CVCG Projects

Early Spring Roundup

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The weather hasn’t been so kind to us over the last few weeks, but that hasn’t deterred volunteers from getting together for tasks in the Reserve. First up, earlier in February, work started on the dipping platform for the new pond. This will create a great spot for youngsters to observe and enjoy pondlife. It will give a great focal point and work station station for educational events that we may hold in the future:

In early March some coppicing of hazel was done beyond the bottom pond, before it gets too overgrown and stops light getting to ground plants. It was stacked up to be kept and possibly used in the charcoal burner later in the year:

Whilst coppicing there was an interesting find – orange ladybirds. The orange ladybird is commoner in the south but is increasing nationally. A nice find. It feeds on mildew. Also called 16-spot orange ladybird, Halyzia sedecimguttata:

Winter News Roundup

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Its been a very busy Autumn and early Winter for the Conservation Group.  As we near the festive season and look forward to putting out feet up, here’s a summary with photos of everything that’s been going on, click on any photo to enlarge –

Reserve Pathways and Bridges
This substantial project, aided by the Tyne and Wear Community Foundation was completed at the end of November. Contractors with heavy equipment cut the pathways, laying stone and topping with fine chippings before machine rolling. This surface will continue to harden over the winter for a lasting result, more usable by those with buggies and wheelchairs than the old muddy paths. The new pathways are a long-awaited improvement to the Reserve:

The large bridge over the pond was dismantled and refurbished, while a new small bridge was also built for the lower pond. Both bridges are wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs and buggies. The lower pond area has also been dredged and extended to create a larger shallow pond that will have a dipping platform, ideal for future educational events. This should be built and in place by Spring 2018.

Thanks to all the volunteers who helped us on the bridge building days, it was fantastic to see people turn out to help:

 

Charcoal Burning
Our new charcoal burner was commissioned on 25th November, when we burnt a batch of willow, coppiced from the Reserve earlier this year. Under expert guidance we prepared, loaded and lit the burner. After a substantial amount of smoke initially, the furnace settled down and after a few hours we had a batch of usable charcoal, ideal for art, or we may use some for a future BBQ event. Willow charcoal burns quite quickly and we may make some hardwood charcoal to sell in the future, but we’re happy with our first attempt:

 

Exmoor Ponies
We have two Exmoor Ponies on loan from the Moorland Mousie Trust for the next few weeks. They are doing a great job of munching through all the scrub, helping to leave an environment which will encourage meadow plants in the Spring. They are very well tempered, but please keep dogs at a safe distance and on a lead as you wander through the Reserve.

 

Building Bridges on the Reserve

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Come along Saturday 11th November10am to help build a new bridge and repair an old one!

As part of the project, funded by Tyne and Wear Community Foundation, to improve access for everyone in the nature reserve, the new path has been put in and we will be building a new bridge and widening the old bridge by the pond. So come along and share your skills or learn new ones and help make the nature reserve a place everyone can explore and enjoy.

Reserve Pathworks Under Way

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Contractors are due to start work in the Reserve any day now, cutting pathways and dredging ponds. Please be aware of and keep a safe distance from machinery and work in progress. This could take place over several days.

Grant aid only pays for part of this large project and the Conservation Group will be recruiting volunteers to assist with its completion, to include bridge and jetty building, over one or more Community days, most likely during November.

Keep an eye on the website and notice board for updates, come and be part of it!

Apple Day – A Sweet Success

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The Conservation Group were delighted with the turnout and support for Apple Day on Sunday 15th October, which this year saw an extended range of activities aimed to broaden the appeal of our community orchard.  Having secured funding for new equipment including an apple crusher/press from the Community Foundation, this was our first opportunity to engage the community by taking part in making apple juice.

In the Orchard, the steady production of juice proved to be great fun, with lots of participants collecting, chopping, mashing, pressing and bottling!  Children especially loved turning the masher wheel and seeing the apple pieces drop into the bucket below, while those a little stronger could turn the press to extract the juice.  

We were also fortunate to have on hand local experts Tom and Peter from Wylam Community Orchard and Jon from the 69 Orchard, who shared their expertise in identification of varieties, tree husbandry and apple juice production.

In the autumn sunshine, families with younger children enjoyed interactive storytelling and apple art activities, while at the Village Hall, tree rents were paid and delicious homemade cakes devoured alongside refreshments.

The Conservation Group would sincerely like to thank everyone who contributed to make the event such a success, including the cake bakers, kitchen volunteers, tree rent takers, John and Tom who gave their time, expertise and loaned equipment, Malcolm the storyteller, Veronika for childrens’ art, Karen for the silk painting. Special mention to Steve ‘Scrumpy’ Hilton, who put in hours of preparation work behind the scenes, which included making the successful grant funding application for the apple press and new equipment.

Below is a gallery of photos taken from the event to enjoy, just click to enlarge:

 

September Update

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It’s all go at the Conservation Group, with two individual grant aided projects to be completed in the Reserve and Orchard.

