a general tidy up. The third task was to cut back some of the non-native trees and shrubs along the woodland walk area, once again to let the sunlight through. A good turnout of GGmers considering it was half term holidays and the less than perfect weather!

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs this week.

Wed 19th Oct 2011 - Mill Copse, Yarmouth.

2011-10-21T14:52:00.003Z

Had you been in the area of Mill Copse on Wednesday morning this week you may have been thinking..."If you go down to the woods today, you will be in for a BIG surprise..!" With 30 plus GG members all beavering away at clearing away pre-felled trees, undergrowth etc and neatly putting the logs into piles whilst burning the rubbish, it was certainly busy. Once again the weather held good for us, amazing considering we are well into October (I will now get the blame when it rains on a Wednesday morning...). The object of our work there is to try and clear areas within the copse to let the light in and allow the plants on the ground to compete. Many of the trees in this area were planted in the 1960's and are of the quick growing conifer types that really aren't much good for anything except making logs. Even then they have a high resin content which can cause flue problems if the logs are used in log burning stoves. At least they will make good nature habitats while they are stacked up in the copse!

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs this week.

Wed 12th Oct 2011 - Golden Hill Fort, Freshwater.

2011-10-13T17:41:00.004Z

As the GG team members were driving to Golden Hill on Wednesday morning they needed to use the car window wipers - an ominous sign as the last time we worked there we all got soaked...! By the time we had all mustered in the car park, the weather was improving and there was only the occasional light shower during the morning. With somewhere around 30 people in attendance, we split into 3 groups - two were tasked to clear pond areas with the third burning up material that had been cleared earlier in the year. For ponds to function and thrive, they need to be in open areas that have access to sunlight. This certainly was NOT the situation when we started on the two "ponds" as they were both very overgrown. The undergrowth, brambles, unwanted trees were cut back and piled neatly in cleared areas with all the rubbish collected and removed. Fortunately both these areas were dry at the present time but we expect they will soon be filling up as the weather comes on to winter. The burning of material seemed to go well with the piles looking far smaller at the end of the work session.

Many thanks to Eddie for the photographs this week.

Wed 5th Oct 2011 - Seagrove Dell, Seaview.

2011-10-07T09:59:00.003Z

This week the GG Team were back to work at a site we first visited almost 3 years ago to the day. The pond and surrounding area at Seagrove Dell had certainly thrived in our absence, so it was was good that we had a excellent turnout to tackle all the jobs! Due to the recent "Indian Summer", the pond area was almost dry so team A were soon in there removing the overgrown bullrushes, brambles and weeds etc. Team B started cutting back the trees and shrubs that were stopping sunlight reaching the pond, team C attacked the VERY overgrown area at the far end of the site with team D cutting back the hedge along the footpath. As if by magic the outline of the pond was revealed and by the time we all packed up, the area looked much as we had left it some 3 years previously. Although we had some light rain during the morning, the showers held off until we had finished - so perhaps the weather gods had decided to help out by starting to fill the pond again?

Have a look in the County Press (page 21) this week - there is a nice half page article about our recent visit out to Yarmouth. Fame again for Team GG....!!!!

Many thanks to Carrie and Mark for the photographs this week.

Wed 28th Sept 2011 - Heytesbury Road Recreation Ground, Yarmouth.

2011-09-30T17:51:00.003Z

Almost every other week recently I seem to be starting this blog with "This week GG were at another new venue..." and this week is yet another one on the ever growing list! Perhaps it was the glorious weather (blue sky and temperatures in the mid 20's C) or the thought of the wonderful views across the marsh that encouraged around 40 GG members to turn out on Wednesday morning. As we walked through the beautifully cut grass on the recreation ground, you could almost hear the comments " Well, not much for us to get stuck into here" - how wrong we were! Mark soon pointed us in the direction of an area that seems to left to do it's own thing for ever and a day - so lopers, saws and slashers were the tools of the day. The plan was that we would reclaim the area around a drainage ditch from the brambles and undergrowth that had covered the whole area. The cut down items were stacked into nature piles and the team made steady progress at hacking into the "jungle". The sun was particularly hot so many thanks to the kind lady who came out with jugs of cold water to keep the troops happy.....!

Press release from Mark........(and also thanks to him for the photograph this week)

Island’s High Sheriff joins the Isle of Wight Green Gym

The Island’s Green Gym conservation group has had the pleasure recently of welcoming a special new member to their ranks. The Island’s High Sheriff, Susie Sheldon, joined them for a session to help with the clearing of scrub on some land in Yarmouth.

The IW Green Gym is an independent conservation group linked nationally to the BTCV. They work right across the Island with charities, schools, parishes and councils to help improve the environment. Yarmouth Town Council was the partner on this occasion and supported the group. This week’s task was on a site which acts almost as a buffer zone between the recreation ground and the far quieter environment of Rofford Marsh with its valuable habitat, with SSSI status, important for wildlife with specialist flora and fauna including wading birds such as Snipe and Little Ringed Plover. The IW Green Gym is almost always well attended with 41 volunteers all doing their bit this week to help with the management of scrub along the site’s boundary. It is important to occasionally clear some areas of scrub, both to maintain the habitat and to inspect such things as ditches and boundaries. The group got to work and succeeded in completing the project in hand, in spite of some vicious bramble which has a tendency to attempt to fight back! Many volunteers were cutting away the scrub whilst others including pupils from St Georges School and a group from OSEL were busy creating habitat piles for the benefit of invertebrates and small mammals. During the morning their special guest the High Sheriff, Susie Sheldon involved herself in the task as she learnt about the IW Green Gym and the work the dedicated volunteers do, week in and week out around the Island.

Susie commented “This is volunteering and community work at its best, with people of all different ages and abilities sharing in the hard work, physical exercise, and social interaction at the same time as learning about the rural environment. I really enjoyed meeting all the people involved and relished the work, even the brambles.”

The IW Green Gym volunteers enjoyed meeting Susie and were taken by her willingness to get stuck in with the task in hand. In response the Group’s Chairman Mark Russell said

“Our group is of course very practical in our approach to things; it is quite clear that Susie is in tune with this attitude to life and I know this was appreciated by the other volunteers. All in all it was a fantastic session in what was tremendously hot weather, so I’d like to thank Susie very much for finding time to come along and support us this week.”

For details of the IW Green Gym’s Autumn 2011 programme visit footprint-trust.co.uk/greengym or telephone 866459.

Contact Details:

iwgreengym@gmail.com

Mark Russell – Chairman

The Isle of Wight Green Gym is an independent community group providing an opportunity for caring for the environment and at the same time improving your health through various conservation tasks. We are one of around 90 nationwide and are affiliated to the BTCV (British Trust for Conservation Volunteers).

Wed 21st Sept 2011 - Kitbridge Farm, Newport.

2011-09-22T08:38:00.003Z

Although the weather was supposed to be dry, Wednesday morning was damp and drizzly as we assembled at Kitbridge Farm. Considering the damp start, we had an excellent attendance and as per usual Mark soon had us working away at various tasks around this amazing site. Having been briefed to keep a good lookout for any wildlife, the teams soon got stuck into clearing a large area to the north of the house (see before and after photographs above) and clearing brambles etc from the front of the house.The cleared area is eventually to be used as a nursery area for the Great Crested Newts. The initial damp start gave way to the occasional sunny spell (more like "real" GG weather!) so the ones who had come in shorts felt vindicated in their choice of attire....! Mark was kind enough to show interested people around the site and was on hand to answer any questions we had.

Carrie's Nature Lesson

Although not everyone's idea of interesting wildlife, our work clearing the site at Kitbridge uncovered lots of creepy crawlies, and the one in the picture is a Black Slug (Arion Ater), which is the 'grand-daddy' of garden slugs reaching lengths of eight inches! although up to 5 inches is more typical. The skin is coarse and granular and the sole is pale, often fringed with orange. Due to its huge size the Black Slug often accepts the blame for most of the damage to gardens, but actually its three smaller cousins wreak the most havoc. It prefers a diet of rotting vegetation, fungi, manure and even the odd decomposing dead animal (we found it under some rotten logs), and only during spring when these aren't so abundant and tender young seedlings are, does it cause most damage in the garden. So remember the old saying

"If it's black, put it back,
If it's grey, keep it at bay"

When disturbed it contracts itself into a slimy hemispherical hump, making itself difficult to be pecked up by a hungry bird, and sometimes rocks from side to side, possibly in an attempt to confuse its predator. Other more cuddly creatures disturbed were a baby rabbit and two small mice.

History Lesson ( provided by Mark Earp)

Apparently the site at Kitbridge was a huge military camp, and some 10,000 items have been found across the site including round rifle shots (which are amazingly heavy and must have done considerable damage to a human body), one of the first bullets, accoutrements from horse harnesses, helmet decorations, a large number of pewter badges, long clay pipes and metal spoons - certainly a very fascinating selection of discoveries.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs & nature lesson and to Mark for the historical facts.

Wed 14th Sept 2011 - IoW GG Receives CPRE Award.

2011-09-22T08:23:00.003Z

Isle of Wight Green Gym joining the

CPRE-IW’s ‘Stop the drop!’ campaign.

The Isle of Wight branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE-IW) has been actively encouraging local groups of volunteers here on the Island to take part in the National Office of CPRE’s campaign to ‘Stop the Drop’.

CPRE-IW has been awarding grants to volunteer groups for their work in removing litter and rubbish from around the Island. During a recent session of the IW Green Gym the group was presented with a cheque for £100 by Chairman of CPRE-IW, John Langley, in recognition of the ongoing work the Green Gym does to help prevent the littering of the Island’s countryside.

Responding to the presentation the IW Green Gym’s treasurer Geoff Harris commented

“We are very grateful for this award, Our running costs are ever increasing particularly insurance, our use of the van and its fuel, the upkeep and replacement of tools as well as phone calls and postage. Every contribution helps us keep up with these demands”.

IW Green Gym volunteers have always made it a responsibility if they can to recover any litter found during their weekly activities around the Island; but in addition to that commitment earlier this summer they again undertook several sessions to help to remove rubbish from some of the Island’s beaches.

