By Rob Westlake, March 11th, 2015
Louise – the Manageress at the Canal Museum had been successful in obtaining a grant to create a small wildlife friendly garden behind the Museum building. This was called the Back Yard Project. After discussions with members of the volunteer group, it was arranged that materials could be delivered the day before and that we would commence the construction of this garden area.
The Group set about creating this raised area, using oak sleepers and imported soil and bark. Aided by our No: 2 volunteer supervisor Graham, we set about turning Louise’s sketch plans into the garden. Special thanks to our volunteer Bill Mann – who transported the oak sleepers back to his workshop to cut to length and to Louise and Mat for keeping us well supplied with mugs of tea and coffee.
Others from the Group planted snowdrop bulbs up along the woodland walk and also carried out the tidying up of the Museum Green – after the final laurel hedge arisings had been transferred to the skip. The towpath and the Woodland Walk were also litter picked – along with the towpath down to Lock 15.
The area down at the bottom locks was also inspected and several bags of rubbish collected. Longer term discussions need to be had with CRT and the Stoke Bruerne Canal Partnership over the possible need for a litter bin in this area.
Back at the Museum, the main structural work for the garden was completed in the one day, but a couple of the Group return to help further at the week-end and complete the project. Since then various groups have planted the area out and added wildlife friendly accessories - bird feeders, water bowls and insect ‘hotels’, which has now created an area of interest for our young and older visitors to enjoy.
By Rob Westlake, February 18th, 2015
As our Volunteer co-ordinator Miriam has taken over John Highmore’s ‘chair’ for a few months, our new CRT Volunteer supervisor, Wayne Moore arrived with a van full of hand tool and protective/safety equipment.
Louise, the manageress at the Museum has arranged for the Adoption Group to have use of a shed behind the Museum, so time was spent clearing out residual rubbish and Wayne fitted a hasp and padlock. The team then set to work cutting back the next section of the Laurel hedge alongside the Museum Green.
Having caused a fair level of concern from our supervisors last month – we were only allowed to cut back a certain amount – to ensure all the arising could be placed in the CRT rented BIFFA bin in the car park. Well – we did, but we also got a ‘ticking’ off – this time from the BIFFA bin emptying operative – when the branches wouldn’t neatly tip out of the container into the skip lorry.
Still – one more good session of trimming back before the end of the month should complete the job – before the embargo on hedge and tree cutting starts on the 1st March.
Several of the Group returned on the 28th February to complete the last section of the hedge trimming, along with removing a small elderberry bush in the hedgerow alongside the Quarry Field – where eventually a pedestrian entrance from the towpath will be created to access this new public area.
We well filled the BIFFA bin again, and stacked the remainder into the root-line, to be cleared next week after the bin had been emptied again.
By Rob Westlake, Jan 14 2015
After the strong and gales force winds over the New Year period, most of the day was spent clearing up and tidying the area around the Museum and the Woodland Walk.
Initially the Museum Green was raked off, removing a large quantity of fallen branches and twigs from the poplar trees.
Some further pruning of the laurel was done, but this time the arisings were cut up and placed in the rubbish skip.
Our attentions were then turned to the area behind the Museum building, where huge piles of leaves had accumulated over the autumn period. These were cleared away and the area swept.
The shrubs and plants around the area were pruned and the remains of spent grow-bags cleared away. Path edges were cut back and stored notice boards and bins stacked away.
In the afternoon the team spent time up in the Woodland Walk, the Boat Horse Road and then back along the towpath to the Museum Green.
General trimming back of overhanging vegetation, along with the removal of some fallen branches.
We all joined together at the north end of the Woodland Walk, where it joins the Boat Horse Road to look at the possibility of improving the access.
The Woodland Walk can never be made ‘wheel chair’ friendly, but the creation of shallow steps would at least make a much easier route – rather than what is regularly a wet and slippery slope.
This project would need further research and costings and the Stoke Bruerne Canal Partnership will be asked progress this project.
By Rob Westlake, Dec 10 2014
The Friends of the Canal Museum are preparing costings for some remedial works to the Museum Green. Over the last couple of summers, the area of the former Canal Arm and Dock have subsided and in places the original edging stones have been revealed.
The Green is used extensively for the Village Canal Events – and finding a level area on which to erect marquees is getting more difficult.
The Laurel hedge along the northern side of the Green has become very overgrown and has encroached onto the usable area by 4 or 5 metres.
The resident of the adjacent house has lost a lot of sunlight – particularly in the winter when the low sun never enters their garden.
After discussion with CRT – it was agreed that this work could be carried out and arrangements made to cart away 3 or 4 lorry loads of the arisings.
So the team set to work – and a huge pile of branches quickly covered a large area. By midday – only about half of the length of the hedge had been cut.
After discussions with our volunteer coordinator – a stop was called to enable the material to be stacked and loaded onto the CRT maintenance gang’s truck.
2 loads were carted away, but more couldn’t be done that day.
So the site was tidied up and 2 of our members assisted by our coordinator Graham returned the following morning to help load another 3 truck loads which were carted away.
By Rob Westlake, Nov 12 2014
The Adoption Group had spent a couple of days last year working around Lock 15, clearing back the vegetation and replacing sections of rotten arris rail around the side ponds.
The overgrowing foliage around the brick built ‘Ash-Box’ at Lock 15 had been trimmed back and the adjacent section of brick wall exposed for the first time for many years.
The hedge and ivy had again completely engulfed the area again, so this was cut back and a long section of the adjacent brick wall cleared of ivy. The Ash-Box was excavated and entangled roots and debris removed – including an engine flywheel and other unidentifiable metalwork. The remaining soil was dug through and planted up with daffodil bulbs.
These had been kindly donated by Young’s Nurseries at Blisworth. Initially we were given 4 trays – each containing about 150 bulbs.
Bulbs were also planted under the hedge along the towpath back towards the village and around the trees on the offside of Lock 15.
The towpath edging around the side ponds and the ash box was dug out – revealing quality edging bricks – which had seen the daylight for many years.
The following week, a couple of the team members meet again and planted another 6 trays of daffodil and narcissi bulbs.
The contents of 3 were planted along the towpath and up onto the Woodland Walk. 3 trays of bulbs were planted around the trees either side of Lock 14 and the bridge and then along the car park side of the Museum Green.
By Rob Westlake, Oct 8 2014
Concerns about overhanging trees had been raised by the gentleman that organises the Health Walks around Stoke Bruerne.
On inspection - the problem was that branches that had been sawn off in previous years by CRT's contractors - had re-sprouted and the weight of the summer foliage had lowered the whole branches.
So we set too work and cut back the foliage and then sawed of the offending branches - at a number of locations along the long pound.
That was the easy part of job. The arisings then had to be chopped up and disposed of - generally by filling gaps in the hedgerow and along the boundary fence.
The cutting only took a couple of hours - but the clearing of the towpath kept us busy well into the afternoon.
The rest of the team worked on the Woodland Walk - clearing back the rampantly growing brambles - to ensure the pathway is easier to use.
By Rob Westlake, Sep 11, 2014
The volunteers carried out some tidying up work around the Locks and the Museum Area in readiness for the Weekend 'At War'.
The Dry Lock area was weeded and litter removed. Weeding was done around the Top Lock and along the canal edge to the Museum Green.
The paint pots were brought out, and the lock beams re-painted, along with the lockside edging.