Reserve Pathway Improvements

Contractors begin work in the next few weeks, cutting pathways and dredging the pond. New bridges and a small pond jetty are also planned. Please take note of redirection signs, keep dogs on a lead and stay a safe distance from machinery while this is carried out. Grant funding only pays for part of this large project and there will be at least one Community Day when we’ll invite everyone in Clara to join with us completing the groundworks, which will be of lasting benefit to all visitors.  

Orchard Equipment and Apple Day

The Conservation Group have secured funding to buy a community apple crusher/press, a juice pasteuriser, educational equipment and tools. The hardware will be purchased in time for Apple Day which is planned for Sunday 15th October, when rents are due. Activities planned include making your own apple juice, tree-tagging, apple bobbing and apple-themed story-telling .

New Reserve Leaflet

A new version has been produced and can be downloaded here.

Bird Feeding

This will start again from around mid-October at the hides. Don’t forget that a hide key is required, available from Thornley Woodland Centre 01207 545 212.

 

Will the swifts return?

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The swift boxes on the Village Hall have been opened up (we closed them to prevent sparrows taking them over) and are waiting for the first swifts to take up residence.  If you’ve passed the Village Hall you will have heard the calls of swifts and thought “They’re here!” Not yet. To encourage passing swifts to stay a while and view their possible new homes, we have rigged up a speaker that broadcasts swift calls throughout the day. So far not many swifts have passed by. This year swifts have trickled into the country from sub-Saharan Africa and so far not many reaching the north east. A couple were seen flying around the village recently but did not stay. So keep a watch on the boxes. We’ll be broadcasting the calls for a couple more weeks. Lets hope they find the new homes irresistible.

Did you know?….. a swift spends almost all its life in the air, only landing to breed. they sleep and even mate on the wing. A young swift, having left the nest, will stay in the air for up to three years before making a nest and breeding.

New Educational Resources uploaded!

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The CVCG are delighted to announce that following an extensive review and with help from the Heritage Lottery Fund within our Flowers in the Vale project, new educational resources are now available to download. The resource has primarily been created with the purpose of encouraging more schools to bring children to the Reserve and benefit from all that it has to offer.

A total of 18 Activity sheets are available, to assist childrens’ outdoor engagement with the natural environment in Early Learning, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. The activities can be applied in many educational outdoor environments, not just at Clara Vale.

All of the educational material can be accessed from under the ‘Visiting the Reserve’ tab and going to ‘Educational Visit Resources’.

Here are links to the individual resource elements:

If you would like to get in touch about arranging and educational visit please use the contact form on the Planning Your Visit page.

Picnic Day Round-up

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We thought you might like to see a gallery of photos from our wonderful Family Picnic Day, held in July, along with some of the feedback received and even some poetry too!

Photos – just click on any to enlarge and scroll through them….

Just a few of the dozens of moths captured and released
Guess the moth on Ella’s nose!
There are baby newts in there, really!
Three excellent kitemakers!

Feedback – Here are some of the wonderful comments we received about the Nature Reserve in our Visitors’ Book on the day:

‘It feels like such a magical place…’

‘… one of the best things about living in Clara Vale.’

‘We liked the moths, the pond life and the scything.’

‘A lovely, tranquil place…’

‘Really enjoyed the moths, guided flower walk and lovely atmosphere!’

‘What a wonderful family-friendly day.’

Thanks to everyone who contributed, we loved receiving your feedback!

And finally… here are some reflections on the picnic day in the nature reserve by Hannah aged 7:

Sun, fun enjoyable days are beautiful

And green and wet and gleaming,

Clear pond ripples in the lovely atmosphere,

Being able to have an enjoyable chat, meet up with friends,

Music plays from my favourite films,

While the nature obviously absorbs interest thanks to strange plants and

magnificent moths and beauty

Admiring pond weed

Nettles tower over the transparent stream

Bunting hangs over the wooden bridge

Tiger moths on display are a real hit!

Stoats may be shy but when no humans explore, stoats are sure to roam the

clearing, birch trees stand straight and tall.

Thanks again to everyone who came along and made all the efforts of the Conservation Group worthwhile.

 

 

Family Picnic – tomorrow!

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The weather is looking promising for the weekend and the Conservation Group are looking forward to welcoming you to our fun family event on Sunday 17th!

What’s on?
11:00 – Moths! See what we caught the previous night, before we release them.
11:30 & 2:00 – Hand scythe demonstrations – how we cut crops by hand before machinery.
1:30 – Guided Flower Walk around the Reserve.
2:30 – Children’s storytime (2 stories)

Plus:
Guided bird watching in the hides
Facepainting
Pond dipping
Kite making
Painting and drawing area

Organised by the volunteers of the village Conservation Group, this event is part of our Flowers in the Vale project, an initiative to encourage more local people to appreciate, enjoy and engage with our fantastic local nature resource.

Come and support us this Sunday, 11 till 3 !