Recently at Watershoot Bay, the IW Green Gym held this year’s session to help to clean up the group's adopted beach. A successful day saw 29 volunteers take part. This was the fourth successive year in which the group has cleaned the shoreline here of debris, the majority of which had been washed in on the tide. Over that period more than 100 bags have been removed from the beach. Again this year's beach clean was also possible with thanks to help from The National Trust and the IW Council. Amongst a wide variety of things found were polystyrene, plastic bottles and many segments of fishing net of varying sizes, just some examples of the many hundreds of small items recovered, all potentially harmful to marine life and sea-birds and now safely removed. In addition several large items were recovered including a gas bottle, a 25 lt oil drum and a ship’s rudder!

For details of the IW Green Gym Autumn 2011 programme visit footprint-trust.co.uk/greengym or telephone 866459.

Contact Details:

iwgreengym@gmail.com

Mark Russell – Chairman

Notes to Editor:

Thur 15th Sept 2011 - IoW Green Gym 400th Session Press Release.

2011-09-15T16:44:00.003Z

News Release: For release after 14^th September 2011

Isle of Wight Green Gym – Reaching 400!

Have the IW Green Gym been working in your neck of the woods recently? The chances are they have, as each week, for fifty weeks a year, this independent and proactive group hold conservation based activities right across the Island.

Recently the IW Green Gym has reached another milestone, their 400^th Wednesday morning Session.

IW Green Gym is linked to the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers (BTCV), both in their principles of getting fit in the open air, and engaging communities in positive action for the environment.

These aims obviously are working as some of the members of IW Green Gym have been participating since the start in 2003. Committee members, Colin and June Withers, Secretary and Membership Officer respectively were founder members of the IW Green Gym. Many of the volunteers who joined them in the following years regularly make up the 30-40+ who attend each week doing great work to enhance our lovely island.

Eight years on among the many awards and commendations the IW GG has achieved is the prestigious Queens Award for Voluntary Service which was presented to the group in 2009 by their Royal Highnesses, The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall.

To celebrate this 400^th Session, the group is working at St Swithin’s old churchyard in Thorley. The work being carried out helps to manage this delightful location for the community and wildlife. This site is typical of many the group work on - hidden gems of the Island’s countryside, all needing the hands-on approach the group brings.

The IW Green Gym continues to benefit both the Island’s communities and its environment through its activities. The benefits also extend to those taking part each week, as volunteering is very much a two-way process, giving one’s time in exchange for improved fitness and well-being, and gaining skills and knowledge while making new friendships along the way.

Mark Russell, Chairman of IW Green Gym, commented.

“The 400^th session is a big anniversary for the group. We have come a long way and I’d very much like to thank the committee for their continued help in making it all possible.

Many thanks of course too to the fantastic body of volunteers who attend each week. Very little gets in the way of Green Gyming, I think it could almost be addictive!

Thanks also go to the many friends who have helped over the years, and to the 400+ people who have taken part in Green Gym sessions over the years and the more than 100 site owners and contributors.

Lastly we should thank The Footprint Trust which has supported us in many ways over the years and who originally began the Green Gym on the Island. ”.

For details of the IW Green Gym Autumn 2011 programme visit footprint-trust.co.uk/greengym or telephone 866459.

Contact Details:

iwgreengym@gmail.com

Mark Russell – Chairman

Wed 14th Sept 2011 - St Swithin's Old Churchyard, Thorley.

2011-09-15T16:22:00.005Z

Green Gym had somewhere new to work at this week - the "Old Church" site at Thorely. To call it the Old Church site is technically incorrect as the building is in fact a mortuary which was formed after the church that was on this site was moved closer to the village (please read Carrie's history lesson below). We had an excellent turnout - perhaps the promise of the 400th Green Gym birthday cake encouraged more people to attend...? The area was in need of a good makeover and soon there were working parties cutting and raking in all four corners of the site. As can be seen from the "before & after" photographs above - excellent progress was made around the majority of the area. The composting pile shown in the picture above was only one of two so you can judge how much was achieved. Even the couple of rain showers didn't dampen the spirits of the workforce and the excellent cake at tea break must have fuelled the second half of the session...!

Carrie's History Lesson.

This week we were working in Thorley at St Swithin's Mortuary Chapel, which is the remains of the former parish church. It has a 13th century porch with bellcote from a church built for the wife of Baldwin de Redvere Earl of Devon, which was demolished in 1871 when the modern church was built at Thorley Street, and the remains of the old church were converted into a mortunary chapel. It is built of stone rubble with a tiled roof, is gable ended and all corners have angled buttresses. The south front has a centred doorway over which is a tablet with the inscription "this mortuary chapel was built in May 1871". The ancient portion formed the bell turret of the old church of Thorley". The planked door is 19th century with a lancet window above, while the east and west sides have rectangular bell openings with dripmould below and louvred shutters. On the north side there was a double lancet window.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs and history lesson.

Wed 7th Sept 2011 - All Saints Church, Freshwater.

2011-09-09T17:59:00.004Z

Mark's Pictures.

Carrie's Photographs.

Team GG were back out West Wight this week at All Saints Church, Freshwater. Frequent readers of this blog will know that we have visited here several times before so it was all steam ahead to continue with the work plan for the churchyard area. The tasks fell into two main areas - the bank and wall area alongside the road - and the boundary wall to the east of the site. Both of these areas were considerably overgrown and need the full attention of the GG "Cut & Hack" operators...! A glance at Carrie's before and after photographs above will show the extent of the work in the road and the wonderful views over the River Yar were revealed when we cut back the overgrown areas to the east. The weather held good for the morning and we had a excellent turnout.

A quick reminder from Mark......next week will be the 400th Green Gym session so please can we have a really good turnout and for all those who have them, please wear their GG shirts.

Many thanks to Carrie & Mark for this week's pictures.

Wed 31st Aug 2011 - "The Fort Walk", Bembridge.

2011-09-09T17:50:00.002Z

As promised on last week's blog, here are the pictures of the brave GGymers who took part on the "Fort Walk". If you look at the last picture, in particular the gentleman on the right, you can see (by the wet look jeans) how high the tide was when they walked out.....!!!! Hope that the boots have dried out fully by now Bob.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs.

Wed 31st Aug 2011 - Ventnor Botanical Gardens.

2011-09-02T17:42:00.004Z

Carrie's Photographs.

Mark's Photographs.

The IW Green Gym were busy this week helping at the Botanic Gardens in Ventnor. The tasks included maintenance on the willow dome which the group created back in 2007. Now tidy once again the dome can be enjoyed by all in the meadow area. Other tasks included some clearance of an overgrown border and work to remove the summer's growth of unwanted bramble from a large shrubby area.

Carrie's Nature Lesson.

Our find this week, which had self seeded in the compost at the Botanic
Gardens was Himalayan or Indian balsam (Impatiens Glandulifera), a relative
of the Busy Lizzie. It was introduced to British gardens from the Himalayas
in 1839 and since then has become widely naturalised and very invasive, as
it swamps native plants and erodes riverbanks. It is the tallest annual in
Britain growing up to 2 metres in height, with reddish stems and long dark
green lance-shaped leaves with toothed edges. The large brightly coloured
flowers are variable shades of purplish-pink, and occasionally white, and
their appearance has led to the alternative name of 'poor man's orchid'.
Another charming local name, 'bee-bums' has arisen, as it is just the back
end of a bee that can be seen when it visits a flower of this plant.

Many thanks to Carrie & Mark for the photographs - Mark for the editorial and Carrie for the Nature Lesson.

Congratulations to the GG members who completed the "Fort Walk" at Bembridge on Wednesday evening - Anyone got any pictures?

Wed 24th Aug 2011 - Watershoot Bay, Niton.

2011-08-27T12:58:00.003Z

Carrie's Photographs.

Mark's Photographs.

The IW Green Gym conservation group held their weekly session last week on Watershoot Bay, 29 volunteers took part on this, the group's adopted beach. This is the fourth successive year in which the group has cleaned the shore of debris, the majority of which had been washed in on the tide. Over that period more than 100 bags have been removed from the beach. Again this year's beach clean was possible with thanks to help from The National Trust and the CPRE.

In total, the following items were collected :-
13 full bags of rubbish
1 large acetylene type gas canister
1 25lt oil drum
2 large tangles of rope
4 x 1m sq pieces of plastic
A large rudder

"I would like to thank everyone who joined us on the day. Amongst a wide variety of things we found polystyrene, plastic bottles and segments of fishing net of varying sizes, just some examples of the many hundreds of items recovered, all potentially harmful to marine life or sea-birds and now safely removed. The information we gather all goes towards the ongoing campaign for cleaner seas."

Mark Russell, IW Green Gym chairman

Carrie's Nature Lesson.

An unusual find this week in the location of Watershoot Bay, of a plant that is becoming rare in Britain - Atropa Belladonna or more commonly Deadly Nightshade. The bell-shaped flowers are tyrian purple with green tinges and faintly scented, and its fruits are berries which are green ripening to a shiny black. It has a long history of use as a medicine, cosmetic, and poison. Before the Middle Ages it was used as an anaesthetic for surgery, and the ancient Romans used it as a poison; predating this it was used to make poison tipped arrows. It is one of the most toxic plants found in the Western hemisphere, and all parts of the plant contain tropane alkaloids. It was used in traditional treatments for centuries for an assortment of conditions including headache, menstrual symptoms, peptic ulcer disease, histaminic reaction, inflammation, and motion sickness.
It is said that Macbeth of Scotland, when still one of the lieutenants of King Duncan I of Scotland, used it during a truce to poison the troops of the invading Harold Harefoot, King of England, to the point that the English troops were unable to stand their ground and had to retreat to their ships.

Many thanks to Carrie & Mark for this week's contributions.

Wed 17th August 2011 - Alverstone Mead.

2011-08-18T18:26:00.003Z

Carrie's Photographs.

Eddie's Photographs.

This week Team GG were "rolling in the hay" but perhaps a more exact description would be - gathering in the hay, putting it into rolls and then stacking them up (doesn't sound anywhere near as exciting - does it?)

