Clare, Margaret, Trevor and Dougie (front) planting in the woods
In what was an exceedingly hectic but productive end to the week, we welcomed a host of volunteers to the farm to help us plant our contribution to One Million Trees in One Day, which in the end turned out to be about 160, in a variety of places all over the farm. Some Wild Cherry, Hazel and Alder near the house and the planting field, and a mixture of Birch, Alder, Field Maple, Wild Cherry, Hazel, Alder, Oak and Fir in the thin edges of the existing woodland.
Andrew, Michael and sons, Clare, Sinead and Margaret hard at work
Our 11 volunteers came from all over, and brought with them fantastic energy and enthusiasm for the job. This is the kind of gathering that we love, it really lifts the place.
Claire and Lyra lead the volunteers from the woods
After a break for tea, and a few arrivals and departures, we have a tour and took a breather before embarking on part two of the day – covering the polytunnel. This our latest team got stuck straight into, and after some acrobatics to get the tape onto the frame, the cover was soon pulled over and stretched tight onto the frame.
Pleating the cover around the eastern door frame
It is a particularly tight one too, so we are extra pleased. The sun shone down on us all afternoon, and again it was fantastic to have the energy that new visitors bring with them.
Eugene, Jon and Andrew working on the polytunnel
A day that began extra early with Dougie racing in to cut down the stumps of the huge Leylandi that had made the west side of the house so dark, ended with the completion of our biggest structure to date. As always, we thank all our amazing volunteers – without you these things couldn’t happen, and it is always great to meet new faces and hear everyone’s stories. We’re looking forward to the next one already.
Andrew, Jon, Eugene, Stephen, Claire and Sinead
The new tunnel dwarfs our original one, but we now have the most fantastic growing space
