A belated Happy New Year

January - early March 2020


Happy New Year to all our readers and welcome to the first blog of 2020. The Wednesday conservation team began the new decade working in the Strawberry Castle play area, where our task was to refresh the bark chippings around the play structures. The enjoyment, however, was short-lived as we soon found ourselves back to clearing ditches and working at clearing leaves from the Ha-Ha.

Raking bark chippings at Strawberry Castle

Job done, now it's playtime

Clearing drainage channel West Woods

Free flow

The Ha-ha

Towards the end of January, we found ourselves working in Snipes Dene. There is a plan to remove some trees from Snipes Dene and our task was to thin out some of the many silver birch saplings to make spaces for the tree surgeon to be able to move the felled trees out by using horse power to pull out the felled tree trunks rather than large machinery, which would be more damaging to the environment of the Dene.

This way up.

Almost complete

February began with a trip up towards the Column to Liberty once again cutting back the invasive rhododendrons which line the sides of the “serpentine path”. This time the team were attacking the newer growth and the stumps were then treated with an herbicide to hopefully prevent regrowth. A blue dye had been added to the herbicide to indicate which stumps had been treated.

The problem: new growth

The team at work

Cleared

Spot the treated stumps

After missing a couple of weeks (which included a trip to help out at Craster on the Northumberland coast), I found myself back at the Ha-ha in early March. I picked the wrong weeks to be away, didn’t I? Hopefully now most of last year’s leaf fall has been cleared, bagged and transported to the leaf store near the walled garden.

Ha-ha almost cleared

Spring has begun, the daffodils and crocuses are in flower, birds are singing, a green woodpecker was heard calling frequently and red kites are searching for a quiet spot to build a nest.

Snowdrops

Purple haze - crocuses

Rainbow

Phil Coyne

Season's Greetings

December 2019


Our road repairs detailed in last month’s blog didn’t last very long. Two days of constant, heavy rain washed out our valiant efforts. Never mind, the Wednesday Conservation team’s first job in December involved a trip out to Ebchester (a National Trust Reserve on the River Derwent). A field at one end of the reserve belonging to Northumbrian Water had been strimmed the day before by some of Gibside’s rangers. Our task was to rake the grass cuttings and dispose of them. Being such an efficient group, we were finished by lunchtime.

Before - looking down towards Sewage Treatment Plant!

Hard at work

After

The following week saw the team in Snipes Dene cutting back our old foes, Western hemlock and rhododendron bushes. The sides of an old wagonway were cleared first, then spreading out into the dene more rhododendrons were cleared forming brash piles with the cuttings.

Rhododendrons just visible behind the birches

Sun just peeping over Snipes Dene

Waggonway

December 18^th, our last session before Christmas brought below freeing temperatures, resulting in a heavy frost. It takes more than a bit of frost to deter some of our team even if we are raking leaves on the bank alongside The Avenue.

Frosted field in front of The Orangery

Frosted oak leaf

Leaves blanket the bank side of The Avenue

Raking in progress

Cleared

Holly

Christmas Pudding

So that’s it for 2019, have a great Christmas and best wishes for 2020 to all our readers.

From Rhoddie Bashing to Road Repairs

October - November 2019


October saw the team working around the Octagon Pond on a couple of occasions. One of the first tasks was to rake up grass which had previously been strimmed along one edge of the pond. On our next visit the Wednesday conservation team were tasked with cutting back trees, mainly birch, from one side of the pond to improve the vista looking up towards The Banqueting House. Destruction in the name of conservation – we were in our element.

Raking grass at the Octagon Pond

Fly agaric

Fungi growing on tree stump

Assessing the scale of the job at Octagon Pond

Almost complete

Still some work to be done

Clear view

From the other side of the pond towards The Banqueting House

In the mists of late October, the team could be found rhoddie bashing along the “serpentine path” which leads up to The Column to Liberty. The rhododendrons in this area are prolific and were encroaching on the path sides. Cutting them back quite severely enabled a new path edging to be created using silver birch trunks.

Low cloud hangs over The Orangery

Through the mist

Cutting back the rhododendrons

New path edging

Fungi growing on fallen tree trunk

Early November brought our first frost of the season. The day began with a little breaking and entering as the keys to the tool store were missing. This necessitated the removal of the door before our work could begin. Once access was gained, we became a team of road menders. Like many roads elsewhere, the roads and paths of Gibside have become pothole ridden. After clearing the ice and water from the potholes the task of filling them could begin. This involved transporting wheelbarrow full of stone chippings to each site, filling the holes and tamping the chippings down.                     

Breaking and entering

Thinking about it!

Frosty grass on Park Fields

Brushing water out of pothole prior to filling it.

Finished - can you see the join?

Finally a bit of Autumn colour