The grass in Skinner's Meadow had been cut and turned before we arrived so it was all hands to the rakes to gather it all into elongated piles ready for digestion by the munching machine. This clever device "eats" the hay, rolls it into a huge cylinder, wraps it with a biodegradable wrapper and then ejects the finished roll. With just short of 40 GG members working hard, by the time it came around to tea break, the majority of the field was raked up. The team then split into two - one continuing with the hay making and the other tackling some ragwort in a nearby field. Excellent progress was made with both tasks and John (the warden) seemed happy with our efforts. As per usual it was a delight to visit this wonderful site and see how some of our previous tasks were progressing.

Carrie's Nature Lesson.

The warden at Alverstone Mead - John found a fascinating insect during this week's visit - a Great Green Bush Cricket. These are the largest insects found in England in limited areas in the south around July to October. It prefers to live on rough grassland and on uncut fields which have long tall grass, but it still needs bare patches of grass in its environment so it can lay its egg in the soil. They are about five centimetres in length, mainly grass green in colour, with a cone-shaped head, a brown stripe on the top and two long antennae. It also has six green legs, and the long hind ones can help it jump up to one metre in the air. Its wings are green, quite long and usually placed over the body when the cricket rests. They can often be heard before they are seen, particularly on hot summer afternoons and at night when the males want to attract females. The males sing very loud high-pitched songs, which are produced by rubbing their hind legs very quickly against their forewings. This action is called 'stridulation'. Male Great Green Bush Crickets can sing different songs to attract females and the females can listen to the songs by using ears which are situated on their front legs.

Many thanks to Carrie & Eddie for the photographs and to Carrie for the Nature Lesson.

13th & 14th August 2011 - Healing Festival, Ventnor Botanical Gardens.

2011-08-18T18:21:00.003Z

On 13th and 14th August Green Gym were represented at the first Healing Festival. It was held at Ventnor Botanical Gardens and was a huge success; two days of fun, fantasy and fresh air. The atmosphere was lovely and there were circus things for everyone to try out - Bobby and Abigail were very good at twirling the plates on sticks - I couldn't even get mine to go round more than twice and Bobby wiggled those hips to get the hula hoop going.

Elspeth and her daughter Anna built an amazing mini-willow dome which was used all weekend by children of all ages, even tiny tots were toddling inside to hide, it was admired by all, while Roger sat and looked bemused or amused at their efforts. The grandchildren Maisie and Raf together with Abs took colouring books inside and made the most of the shade and privacy in their new den.

Mark and Colin put up the stakes for the willow hurdle and we invited all comers to add a few willow wands, and many people came and had a go and were interested in what GG does. Mark showed how he missed his vocation as a very good instructor.

I did some willow circles which were very popular especially on Saturday and people were walking around with them on their heads like crowns, looked good. Bobby did a larger one to show what could be done and several people did some to use at xmas as the base for festive wreaths. We used several large piles of willow and ended up cutting some from the gardens as our own supplies ran down [with permission of course].

Angela and Pete came along on Sunday to help mind the stall and with us and Bobby to pack up, a big thank you to all. I don't think any of us expected it to be such a success with many hundreds of people visiting the festival and lots of therapies available to try out. We have been invited back next year and look forward to going again - if only to get another henna tattoo!

Many thanks to June for the above.

Wed 10th Aug 2011 - Wetland Walk, Lake.

2011-08-11T09:24:00.004Z

One of our regular visits this week to the site near the waterworks owned by Natural Enterprise, which is the site of a community orchard and wetland walk. Work had already been done in the form of a large amount of strimming, but one of our tasks was to rake all the cut material into a big pile, which hopefully will help the wild flowers on the undertake some treatment work to the various wood items on the site, and we managed to coat both the picnic benches, the wooden fruit sculptures and also a small bench and some railings - then we ran out of teak oil!

We were also joined by a couple of members of the Isle of Wight Orchard Group, which has recently been set up on the Island. The work of Orchard Groups can include recording existing orchards and providing protection from threats through management, conservation, education and celebration, and orchards are also wonderful for wildlife, protect the soil, water and climate.

Many thanks to Eddie for the photographs and to Carrie for the editorial.

Wed 3rd August 2011 - Medina Valley Centre, Dodnor.

2011-08-04T08:12:00.014Z

Eddie's Photographs.

Bob's Photographs.

Pathway Maintenance.......

Tree Removal........

The Medina Valley Centre was venue for the GG meeting this week, a place we have visited many times over the years. The weather was gloriously hot (perhaps a little TOO hot!) which encouraged lots of members along to this wonderful site on the banks of the Medina river.

We were given two main tasks - maintaing the wood chip pathway (which we had built previously) and the removal of some "rogue" saplings that were growing in a meadow area. With the team split into two groups, excellent progress was accomplished with both jobs and it can be seen from the photographs above, both undertakings were completed by the close of play.

Carrie wasn't with us this week (all say ahhhh....!) so - instead of her usual Nature Lesson spot - I have included the picture below.....

For those of you who have never been along to one of our meetings, the work schedule is split into two parts with a tea break between them. Besides being a chance to let the muscles relax, it is a great time to chat with friends and sometimes eat the occasional piece of cake (thanks MVC...!) or biscuit! Who said that exercise can't be fun?

Wed 27th July 2011 - One Horse Field, Totland.

2011-07-28T07:59:00.004Z

Eddie's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

The GG Team were back at an old favourite this week.....One Horse Field in Totland. The tasks involved trying to clear a large area of bracken that had grown along the NE boundary of the field and a general cut back / tidy up around the site. The bracken pulling proved to be on a par with the delightful job of Ragwort lifting (there was even some of that to do!) but good progress was made and the area looked much better for our efforts at the end of the session. (See above "before & after" pictures.) Although cloudy at times the weather held fine and we had a good turnout of the GG Team. During the morning we were filmed for a DVD release which will be all about the Island's green and voluntary working aspects......Once again we are film stars...!!!!

Carrie's Nature Lesson.

This week's find was some Tufted Vetch (Vicia Cracca), this conspicuous plant with a showy heads of violet-purple flowers is commonly found scrabbling through vegetation. It climbs by means of branched tendrils found on the ends of its ladder like leaves which are divided into 8-12 pairs, and can be identified as a true vetch (Vicia) by not having a winged or angled stem which would be the case were it a pea or vetchling. This plant is a perennial of hedgerows, woodland edges, rough grassland and river banks, and has a preference for reasonably fertile, damp soils but is intolerant of permanently damp sites. It has limited capacity for vegetative spread and is mainly reliant upon its large seeds for regeneration, and this coupled with its need of surrounding vegetation for support means it is rarely found in pasture or mown grassland. It can, however, become established in meadow, particularly those cut later in the season (which is the case with One Horse Field), and is pollinated by bumble bees and other large bees.

Many thanks to Carrie for the pictures and nature lesson & to Eddie for his pictures.

Wed 20th July 2011 - Northwood House, Cowes.

2011-07-21T08:28:00.003Z

Eddie's Photograph.

Carrie's Photographs.

Well you couldn't say that the Green Gym let a little bit of rain stop them working, mind you it was more like a LOT of rain although nearly 30 of us braved the extremely wet conditions to undertake further tasks at Northwood House the first being to drag a large amount of cut tree branches over to the compost heap, and the second to sweep a big pile of leaves from under one of the trees (at least this group were slightly drier). Our final task was to work on the garden and exterior walls of the Lodge, which is a Grade II listed building and still lived in. The garden was very overgrown and needed a good clear out to open up the path around the building, trim back the ivy on the walls and cut back the shrubs as well as removing some tree branches to let in more light. All the stuff cleared out was taken to the back boundary of the garden and stacked into piles to rot down. One of this week's images is a fascinating picture of a metal tie which has been placed around part of the building (sort of a metal belt to hold it together) dated we think around 1890, and has two horseshoes placed in the corner, presumably hoping to be lucky it didn't fall down!

Many thanks to Carrie for the text and photographs this week.

Wed 13th July 2011 - CE Primary School, Newport.

2011-07-15T10:49:00.002Z

Our second visit in as many weeks to Newport CE Primary School, continuing the work begun previously. We gave the willow dome a really good clear out so that when the children play there they can be seen by the teachers to make sure they are safe. Some nice bits of willow were also taken away for the monkeys in the Owl and Monkey Haven (who really like to eat it apparently). We also put some plants in the bog garden, covered the membrane with compost, made a couple of habitat piles and transferred a large stone to make a nice feature in the centre. Work also continued on the meadow to attract bees and butterflies, with several Green Gymmers bringing plants and seeds along to populate the garden. A membrane was laid, plants added and watered, then covered with wood chip which was barrowed some distance from where it had been delivered.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs and editorial this week.

Wed 6th July 2011 - The Duver, St Helens.

2011-07-09T08:54:00.002Z

Yes it's that time of the year again when the Green Gym take up their
litter pickers, black bags and ragforks, to help the National Trust wardens
keep their land and beach at St Helens shipshape and Bristol fashion. About
40 of us set to on a somewhat changeable day with a couple of light showers,
but dry on the whole. The ragwort was certainly plentiful and the beach
clean yielded the usual crop of all sorts of plastic, cans and bottles
together with other detritus (including smelly things in black bags)
obviously some dog owners have trouble seeing the bright red bins that you
actually put the bags in!!!!

Carrie's Nature Lesson

This week we came across one of the best-known flowers of the countryside,
Foxgloves (Digitalis Purpurea). This tall familiar herb produces 20-80
nodding flowers on a long spike, known as a raceme. The tube-like flowers
are pinkish-purple in colour, with an area of white inside the tube
featuring darker purple spots and a few hairs. The greyish stem is woolly,
and the green oval or lance-shaped leaves have downy upper surfaces, but are
woolly below. The common name derives from the Anglo-Saxon 'foxes glofa'
meaning foxes gloves, and refers to the tubular flowers which are suggestive
of the gloves of a small animal. The flowers were also known as 'witches'
thimbles' by Medieval herbalists. This species thrives in acidic soils in a
range of habitats including open woods, woodland clearings, moorland, heath
margins, hedge banks, sea-cliffs, waste land, rocky mountain slopes and
hedgebanks. The active agents in foxglove, known as digitoxin and digoxin,
are still used in modern medicine to control heart rate.

