| | | | Task Programme
These are our forthcoming events. Details of pick up times and locations are on our FAQ and we send out an email during the week before each task on our Mailing List. For any other questions please contact  .
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We're going to a new site today, but doing work that's not new to us at all. This part of Pissen Wood is a privately-owned part of a larger National Trust woodland and is being managed as wildlife habitat. We'll be harvesting some of the timber for our hedging stakes and binders, clearing coupes to let in sunlight and improve biodiversity and leaving habitat piles for invertebrates. There will certainly be a good bonfire to keep warm and cook any potatoes or parsnips you want to bring for your lunch. As usual, full details will be sent out in the weekly email. | | Leader: Steve Lilley | Driver: John Worth |
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This week it's a welcome return to this former quarry and splendid nature reserve just one junction north on the M40. It's the place where they found amazing fossilised dinosaur footprints. Sometimes we've done paths and steps here in the Summer, but today we'll be clearing scrub to maintain biodiversity. We'll most likely be working with one of BBOWT's wardens, who will be able to tell us all about the site.
| | Leader: Aga Rzad | Driver: Ray Hitchins |
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A bonus Saturday task and more work on our ongoing replacement of the fencing around Raleigh Park. We're making incredibly good progress putting brand-new post and wire round this much-valued park and nature reserve in West Oxford. Our post-and-wire fencing has all be done to a very high standard and should last for many years to come. When complete, it will be something that we can be proud of, because not all volunteer groups would have the skills to do this type of work, to the same consistently high standard. Not that we like to boast! Come along and help, there'll be plenty for everyone to do and it's fine to come along for part of the day. | |
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Our regular monthly visit to this splendid nature reserve and SSSI in the Chilterns. If you've not been before you've probably noticed the place where the M40 cuts through the chalk and Red Kites circle overhead. We'll be working with the highly-knowledgeable wardens from Natural England; the government's main nature conservation agency. They'll probably give us some scrub to clear, some woodland to coppice, or some sheep to foot-trim. As usual, we'll find out the exact work plan in the week beforehand so get on the mailing list, get the email and get involved! | |
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Shotover covers the old coach road from London to Oxford. As Oxford comes into sight, there would be just one stretch of more woodland to get through before travellers would be safe from highwaymen. The woodland we're managing today is coppice woodland, which may have looked very similar even hundreds of years ago. Coppicing is a way of managing woodland to provide a regular supply of timber for building, hurdle-making, fence posts or firewood. In fact, no part of the tree would have been wasted. Nowadays, we might be taking a few hedgelaying stakes but our main purpose is to maintain the woodland in the way that the local wildlife are used to. This means fresh coppiced coupes providing light for rare woodland flora and regeneration of the trees. | |
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Today is Oxclean day and OCV's contribution will be some rubbish clearance at the Trap Grounds in North Oxford. It used to be an unofficial rubbish dump, so we're not moving everything, but we'll fill a skip with the sharpest, most dangerous and unsightly things. This type of work has made a huge difference in the past, and makes the site safer for children and dogs. But since that sort of thing is not really nature conservation work, we're also likely to do some bramble bashing, create and maintain some paths and cut back any trees shading out the ponds too much. | |
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It's a mixed bag of tasks today. We'll be working around the Cemetery and Windmill Centre in Deddington and the work will involve modifying some post and rail fencing and moving stiles and gates. We'll also plant some wildflowers in suitable locations and cut back scrub in other locations. OCV work on this site has made a real difference over the last few years, creating footpaths, laying hedges and coppicing woodland. So come along today and help us keep up the good work. | |
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Our last coppicing task of the Winter. We'll be clearing another coppice coupe to let in the daylight and promote regeneration, whilst also harvesting a good crop of timber for hedgelaying stakes and binders. We'll also be able to look at other areas we coppiced last Winter and the year before and see how they are regenerating and providing a range of different ages of trees for maximum biodiversity. After this there'll probably be no more coppicing until Autumn! | |
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Our regular monthly visit to this splendid National Nature Reserve. We'll be working with Natural England's wardens to help maintain the reserve. They will give us some work that's appropriate to the type of year, whether it's a bit of scrub bashing, fencing or even caring for one of the flocks of sheep by trimming their feet. As usual we'll explain exactly what sort of task is planned in the weekly email that's sent out before the task.
| | Leader: Aga Rzad | Driver: John Worth |
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It's now nearly a year since we started replacing the fencing around this splendid park in West Oxford, managed by Oxford City Council with help from us and other local groups. We've been working in stretches of 50m to 100m each time, with the amount we've got done depending on the number of fiddly bits, such as straining posts, gates and stiles. When it's finished it will be a great achievement and will last for many years to come. In the course of doing it, we'll have improved and consolidated the fencing skills we have in the group ready for future tasks. Come along and get involved. | |
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