With much appreciated help from lots of people – SEE THANK YOUS BELOW! – we have created our first nature sanctuary in the Chalford Parish Council part of Frith Wood. It is a small area to the right of the path as you come in from the ‘Tesco entrance’.
Why have a nature sanctuary?
We all love the wood, but there is a big load on it from all the use. Nesting birds get disturbed by people and dogs and plants can get trampled, so we need some areas where we keep well out. If we had done nothing near this busy entrance, we would have lost more and more of a special area of the wood.
Now we have a shelter for more varied plants, that help the insects. These in turn provide food for birds which can safely nest in an enclosed space, helped by the bird boxes we have installed.
Chestnut fence and a better entrance
A sturdy and attractive wooden fence has been installed by the top path. The entrance gate area has been improved for electric scooters and wider buggies.
How long will the fence be there?
We want it to last as long as possible, over a period of years, not months, to let the wood do its thing. We will monitor what is going on and at what point it would be good to remove the fence.
We have also put a wire fence in another small area of the Parish Council part of the wood, more tucked away. This is an experiment to see whether even in a less walked part of the wood it makes a difference to keep people and dogs out completely. We have done some light planting there and you can easily see some narrow bat boxes there. We want to see how the bluebells do in good conditions.
Any downsides?
Inevitably we are slightly reducing people’s freedom. But there are still so many places to walk and the bottom line is that the wood needs to be protected, if we want it to have a future.
What has been planted?
We have planted a range of attractive trees and shrubs that grow in local woods and are good for wildlife: Yew, hornbeam, hawthorn, spindle, field maple, dog rose, crab apple. We have not put guards on, so that we do not draw attention to the trees, we save money and we reduce plastic use. And of course many of the plants are safe in our enclosures!
To the future!
FOFW is here to secure the long-term future of the wood – balancing all our different needs is a challenge we will keep trying to meet. Here is to a beautiful wood helping lots of trees and wildlife get through climate change and human pressures, for future generations.
THANK YOU TO:
ALL VOLUNTEERS WHO HELPED – for all the work in the wood including bird and bat boxes, planting and watering
COTSWOLD AONB / DEFRA – for funding the fences and bird and bat boxes
TREE COUNCIL – for funding all the trees
ECCLESIASTICAL INSURANCE – for practical help and financial support
SPINNEYWELL NURSERY, OAKRIDGE – for excellent plants at an excellent price
CHALFORD PARISH COUNCIL AND FOOTPATH GROUP – for collaboration throughout