Many thanks to Carrie and Mark for the pictures and to Carrie for the editorial.

Wed 29th June 2011 - Newport CoE Primary School.

2011-07-01T10:47:00.002Z

A new site for us at Newport CE Primary School, helping improve the grounds for the children. Our main task was to build a bog garden in an area which becomes very wet; this involved removing the turf, digging the soil out about a foot deep and putting in a membrane with a few holes for drainage. We then barrowed over some compost to mix with the original soil, and put it all back in the hole. Later in the year the children will be selecting the plants they want in the garden and planting it up. Other work involved cutting back the willow dome and making a start on creating a flower meadow in another area.

Carrie's Nature Lesson

A very common creature when we start digging - a leatherjacket - these are the larvae of the European Crane Fly (or Daddy Long Legs as they are commonly known). The adults hatch from pupae in late July and August and lay their eggs in the ground within 24 hours of hatching. The larvae hatch about 2 weeks later and start to feed on grass roots, which continues through winter and into spring. They stop feeding in May/June when they will pupate in the soil. In general, they stay underground in the day and move up to the turf leaves at night. They are very sensitive to drying and do not survive if they are dried out by the sun.

Many thanks to Carrie for the editorial and photographs this week.

Wed 22nd June 2011 - Brading Down.

2011-06-23T14:22:00.002Z

Carrie's Photographs.

This week saw us on one of our regular visits to Brading Down, where we were again working hard on the removal of ragwort (and doesn't the photo of our new van look smart!). We had an excellent turnout on an extremely blustery day, and no work on the down would be complete without a shower of rain - and at teatime!! The programme of scrub clearance and other work in recent years has definitely improved the area for wildlife, as well as making it safe for grazing cattle. Pyramidal orchids are a particular feature, and the area is also good for butterflies including common blue, chalkhill blue, small, large and dingy skippers, marbled white, gatekeeper, and meadow brown. In addition the ancient field system is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, with the finest surviving ancient field system on the Island (probably late Iron Age or Roman)found here.

Carrie's Nature Lesson.

We have two items this week, the first is an interesting caterpillar found by Richard which is that of the Six Spot Burnet Moth. These are day flying moths, whose red wing spots warn predators that they taste bad! The caterpillars feed on trefoil and vetch which contain traces of the poison cyanide, and these toxins are carried on through to the adult moth. The caterpillars pupate on grass stems, forming a yellow coloured chrysalis.

The second is Germander Speedwell (Veronica Chamaedrys), a low growing, patch-forming, prostrate plant found in grassy areas and hedgerows. Its pretty blue flowers have a distinct white 'pupil' in the centre, giving it the country name of 'cat's eye'. It has triangular shaped leaves and hairy stems, is a nectar source for solitary bees, and in the past was used in herbal medicine to treat coughs and catarrh, and as a blood tonic.

Terry's Photographs. (showing the brand new Green Gym Mobile...!)

Alison's Photograph. (Showing members enjoying a post GG meeting picnic..!)

Many thanks to all those who have contributed text and photographs towards the blog this week.

Wed 15th June 2011 - Northwood House, Cowes.

2011-06-16T13:11:00.002Z

This Wednesday Team GG were back at Northwood House - where we visited, for the first time, just a few weeks ago. The real excitement of the day was when the new GG van arrived...all brand new and gleaming...wow! Our tasks this week were in the grounds to the north of the house and involved cutting back dead wood, transporting pre cut materials to the composting area, trimming back hedges and bushes, sweeping up fallen leaves and generally having a tidy up. The weather was overcast to start with but after tea break the rain started and was to last for the remainder of the session. Oh well, the gardeners amongst us were pleased to see it...! Unfortunately Carrie's camera seems to have had a bad day (perhaps the rain got in it?) so we are a little short on photographs this week. The one above must be an "action" shot - we at GG don't have the time to stop and pose!

Carrie's Nature Lesson

A unusual shaped cone this week from a Norway Spruce(Picea Abies) The tree is conical in shape, with sharp rich-green needles, long rounded cones and brown scaly bark. The branches of young trees grow upwards, and when the tree matures the branches at the bottom droop slightly. The red-brown hanging cones first appear on the topmost branches when 30-35 years old, flower in May, and the seeds ripen and drop from the cones that winter.
The Norway spruce was a native species in the British Isles before the last Ice Age, and did not return naturally with the melting of the ice but was reintroduced before the 1500's.

It is a useful source of timber as well as providing dense year-round cover for many small birds and animals, with goldcrests and long-tailed tits finding shelter and food in the tree top. Older uses included fuel, charcoal, potash, Burgundy Pitch for medicinal plasters, tanning, scaffolding poles, ladders, spars, oars, masts for boats, flooring, musical instruments, lining parts of furniture, packing cases, fencing and roofing for agricultural buildings; the inner bark was used to make baskets and canoes, while the shoots were made into spruce beer. Its medicinal purposes include the use of its resin for healing ointments and skin pastes, while a tea made from the young shoots was used in folk medicine to ease respiratory troubles such as influenza, coughs and catarrh. The needles were added to bath water, and when boiled in milk whey the cones made a remedy for scurvy.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photograph and nature lesson this week.

Wed 8th June2011- Riverside Centre, Newport

2011-06-09T08:22:00.006Z

Carrie's Photographs.

Terry's Photographs.

June's Photographs.

The GG session this week was very much on our own turf (please excuse the pun!) - the Riverside Centre at Newport. This is where the GG Team is based and where all out tools, equipment etc is stored. There were numerous tasks to tackle - perhaps the largest of which was to rebuild a large wooden planter in the rear courtyard area. This had originally been built using a false base made of wood which, over the years, had become rotten and had collapsed. The existing plants were lifted, pruned and soaked in water while the whole bed was dug out, repaired as required, partially filled with re-cycled plastics, fitted with a new plastic liner before being refilled with new top soil. The old plants, along with some new additions, were then planted up and a good layer of wood chip mulch applied to retain the moisture and keep the weeds down.

Another large job involved the dismantling of an old shed and the re-siting of another one - see the pictures above for details of that work! Other GG members weeded and turned over the soil in various flower beds and the whole area was given a spring clean. In the midst of all this work (chaos?) several of the team were being interviewed for a radio show....talk about multi tasking....!

We had a really good turnout and with the exception of a short sharp rain shower, it was dry and warm.

Many thanks to Terry & June (sounds like an old TV show!) for the photographs.

Wed 1st June 2011 - Brading Downs.

2011-06-03T11:30:00.005Z

Terry's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

This week the GG meeting was part of a much bigger event called Bioblitz. It allows lots of the groups associated with nature to come together and also have a "nature day" collecting data on a given area. Brading Down has recently achieved Local Nature Reserve status so it will be interesting to see what is growing and living in this area of rich biodiversity. We were tasked with several jobs this week, extreme pathway building (see below), ragwort pulling and general trimming of the undergrowth along the numerous pathways on this site. It was an excellent turnout and good progress was made on the given tasks. At tea break we were treated to delicious cake, the occasion being farewell to one of our long term ranger friends, Rick. Good luck in whatever you decide to do next......!

Definition of extreme pathway building - take a pile of about 5 tons of stone chippings - get as many wheelbarrows as you can muster (complete with athletes to push them!) - find the steepest path around (at LEAST a 30 degree slope) then barrow the chippings from the top to the bottom...!!! To make it even more interesting, make sure the slope is south facing and organise the event on a really hot day. You soon become very aware of where your leg muscles are.....

Green Gym had a stand up in the car park area and members of the public seemed very interested in the work we do across the Island.

Carrie’s Nature Lesson

This week we found a Great Mullein, (Verbascum Thapsus), also known as Aaron’s Rod. As well as growing in disturbed areas such as fields and ditches, it is also easy to grow in the garden. A multi-purpose herb it is a lovely addition to your landscaping, with a stalk growing some 6ft high and leaves up to 2ft across. The leaves are spirally arranged, often densely hairy with flowers having five symmetrical petals in colours including yellow (most common), orange, red-brown, purple, blue or white. The Puritans used it as a medicinal herb, with teas and ointments made form the leaves of the plant used for many years to alleviate lung diseases, rheumatism, burns, rashes and earaches. In your garden a good specimen is excellent for attracting bees who enjoy the blossoms, while birds can also eat the seeds.

The other picture shows some of the "beasties" that was found on the day.....!!!!

Many thanks to Terry & Carrie for the photographs and Carrie for the nature lesson.

Wed 25th May 2011 - Northwood House, Cowes.

2011-05-26T12:39:00.003Z

A new venue for the GG team this week, Northwood House at Cowes. As it was a new site, we were shown around the jobs by our mentor for the day and were soon hard at work at various places across the extensive grounds. Bushes along the main road were lightly clipped back (still nesting birds around) as were the hedges along some of the walkways. Parts of a dead tree were removed and a long flower / shrub area to the south of the site was given a make-over (see the pictures above). After the tea break we attacked a large pile of previously cut tree branches - these were snipped back and transported to the compost heap area. All in all a busy few hours but very enjoyable working in such a splendid location.

Mark & Alison's Nature Lesson.

This week we were lucky to see at Northwood Park a really very beautiful flowering Tulip tree Liriodendron tulipifera. This non-native tree only flowers after growing for at least 25 years. Introduced to the UK by the Tradescants - gardners to Charles I. Native Americans used to use it for canoe building as up to 20 people could be carried in a single hollowed out truck, this was due to the length (up to 50ft) of a trunk before it branches. Hurry along to Northwood to catch it at its best!

Many thanks to Eddie & Mark for the photographs this week and to Mark & Alison for the Nature Lesson.

Wed 18th May 2011 - Dickson's Copse, Dodnor.

2011-05-20T13:36:00.006Z

This week the team were working down in the woods just off the cycle track at Dodnor. We were greeted with the sight of two huge piles ( a total of 8 tons) of chippings surrounded by numerous wheelbarrows...!

