WEST HILL BLOG No. 112 Spring is here

-
Spring is here ...
Snakeshead Fritillary
Thanks to Steve Lawence's wonderful pictures of birds (our bird table is covered in chicken wire to keep the squirrels out & the birds in ... & it works)




The Garden has started to come to life
Euphorbia
Osmanthus in bloom
Steve worked his magic constructing the last (mouse free, one hopes) shelf in the small glasshouse 
My office on Monday  ... 
I finished planting the Woodland Trust trees. This year the students & I have planted over 250 native tree saplings to bulk up our native species diversity, thicken the hedges & plant a small copse.

Popular posts from this blog

WEST HILL BLOG NO. 77 Glorious May

-
Image
May is such a beautiful month, as the soil & air temperatures rise hedgerows, field margins & marginal land becomes alive with flowers and insects.  West Hill is no exception, there is an abundance of life ... with fresh greens, pinks, whites & blues.  The Fernery Ajuga repans (Bugle) growing in the Forest margins The Bird life is still so varied. Although we are constantly challenged by the squirrels feeding from Steve's bird feeders, a great diversity are seen & heard Steve's attempts of squirrel proof bird feeders Two great shots by Steve of nesting Blue Tit & a friendly songfull Robin As the Ruairi Lining out Herbs   (with help from Mary) Anthony & Jan digging holes & filling with manure in preperation of Butternut Squash planting In the Polytunnels Steve & Don have been busy constructing Melon Beds & filling with soil Steve's lastest project ... using up old pieces of wood to build a s...
Read more

November is here ...

-
Image
George is a regular helper now. This week in the brilliant sunshine, he & enabler Steve helped to harvest the remaining Butternut Squash He loves the tractor - even when it isn't going ... Everyone enjoys a fire ... Each Wednesday students come up for the Forest School to learn how to safely light a fire, how to cook on a fire and learn about the surrounding landscape We have a great team of volunteers who come when the can & help to develop the site Annabelle planting Camassia & Daffodil Bulbs Steve - a master of many crafts Ruairi removing old vegetation & planting Kale  Despite Ruairi's visual impairment he always manages to plant in straight rows  Anthony helping with Project 992 - the compacted stone is being replaced with soil for a new seat And this is one of my jobs - digging the whole veg garden by hand. This has to be done to rid the garden of perennial weed before mulching. Its hard to believe we are in November, without the cold temperatures many pe...
Read more