Area A gets its trim

 

This being the relevant time of year, much of the countryside looks like it has had a haircut. Included in this must be our Common, which according to the decrees of Natural England has to be trimmed in line with a strict schedule. The central area having had its cut (except for a small remaining patch waiting until the end of the month), the section next up for the chop is the enigmatically named Area A. This is the bit beside Warren Road between Lower Street and the boardwalk, and is cut every other year, alternating with the section the other side of the boardwalk, which is unsurprisingly called Area B.

With two summers to grow in, the heady mix of grasses and many other plant species take full advantage, and a fine old tangle is the result. This makes for hard work for the Grizzly mower, and even harder work for the un-grizzly mower operators. Three pioneers spent two hours each on Wednesday, performing the ‘pre-cut’ to ensure there was something for the volunteers to work on from the start of the Sunday work session. Those three heroes are to be applauded, for the weather was hot and humid; something for which this summer has not hitherto been noted.

Here’s how it was when they left it:

On Saturday, Julie and Margaret continued the back-aching task of cutting reeds on the central part of the Common (Area G for your future reference). This allows for the required control of the spread of reeds into that area, whilst giving the special flowering plants growing there more time in which to flower and set seed before the final sweep of the mower. They might feel mad as hatters standing crouched over for an hour and half taking individual reeds out….but these beautiful Devil’s Bit Scabious and Grass of Parnassus flowers illustrate why they do it…

Sunday dawned bright, and all too early for my taste. The weather was initially pleasantly fresh, although as the morning wore on and the work became heavy, it did get a bit too warm for total comfort. Nonetheless, we applied ourselves to the task very much in the manner of teenage tennis prodigies, and in no time at all (well, two hours actually), a vast swathe of grass was mown and moved to the growing pile at the edge of the site.

It’s not all pitchforks and similar bucolic implements of course; machinery also figures large in our work. First and foremost, there’s the Grizzly mower – or in this case, where’s the Grizzly? As can be seen, the vegetation is tall and thick, unlike the driver, who is tall and thin.

Then there’s the vital winch. The crack winch team have discovered that it works best if the proper respect is shown, so bowing to it before asking it to pull anything is always a good idea.

Turning your back on it and pretending it’s not there rarely has the same effect…

Readers concerned about the fate of the little green trolley will be relieved to learn that it has been returned to service, having had the tender attention of the SCV Maintenance Department. John might not have just done what I would have done, and hit it with the biggest hammer he could find, but whatever engineering technique he employed, the result was that the vehicle can once again be steered along the boardwalk without falling off it, and that’s a considerable benefit. We also found that having tyres capable of retaining air makes it much easier to move; the trick was to slow it down on the slopes, so brakes might be the next request.

The vegetation will keep growing at this time of year, doing its best to make the boardwalk impassable, so Brush Cutter Brian was very usefully employed clearing the way. That’s a tough job, as is the sweeping of the trimmings off the boardwalk, ably performed by Dave; a more accomplished sweeper than can currently be found in the ranks of his beloved Norwich City it seems!

Half time came along not a moment too soon, as it was half way through the session. We took advantage of a hard surface for once to stand about on, enjoying tea, coffee and chocolate Bourbon biscuits.

Team Leader Julie spent a lot of time on her mud face pack, through being bent double clearing blockages from the ditch running down to the Beck alongside the western edge of the area. We think she enjoyed it, but her reply to our question was a bit ambiguous.

The nature of the vegetation in that area is that there is a lot of it; heavy and tangled, and still full of sap. Even more than the reed bed, this makes for especially hard work, and creates a lot of stuff to be moved. By the end of the session, an awful lot had been moved, but some was still there. It’s not something we like to do, but this time we left some piles, waiting for our attention next time.

Here is the Team Leaders’ message of thanks:

Once again I wish to thank all our volunteers for all the work you do on the Commons. Today you cheerfully gave up your time to help maintain the SSSI, it was hard hot work but you all got stuck in and achieved a huge amount.

Every two weeks our other unsung heroes of the pit mow the grass area, often in very hot conditions for the benefit of the whole village. Thank you.

It is only through your generosity of time and effort that we can all enjoy the Commons, not just the humans but getting that delicate balance for all the flora and fauna.

Margaret and all the team leaders