The path builders were soon hard at work working from the central point of the path back to the pile of materials. Other GG members were tasked to give the edges of the footpath a light trim - nothing too heavy in case of nesting birds etc. Although there was a very light shower, the weather remained good and we had a reasonable turn-out. If you have the time when you are in the area, take a walk up through this copse - it is well worth a visit (and now has a nice new pathway..!)

Carrie’s Nature Lesson.

A really nice find this week - the Common Spotted Orchid (Dactylorhiza Fuchsii) which, as its name suggests, is probably the commonest and most familiar of our wild orchids. An attractive plant ranging from 15 to 60 cm in height, with a spire of flowers varying in colour from white to pale purple with purple spots, two lipped flowers, and narrow usually dark spotted leaves, it is unmistakeably an orchid. It is a perennial of calcareous to neutral soils, found in a broad range of habitats including chalk grassland, meadows, scrub, woodland, marshes and fens, dune-slacks and even mildly acidic heaths. Although often found in relatively unmanaged habitats it seems to do particularly well following disturbance, which explains why it can sometimes be found in high numbers on artificial habitats such as waste ground, quarries and railway embankments. It flowers from June to August (so this week’s find is earlier than usual), and some highly perfumed colonies are attractive to day-flying moths.

Many thanks to Carrie for the Pics and nature lesson.

Wed 11th May 2011 - Ventnor Botanical Gardens.

2011-05-13T18:05:00.004Z

Team GG were "down south" this week - back at one of our favourite venues - The Botanical Gardens. The pictures above do not reflect the good turnout and with the weather holding, our tasks in the hop gardens were soon well underway. The rows of hop plants on the frames had become very overgrown with weeds so it was all hands to the trowels to get the unwanted growth away and then tie and support the hop plants on to the climbing frames. Other GG members tackled some overgrown areas around the edges so the whole area was looking much more cared for by the time 1 pm came around. Some of the team took advantage of an offer for a guided tour of the gardens by one of the support staff - many thanks for showing them around. Please don't forget to invite us back at picking time and again when the hops have been brewed into ale....!!!!

This week it is a big thank you to Carrie for the photographs.

Wed 4th May 2011 - Freshwater Community Centre.

2011-05-07T11:01:00.003Z

Eddie's Photographs.

We returned to Freshwater Community Centre for the GG this week. The main tasks were to tidy up the planters out the front, cut back a rather overgrown area to the rear and to have a general tidy up. The plants we had put in previously all seem to be doing pretty well and looked all the better for weeding and forking over the soil. Two of the team found a novel way to take the rubbish bags around to the composting site....see above pictures. Like everywhere on the Island at the moment, they could all do with a good downpour as it has been so dry for so long...! If the forecasted rain does arrive later in the week then the soil will be ready to receive it. We had a good attendance (in spite of the parking issues..!) and a lot of work was achieved before we left.

Well done to one and all.

Many thanks to Eddie for the photographs.

Wed 27th April 2011 - Binstead Woods.

2011-04-28T11:25:00.002Z

As you can see from the pictures above, team GG were back pathway building again this week. Two large piles of stone chippings had been pre-delivered to each end of Binstead Woods and it was all hands to the barrows, shovels and rakes for building up the boggy areas of the footpaths. Although the piles were of a considerable size (6 tons total?) we made short work of them and by tea break we had completed that part of our tasks. Other team members walked the numerous pathways - trimming back any overhanging brambles etc and doing a litter pick as they went. As we were close to the Millennium Gardens, it was decide that we would do a bit more work clearing the brambles along the butterfly walk (we have worked there before). We were careful that there were no nesting birds and also when walking around as common newts, toads, slow worms etc were all seen in this area. Seeing such a wide diversity of creatures and plants in an area we have helped with makes it all worthwhile.....!

Carrie’s Nature Lesson

Among our many finds this week, the only one we could get on camera was a Common Toad (Bufo Bufo), which is widespread throughout Europe with the exception of Iceland,Ireland and some Mediterranean islands. Its easterly range extends to Irkutsk in Siberia and its southerly range includes parts of northwestern Africa. Adult males usually grow to 8 cm and adult females around 13 cm, while their skin has a warty appearance in colours from green to brown.

Toads generally hunt at night, and are most active in wet weather. As a defense against predators they secrete a toxic, foul tasting substance called bufagin, which is usually enough to deter many predators although grass snakes and hedgehogs are immune. Although the adults spend most of their time on land, the females enter ponds and other still waters to lay their eggs as toadspawn, which can be distinguished from the spawn of the common frog as it forms strings rather than a large mass of eggs. These are laid in the spring, with the females attempting to return to the water in which they were born. The young tadpoles resemble other tadpoles in their appearance, except that toadpoles have a larger, rounder blacker head and shorter tail. Young common toads eat ants and some small flies, while the adults eat invertebrates such as insects, insect larvae, spiders, slug and worms, which they catch on their sticky tongues. Larger toads may also take small reptiles and rodents, which are swallowed alive.

Many thanks to Carrie for the pictures and Nature lesson.

Wed 20th April 2011 - Dimbola Lodge, Freshwater.

2011-04-21T13:42:00.001Z

This week saw about 40 of us at Dimbola Lodge in Freshwater on what proved to be a very hot day. Last time we worked here we gave a very severe haircut to the hedge in front of the tea rooms, which did look rather thin when we had finished. What a different we made - it is now thick and bushy, perfect for nesting birds and they have had lots of comments from visitors to the Lodge saying how wonderful it is to now be able to see the beautiful view - so gold stars all round for us then! The gardens in and around the Lodge needed a really good clear out, so there was lots of hedge trimming (checking for nesting birds first of course), weeding, clearing out bramble, general pruning of the large shrubs, sweeping up all the debris and putting it into large bags for later disposal. It certainly looked much better when we had finished.

Many thanks to Carrie for the editorial and photographs this week.

Wed 13th April 2011 - Fort Victoria, Yarmouth.

2011-04-14T13:19:00.003Z

Team GG were back at one of our favourite sites this week, Fort Victoria. We have been here many times before but the rangers always find something else for us to do. This time the tasks fell into 4 main areas, three of which involved wheelbarrows and large piles of materials (again!). Apparently there were some 7 tons of chippings plus 3 tons of top soil for us to deal with...! Two pathways were laid in the wooded area using the well tested method of crushed limestone on a prepared surface. One path had to go over a very boggy area so a drainage system had to be built in. The turfed area to the seaward side of the fort had been damaged during recent mechanical work so this was levelled, filled with top soil, and then reseeded - so should look as good as new in a few weeks time. The 4th task involved a team working along the footpath towards Norton - to give it a good de-litter and spruce up. The forecasted rain held off and the session was VERY well attended - well done everyone!

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs.

Wed 6th April 2011 - Haylands Plantation.

2011-04-08T15:13:00.005Z

GG visited this site way back in June 2007 so it was nice to see how it has developed. For our readers who are unaware of it's location, it is behind the allotments on the Ryde / Upton Cross road. There is a small play area with swings etc and some lovely circular walks through the plantation area. This GG meeting seemed to be particularly well attended - a rough headcount was around 40 people there. The sun was shining.....the birds were singing.....and we were wheelbarrowing stone chippings from a huge pile ( just had an e-mail from Colin telling me it was 6 tonnes...!) down to the bottom of the site to form a mud free pathway. Other GG members were giving the site a general makeover - trimming back bramble and branches - opening up a clearing and generally making the whole area walker friendly. Most of our tasks were completed and the whole area looked more cared for by the time we came to leave.

“Carrie’s Nature Lesson”

This week we found some lovely Wild Cherry trees (Prunus Avium), which is a species of Cherry native to Europe and western Asia. It is the species from which most sweet cherry cultivars are derived, and is a deciduous tree growing up to 15m tall, and can attain an age of up to 200 years. It prefers a sunny position and is found in woods and hedgerows throughout the British Isles except Northern Scotland. The bark is shiny brown and peels away in horizontal strips, and it is sometimes grown for its reddish brown timber which is used for turnery products, furniture, veneers, decorative panelling and pipes; it also makes good firewood and you can smell the fragrance of the blossom as it burns. The mid-green leaves are elliptical in shape tapering to a point, and in autumn they turn a mosaic of vivid reds and yellows, orange, crimson and purple. The masses of snow white blossom appear before the leaves in March or April, and the flowers are usually white to pink with five petals and five sepals. Clusters of fleshy small cherries are produced in July, which provide food for a variety of birds including the rare and elusive hawfinch, which can actually crush the cherry stones with its massive bill.

At the time of publishing, I haven't received any photographs. If they arrive later I will attach them - watch this space...! They arrived....so...many thanks to Carrie for sending them (again!) and for her nature lesson.

Wed 30th March 2011 - Golden Hill Fort, Freshwater.

2011-04-01T11:22:00.005Z

Eddie's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

This week the GG Team were back out at Golden Hill Fort, Freshwater. We were there a few weeks ago hacking our way through a very overgrown area to create a new footpath. This visit was to put down chipped stone on the muddy path thereby making it more accessible to walkers. The weather on Wednesday started poor and got steadily worse...! The mist turned to gentle rain and eventually into a steady downpour - certainly not what the GG Team expects on a Wednesday morning. Even with the deteriorating weather we had a good turnout so it was all hands to the shovels and wheelbarrows. The Rangers had pre-dumped two huge piles of chippings, so it was clear the pathway of any remaining undergrowth, put down weed control matting then, using the wheelbarrows, tip them out to form the path. As can be seen from the above pictures, it doesn't take long to convert a huge pile of chippings into a "yellow brick road" through the woodland. We worked in two teams - each starting at the ends of the new path - working towards each other. We didn't have enough materials (or time) to meet up in the middle but I am sure the Rangers will have future plans for us with respect to that...! Watch this space....

Carrie’s Nature Lesson.

A strange-looking object this week - looks more like a piece of old polystyrene but is actually Slime Mould - a comparatively less well-known group of fungi which are in fact not strictly fungi at all but share some of the characteristics of protozoa, a group of animals of the simplest type, each consisting of a single cell. They might better be termed "honorary fungi" and exhibit characteristics of both animals and fungi. However they do not share the roles and functions of fungi, and physiologically they are both different from and similar to fungi at various stages of their development. The acellular, creeping, phase of the slime moulds is definitely animal-like, while the reproductive structures are plantlike, producing spores covered by definite walls. They are found in forested areas, where they appear in great profusion on dead and decaying wood, or wood litter, and on dead leaves.

In their feeding or trophic stage, they move about as a mass of protoplasm (plasmodium) devouring bacteria, spores and other organic matter. Research has discovered that the largest living entity is a slime mould measuring many miles across. The individual 'amoebae' live as a multi cellular mass communicating by chemical signals, and are classified in a separate Kingdom - the Protoctista. They can often be found as a white or yellow film (the plasmodium) under stones and logs, but the most striking occurrence is on grass or other low-growing plants during wet periods.

Many thanks to Carrie & Eddie for the photographs and to Carrie for the Nature Lesson.

Wed 23rd March 2011 - Squirrel Dell, Ryde.

2011-03-24T15:15:00.004Z

Carrie's Photographs.

Eddie's Photographs.

This week the GG team were back at Squirrel Dell - Ryde. Having eventually overcome the problem of accessing the site, we soon got down to clearing away large areas of bramble. Our last visit to this site was during the very cold weather last winter, so the sun and warm temperatures for this visit were a real plus! The bramble and undergrowth was piled to form hedge like barriers and then the cleared areas were planted with new trees - complete with rabbit guards, stakes and weed control matting. The area was given a general spring clean and all the rubbish taken away. Let us just hope that the squirrels appreciate the make-over we gave them!

Many thanks to Carrie & Eddie for the photographs.

Wed 16th March 2011 - All Saints Church, Freshwater.

2011-03-17T15:16:00.003Z

Eddie's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

Well Spring had certainly sprung today during our visit to All Saints Church, Freshwater helping the Cemetery Warden Carol. The churchyard was bursting with beautiful daffodils, with great tits and robins singing merrily from all sides, especially when we got stuck into all the tasks - I think they were hoping we would unearth lots of goodies for them, certainly there were quite a few homeless woodlice! Lots of jobs for us - one important one being to clear out the gullies around the bottom of the church building, which had become very overgrown with weeds. Two large groups tackled the boundary walls of the churchyard -– both sides - clearing away the ivy on both the roadside edge and the side past the bier house right along to include the cemetery extension, and barrowing all the greenery over to the disposal area. Other tasks were to tidy up the rubbish tip, paint the large shed a nice shade of green, and clear away the trees from the outside of the wall near the road - Phew!

Many thanks to Carrie and Eddie for the pics this week.

Wed 9th March 2011 - Merstone Station.

2011-03-10T12:03:00.003Z

This week the GG Team were working out at the site of the old Merstone Railway Station - a place that we have worked at several times before. A good turnout (the car park was almost full..!) and a sunny day soon had the planned work well underway. We were tasked to work on the northern boundary where the hedging had become very top heavy and overgrown with bramble. With half the team attacking the cutting back the others started cutting it all up ready for removal. Just to make matters "interesting" there was a stream between the platform area and the hedge we were working on - needless to say it was just deep enough in places to flood a welly boot and several people managed to get a water-cooled foot! Once the bank area had been cleared between the areas of good growth, new trees and shrubs (kindly donated by the Woodland Trust) were planted up, complete with rabbit guards and supporting stakes. Hopefully this will fill in the bare areas and will help to blank out the rather large tin shed that is just the other side of the hedge. This is a very popular site for dog walkers, cyclists etc and we even had the local hunt passing by as we worked (see pics)! Well worth a visit if you are in the area.

This week we can thank Mark for our photographs - Carrie was away and Eddie forgot his camera!

Wed 2nd March 2011 - Quarr Abbey, Binstead.

2011-03-03T17:14:00.003Z

Eddie's Pics.

Carrie's Pics.

This week the GG assignment was back at Quarr Abbey - a site that we visited just 3 weeks ago. A wonderful sunny morning (even if it was a little "crisp") encouraged an excellent turnout and the work we had started previously was soon underway once again. One team continued to cut the hedge down from the 20 foot level to around 3 foot while the others gathered up all the branches. Instead of feeding a chipping machine this time, we were tasked to build posted areas in the woods on the opposite side of the lane, then stack the cutting neatly between the posts. Cutting down the hedge turned out to be the easy part (except for the ever present brambles!) - the hard work involved dragging these up the lane, cutting them down to a manageable size before dragging them into the woods and stacking them. Everyone worked extremely hard and the site was cleared before we left - well done to all. Once again, a big thank you to the staff in the tea garden for the free teas and coffee at break time. I hope we didn't buy up all your wonderful sticky cakes...!

Many thanks to Carrie & Eddie for the photographs this week.

Sat 26th Feb 2011 -Hedge Laying Contest, 2011.

2011-02-28T15:01:00.005Z

Each year the last Saturday of February heralds the return of the IW Hedgelaying Contest. For 2011 it was held at Calbourne Mill along a stretch of their hedgerow bordering the Newbridge Road. (If you are in the area take a look) For what is now the third time in the contest's history the IW Green Gym entered a couple of teams. The competition is to lay a length of hedge, to certain judged criteria, in a traditional style. Twelve teams entered, a record, as well as many individual participants in the open and novice categories.
Both of our teams worked with only hand tools, such as billhooks and bowsaws, this means that progress is slow; five hours sounds a long time but let me tell you it is the quickest five hours of the year! Both of our teams finished our sections in time however and contributed to what is now a great looking length of layed hedge. The process comprises the pleaching (the laying bit) which is then staked and topped with heatherings or bindings (the top finishing to the stakes). I was in 'Green Gym 2' along with Gill and Alison and we worked constantly to create a length of hedge to which we could be proud. We came 9th in the rankings. 'Green Gym 1' did even better and finished in 7th position, they were Viv, Kevin, Mick and Mark E a very fine result, especially considering the extremely wet conditions they were working in along their section.

A very big well done to everyone! Mark R

Many thanks to Mark for the editorial and to all who sent in the photographs.

Wed 23rd Feb 2011 - Great Combley Wood, Havenstreet.

2011-02-24T18:37:00.006Z

Carrie's Photographs.

Eddie's Photograph.

Considering the atrocious weather lately, we had an excellent turnout for a completely new site for the GG, at Great Combley Wood near Havenstreet, helping the Wildlife Trust with their pond project to create 25 new ponds over two years. This is part of their commitment to the International Year of Biodiversity, which has been funded in part by the IW Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Partnership, via their Sustainable Development Fund. Our job was to clear all the trees and shrubs in a marked out area where the pond will be, many of which were quite big and very tall (about 25-30 ft), cut them up and stack them around the perimeter, while using some of the small bushy trees to make some habitat piles. Cries of “Timber” and even “Geronimo” were soon to be heard, as our hardy crew got stuck in. There was also the chance for some hedgelaying practice, as the Green Gym will have teams competing in this Saturday’s competition at Newbridge Road, near Calbourne.

Carrie’s Nature Lesson

Not too much in the way of finds this time of year, but some delightful catkins (see image) certainly brightened up a very wet and murky day. Many trees bear these elegant hanging cylinders of flowers, and a catkin (or ament) is a strand of tiny and inconspicuous unisexual flowers. Trees with catkins include those of the Beech family (such as oaks and chestnuts), the Willow family (such as willows, aspens, poplars and cottonwoods), the Birch family (such as birches, alders and hornbeams), the Mulberry family and the Walnut family (such as walnuts and hickories). The ones in the picture are actually on hazel, which are pale yellow in colour and up to 5cm long. They open in February, when hazel and its companion deciduous trees are all leafless, so they are one of the first obvious signs of Spring in the forest. The female flowers are tiny red tufts growing out of what look like swollen buds, and are visible on the same branches as the male catkins. Pollination is by wind, and hazel is self-incompatible - successful pollination only occurs between different trees, as a single tree cannot pollinate itself.

Mant thanks to Carrie & Eddie for the pics and text.

Wed 16th Feb 2011 - Mill Copse, Yarmouth.

2011-02-18T14:51:00.005Z

Carrie's Pictures.

Eddie's Pictures.

This week saw us at Mill Copse in Yarmouth, helping the rangers Nick and Richard. The route from the car park up to the entrance of the copse was exceptionally muddy, especially following the amount of rain we have had recently. This led us nicely into the first task, which was to spread some limestone chippings on the worst parts of the pathway. The copse was originally ancient woodland, mostly oak and ash with hazel understorey, and the rangers have done a lot of woodland management over the years, involving removal of the conifers planted back in the sixties to allow in more light. This has made the resident ash and oak much healthier, and also encouraged wood anemones and bluebells to grow in the open spaces on the ground. Our second task was to remove some ash trees, and coppice a section of hazel in an area already cleared, which has now regenerated. We also cut up the ash for stakes and used the hazel for heathers (tied up in stacks of 10), to assist with the Hedgelaying Competition being held at Calbourne Mill on Saturday 26 February - a great event for keeping this ancient art alive in the countryside, which is free to attend and well worth a visit! We also made some tree stakes for future planting and, following a request to the rangers, also provided a batch of sticks to be used for Morris Dancing!

Carrie’s Nature Lesson

A plant called “Iris Foetidissima” was found this week, also known as Stinking Iris, one of the two iris species native to Britain. It is found in dry woodlands, hedge banks and scrubby sea-cliffs, mainly on lime-rich soils in southern England. The mauve flowers appear from May to July, and its long strap-like leaves, which form dense evergreen clumps, have an unusual smell when crushed, leading to one alternative name of ‘roast-beef plant’. After flowering the seed pods swell, bursting open in the autumn to reveal spectacular brilliant orange-red seeds, which often stay on the plant throughout winter. It is an excellent plant for a dry,shaded part of the garden, but plant it in free-draining soil that is not too acidic.

Many thanks to Carrie & Eddie for the photographs and text this week.

Wed 09th Feb 2011 - Quarr Abbey, Binstead.

2011-02-10T18:48:00.004Z

Eddie's Pictures.

Carrie' Pictures.

The GG workout this week was at Quarr Abbey - and what a workout it turned out to be! It was a good job that we had a excellent turnout of around 40 GGmers as the planned work was considerable. If you have a look at the "before" pictures above, you see a 20 foot high wall of solid hedge interwoven with brambles as thick as broom handles..! A quick glance at the "after" shots will show exactly what the work package involved - reduce the 20' hedge down to around 3' and take out all the brambles. This will encourage the lower parts of the hedge to thicken up and also allow the walkers on the adjacent footpath to see stunning views of the creek (see Carrie's last picture above). We had two of the Abbey's ground staff working with us, manning the tractor driven wood chipper which made short work of the branches that we were cutting down. The chips are being used on the footpaths around the abbey and for composting/top dressing.

Our tea break was taken in the adjacent Tea Room (thanks for the drinks!) where many were seen to be enjoying the optional sticky buns & cakes...!!!

Good progress was made with the hedging (we left them with huge piles to chip at a later date) and various other jobs were tackled. If you fancy having a go at this sort of work, we will be back at the Abbey in two weeks time - come along and give us a hand.

Carrie’s Nature Lesson.

This week Charlie discovered a very interesting bracket fungi (see picture), but despite extensive trawling of the internet and picking the brains of my resident expert, I could not put a name to it. However bracket fungi or shelf fungi are among many groups in the phylum Basidiomycota. Characteristically they produce shelf or bracket shaped fruiting bodes called conks, that lie in a close planar grouping of separate or interconnected horizontal rows. These can range from only a single row of a few caps, to dozens of rows that can weigh several hundred pounds. They are mainly found on trees, and some form annual fruiting bodies while others are perennial and grow larger year after year. They are typically tough and study and produce their spores, called basidiospores, within the pores that typically make up the undersurface, and some species are cultivated for human consumption or medicinal use. They come in all shapes and sizes including the hard ‘cup fungi’ and the ‘shell’, ‘plate’ and bracket commonly found growing off logs and still standing dead trees. One of the more common species - Ganoderma, can grow large thick shelves that may contribute to the death of the tree, and then feed off the wood for years after.

Many thanks to Carrie & Eddie for the photographs and Nature Lesson.

Wed 2nd Feb 2011 - One Horse Field, Totland.

2011-02-03T19:12:00.003Z

Team GG were back at an old favourite this week......One Horse Field in Totland. As someone pointed out, we have been here many times but nobody has ever seen this elusive "One Horse"!

This was a particularly well attended session and once again the weather was kind to us. The main task this week was to rake up all the cuttings that had generated by prior mechanical trimming. We split into teams, some raking the cuttings into piles and others using Maxi bags to carry it away to composting piles. Other GG members tackled some trees that needed heavy pruning and others were cutting back the new shooting shrubs. The whole area looked much improved at the end of visit and hopefully the wild flowers & plants will have a fighting chance to grow this year.

Many thanks to Carrie for this week's photographs.

Wed 26th Jan 2011 - Afton March, Freshwater.

2011-01-27T15:36:00.007Z

Eddie's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

This week's GG meeting was held out at Afton March - a site that we have visted a few times in the past. We were working with the Rangers on the "middle area" of the footpath that runs through from the garden centre to the car park by the lifeboat station. The task was to continue with the cutting back of the willow that grows so prolific in this area, burning as much as possible and stacking the remainder (for future burning). The area around an old fire site was opened out to ensure that the fire could be lit safely then it was all hands on the loppers and saws to clear as much as possible in the given time. Lighting a fire in the middle of a marsh is an "interesting" task but eventually the heat was such that the new cut material could be added - considerably reducing the pile that had been pre-cut. One of the problems of working in this area is the nature of the ground - what starts off as being reasonably firm soon becomes a boot stealing bog after being transited just a few times...! The stumps are left proud of the ground level so that further treatment can be applied that will kill off the roots. Excellent progress was made at cutting into this thicket - it is always amazing to see just how much can be achieved in just a few hours - well done to all...!!!

Mark and the rangers spent some time demonstrating hedge laying techniques to those who may be interested in entering the IoW Hedge Laying Competition. This year it will be held at Calbourne Mill on the last Saturday in February. See the website below for details further :-

http://www.iwhg.org/competition.html

Carrie’s Nature Lesson

A very colourful fungi was this week’s find - Velvet Shank (Flammulina Velutipes) one of the few fungi which grows in winter, and seeing them sprinkled with snow on a crisp winter’s morning makes a walk in the cold air really worthwhile. The cap is approximately 2cm to 6cm in diameter and is found through the UK from September to March. On standing dead trees the clusters are usually tiered, which makes the caps more regular. It is particularly common on dead elm trees, but also occurs on oak, beech and other kinds of hardwood. The cap is an orange-brown colour and the gills underneath are creamy orange, the stem is dark brown to black, and distinctly velvety to the touch (hence the name) with no ring on the stem.

The fungi is edible, although it could easily be confused with similar looking species, so an expert opinion before eating is a good idea. They are now grown commercially in Japan, where they are known as ‘Enoko-take’.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs and Nature Lesson and to Eddie for his photos.

Wed 19th Jan 2011 - Naturezones, Blackwater.

2011-01-20T18:36:00.008Z

Eddie's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

As can be seen in the photographs above, this week's GG session was held in bright sunshine which helped to thaw the heavy overnight frost. We were back at the Naturezones venue where the jobs were both numerous and varied. The team split into various groups that tackled clearing part of the meadow (shown above), repairing wire fencing, clearing woodland, digging out part of a newt pond plus a couple of other jobs..! It was a good that we fielded a full team and most of the tasks were completed before the end of the session. Tea break was accompanied by large slices of cake and those who could stay after the work was completed were treated to homemade leak & potato soup with crusty bread and stilton cheese - a huge THANK YOU for taking care of us so well.

For those who were unable to attend on the day, have a look at the Naturezones website at

www.naturezones.org.uk - it is well worth a look.

Many thanks to Carrie & Eddie for snapping the above photographs.

Wed 12th Jan 2011 - Golden Hill Fort.

2011-01-13T10:49:00.003Z

Wednesday morning was one of those grey damp days when it isn't quite raining but not far off. The car park at Golden Hill looked a little empty at 9:55 am but suddenly GG people appeared from all directions ensuring that we had a full team to tackle the job in hand. Our friendly Rangers had already started cutting a new pathway through one of the very overgrown areas - our task was to make the pathway wider and to establish several clearings. As can be seen from the photographs, good progress was made in clearing away the tangled undergrowth and brambles - the larger items were sawn up and used to make nature heaps with the remainder being burned on the two bonfires we had started. The reason for opening up areas such as this is to allow the sunlight in which will encourage more ground level plants to thrive. Removing the bramble and overgrown hazel also allows the more mature trees to grow better. Fortunately, the rain held off until around 12:30 so we were only damp (rather than soaked!) by going home time.

Many thanks to Carrie for taking the photographs this week.

Wed 5th Jan 2011 - Mundsley Bog, Godshill

2011-01-06T18:00:00.004Z

And so we start another Green Gym year....! The GG team were back out at Mundsley Bog for the first meeting of 2011 and had several tasks to achieve. We continued the previous work with cutting back the bracken and willow, this has now been piled up and the whole area is looking much better for the "haircut". Another team worked at building two dams across the trickle of a stream that crosses this site - the idea being that this will raise the water table in the surrounding area and introduce more bog. A third team were tasked at cleaning out the ditch which takes the runoff water from the pond. The weather was kind to us (again!) and the predicted rain didn't start until after 1 pm.......phew...! There was an excellent turnout for this meeting, perhaps a few guilty people needing to burn off a few calories after the holiday period...???

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs this week.

Wed 15th Dec 2010 - Shide Quarry, Newport.

2010-12-16T18:47:00.006Z

This week Team GG were back at Shide Quarry for the Christmas "Bash". Over the years that GG has been running, it has been a tradition that the final GG meeting of the year is held at the quarry - so that once the work is completed - the party can begin....!!! Although the forecast was for rain, it held off for us and good time was had by all. The work this week was to continue the scrub clearance at the south end of the quarry, collect up all the cut material, then burn it on the controlled fires that were set by our friendly rangers. One of the fires was used to heat the various pots and pans containing all the vegetables that the team had donated. Once the work tasks were deemed complete, the veg soup was doled out to the assembled group. The scene may have resembled a soup kitchen but that hot soup and veg tasted absolutely wonderful....!!! This was followed up with home made cakes, mince pies, biscuits etc, etc - truly a banquet fit for a King. A huge thank you to June & Colin for the organisation and "pot stirring", to our friendly rangers for the heat source and to everyone who contributed to the vittles.

As blog master, I would like to thank (on behalf of the GG Team) all those who organise our Wednesday meetings. Without Mark and his team of "Santa's little helpers" it would be difficult to see how anything would ever get done.

As 2010 for the GG team draws to a close all that is left to do is wish you all a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and we look forward to seeing you all in the New Year.

Wed 8th Dec 2010 - Mundsley Bog, Godshill.

2010-12-10T11:26:00.002Z

"The cold winds blew in over the frost covered bracken....." No - not the start of some Sherlock Holmes mystery novel but what the GG Team were presented with last Wednesday morning! With the daytime temperature on (or below) freezing, walking around with your feet in freezing water takes some doing.... but do it we did. Considering the poor weather conditions we had a good turn out to attack the ever growing willow plantation. Frequent viewers of this blog will be well aware of how overgrown it was when we first visited here and the progress we have made in trying to clear the area on our many visits. This time the work focused around chopping out the new growth willow, gathering the dead bracken into piles and the modification of some of the drainage ditches. The tea break was particularly welcome this week, a cup of hot fluid has never tasted so good and also helped to thaw frozen hands..!! Well done to all those who turned out - the site looked a lot better when we left it.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs this week.

Wed 1st Dec2010 - Red Squirrel Dell, Ryde.

2010-12-02T22:13:00.006Z

The bitterly cold weather conditions this week meant that it was quite an achievement even to get to the location. Ice and a little snow were one factor (one of the padlocks on the tool shed was frozen!) and a piercingly cold wind another. This understandably meant that numbers were reduced. Never-the-less a very good number, considering the elements, turned out to the 'Red Squirrel Dell', an important piece of wooded boundary for the recreation ground in Pell Lane, Ryde. This is a wildlife corridor linking gardens here to Play Street Lane and one of our favourites, The Millennium Green. We cleared a good area ready for the planting of native trees later in the season.

The site itself was thankfully, as the name suggests, in a dip in the landscape and we escaped the worst of the wind chill factor while we worked. I thought I would investigate, as this week I am the stand-in reporter, this phenomenon of 'wind chill' so often quoted in forecasts. It seems the rate that a surface looses heat depends upon the wind speed above it, so the faster the wind speed the more readily it cools. So if you take an inanimate object, it will reach the ambient temperature quicker if there is wind passing over it. However for biological organisms, like us, our physiological response is to try and maintain our surface temperature in an acceptable range so as to avoid adverse effects (frostbite etc). So that attempt to maintain the surface temperature when there is a faster heat loss from wind chill gives a perception of a lower temperature and a very real accelerated rate of heat loss from the body.

Many thanks to Mark for the pictures and editorial this week.

Wed 24th Nov 2010 - One Horse Field, Totland.

2010-11-25T18:34:00.003Z

Mark's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

One Horse Field, at Totland is a meadow of around two hectares, including semi-improved and herb-rich grassland with mature hedgerows and scrub, and was the venue for this week’s Green Gym. When the nearby housing development was planned at Hurst View, there was a condition that the field should be kept at an open space. Part of the site is designated as a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation, adjacent to a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and was part of a larger farm which has grazing history back to the eighteenth century. Over the last few days a large section at the southernend of the site has been mowed by machinery, and our task was to rake the cut grass into piles, put it in large bags, and pile the cuttings onto the hibernaculum (the Latin meaning is ‘”tent for winter quarters" and can refer to the location chosen by an animal for hibernation). Taking the grass away will encourage the growth of wildflowers, and the using the cuttings will be good for slow worms and other invertebrates. A supplementary task was to remove a large sycamore and stack the branches onto the pile with the grass cuttings.

Conservation of the area is important as the soil types, changes in agricultural practice and nature succession, have brought about the current habitats found here. If the dynamic process of natural succession is left unchecked, it will allow the grassland to become scrub-dominated and eventually woodland. It is imperative for the grassland to retain its current interest and enhance its potential, management of the site is undertaken to retain the features of interest. This field is particularly important for biodiversity, because of the proximity of semi-improved grassland to wetland. The situation benefits species such as dragonflies, which need meadows for feeding and ponds for breeding. If unchecked, these open habitats would be lost and in addition, the site will act as a buffer to the proposed geological SSSI on the soft cliff to the west of the meadow.

Many thanks to Carrie & Mark for the text and photographs this week.

Wed 17th Nov 2010 - Afton Marsh, Freshwater.

2010-11-19T13:51:00.004Z

This week’s visit was to Afton Marsh helping out Richard the Ranger. Unfortunately the predicted weather forecast was correct for once, so it was a bit wet and windy, but the usual large hardy group came along suitably togged up in wet suits and wellies to get stuck into the task ahead. There is a circular path around Afton Marsh, the right hand side of which has received grant funding for a programme of improvements. However, the path to the left is extremely muddy, and in one or two places it was waterlogged almost to the top of our welly boots. So our task was to create a new path on the top of a raised ridge, which was made up of spoil taken from other areas of the Marsh some time ago, but which was very overgrown with small trees, bramble and general scrub. So we started at one end and spread out in a long column along the ridge to clear away everything for the space of about three or four feet, to create a new passage to join up with the drier end of the pathway further along. As we got to the end, we found that a VERY large tree over a foot wide had fallen across our route; having picked up our bowsaws Richard the Ranger said “you’re never going to cut that with those are you”? Now - that was definitely throwing out a challenge, so about twelve of us set to sawing, cutting and removing the tree to finish the morning’s task.

A big thanks to Carrie for the text and photographs this week.

Wed 10th Nov 2010 - Adgestone Wetland Walk, Sandown.

2010-11-11T09:43:00.007Z

We should have taken more notice of the location name for the GG venue this week.....Wetland Walk..!!! We arrived at the picnic area and strolled down to the woodland paths, only to be confronted with a huge lake. Yesterday's downpours had caused the stream to burst it's banks and the whole area was flooded to a depth of around 2 foot or more. Nobody seemed brave enough to see just how deep it was so plan B swung into action. The perimeter of the picnic site had become very overgrown and needed a bit of a trim - thereby opening up the views and letting more sunlight in. One team decided to tackle a particularly large sycamore tree and cries of "Timber" was soon heard...! The timbers were cut down, logged and the branches stripped before being reused to build a new boundary fence. Other teams tackled the brambles and overgrown areas with the offcuts being heaped up to hopefully encourage more wildlife. Bags full of cans and bottles were collected - so the whole area was looking much better by the time we left. The weather was bright and cool but we had a really good turnout of GGmers - well done everyone.

Many thanks to Carrie for the photographs this week.

Wed 3rd Nov 2010 - All Saints Church, Freshwater.

2010-11-05T13:10:00.017Z

Eddie's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

This week the GG team were working in one of the oldest churchyards on the Island (it was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086). Our task was to assist the church's cemetery warden group in their ongoing task to keep the grounds in good order and where possible, encourage wildlife. The GG team split into three groups, working to clear vegetation from the stone wall shared with the adjacent footpath, clearing the gardens at the base of the church walls and cutting back a very overgrown area down towards the marsh. The weather was unseasonably warm which undoubtedly helped to swell the numbers for a very well attended session! Good progress was made towards completing all the given tasks - please see some of the photographs above which show some "before and after" shots. Many thanks to all who attended and to June & Colin for the excellent cake at tea break (goodness me, cake on two consecutive weeks....!!!)

Carrie’s Nature Lesson.

Growing on some dead elder, this week we found some Jew’s Ear (Auricularia auricula-judae). This fungi grows up to 60mm across, is found throughout the UK all year round on elder and beech trees, and the name comes from the story that Judas Iscariot hung himself from an elder tree. The fungi is pale brown in colour, and really does resemble a human ear in both size, shape and texture; as it gets older it turns black and hard. It is one of the few fungi which have the ability to withstand freezing temperatures. This is a useful attribute, since it develops new growths in January (normally the coldest month of the year in the UK), can actually freeze solid, but when thawed out shows no ill effects. In Chinathey are commercially grown and gathered young, whilst still soft and moist, they make excellent eating; even old Jew’s Ear fungus can be dried and ground for use as a flavouring and thickener for soups and stews. Even young versions of this fungus need long-term cooking, and have to be boiled for 45 minutes or more in stock or milk before being eaten, but the flavour is almost beyond compare, hence their value in Chinese soups.

Many thanks to Carrie & Eddie for the above.

Wed 27th Oct 2010 - Kitbridge Farm Trust, Newport.

2010-10-29T11:09:00.012Z

Eddie's Photographs.

Carrie's Photographs.

This week the GG Team were back at one of our most favourite sites - Kitbridge Farm. In spite of forecasted rain there was an amazing turnout of GGmers, including some "visitors" from the North Island! Our task was to dam off a ditch and divert the field runoff water to sequentially top up three ponds. These had been drying out durning the summer months so it is hoped that they will now stay as ponds all the year around. The work was labour intensive but can only be done manually as a mechanical digger may destroy the wildlife that lives in the ponds and surrounding areas. We had only just started work when Mark found a Great Crested Newt (see photograph somewhere below) - it was soon re-housed in a safe place.

When coffee time came around, Mark produced several yummy cream and chocolate cakes - the grand occasion being the 35th anniversary of the Kitbridge Trust. Many thanks Mark....they were delicious....Please can we have the same for each of our visits to you?

Tea break over and it was back to the ditch digging, dam building, pipe laying etc with a short break for when the IWCP photographer arrived to take a few photos. There were several group shots and ones of people working - so keep you eyes peeled for them in future editions of the paper.

The highlight of the day was when the last spade full of clay was removed and the waters flowed along the new drainage channels and into the top pond - a big cheer from all concerned accompanied this event!

Mark’s Nature Lesson

Newts have been recorded on the Kitbridge site since at least the 1860s and in recent years it has emerged after extensive research that the Island Great Crested Newts have developed unique characteristics and differ from their mainland counterparts in a number of subtle ways. The most pronounced difference is that they have a distinct yellow stripe that goes along the whole length of the spine. They even have their own name which is Tritarus Cristatus Vectis.

The Great Crested Newt has only been recorded at two further sites on the Island in recent years. This is due to loss of habitat, agro chemicals and climate change, which have had a devastating effect on the fragile meta populations of this unique species.

Many thanks to Eddie & Carrie for the photographs and to Mark for the Nature lesson (and cakes!)

Wed 20th Oct 2010 - Ventnor Botanical Gardens.

2010-10-23T08:21:00.005Z

So here we are again at Ventnor Botanic Gardens, on a beautiful sunny day if a bit nippy in the shade. An excellent crowd of Green Gymmers turned up and Trish certainly had a full list of tasks for us to do. First was to continue the clearance work started last time in the hydrangea bed; secondly there was a lot of cutting back of overhanging branches on a good stretch of the coastal path situated at the top of the gardens. Our final task was to clear a back of ferns (leaving these in place) which had become infested with ivy, sycamore and bramble. It was certainly a challenge to keep our footing on the steep bank, but we certainly improved it enormously (see images above), with Trish carting away about six trailers full of stuff.

Many thanks to Carrie for the text and photographs.

Wed 13th Oct 2010 - St Mary's School, Ryde.

2010-10-14T09:59:00.006Z

I am reliably (?) informed that it was almost 2 years to the day since the GG Team worked at this school. A good turnout of GGmers, on a cool but bright morning, were soon being instructed on the jobs that needed to be tackled this time around. These included clearing out the pond, cut back and tidy the woodland pathways, construct a wooden pathway & make a wood chip pathway to the excellent bio-dome. Majority of the tasks were completed within the timescale and the nature area looked much better after the autumn makeover!

Many thanks to the school staff for allowing us to use their facilities for our tea break and for supplying the excellent biscuits (always welcome!)

This week's photographs were taken by Carrie.....so a big thanks to her.