Tidying up

James has trimmed the ground cover away from the base of the hedges, where the blackthorn was encroaching onto the rides and cut back the new growth on the section of hedge that has been layed. Since then, the other side of this section has been cut by Robert Fison's contractor.

The Spindle bushes really stand out now, with branches full of fruits and seeds, which are poisonous. The wood from these shrubs were once used for spindles, knitting needles and skewers.
While I was taking these photos, a few starlings were enjoying the last of the sloe and blackberries in the hedgerow.

Heaps of hay and baskets of berries

We concentrated on the area in the middle of the woodland and then on the rides leading up to it. I would say that more than half of the grass has been raked off and heaped into piles amongst the trees. The rest will be done as and when the sun shines and people have an hour to spare.

There are lots of berries and fruit on the trees in the woodland and the hedgerow. The birds and beasts will have full tummies, if the apple and blackberry cumble makers don't find them soon!

New notice board

Our smart new notice board is in place at the entrance to the wood. James has cut the paths, so as the weather forecast is reasonable, we are ready to rake the rides this Saturday morning (10th) starting at 10.30.

Please bring a wheelbarrow, rake and a drink. We shall be providing a variety of cakes! Everyone welcome.

Competition time!

When we had completed our mini-beast home, we invited our enthusiastic workers, (the children in class 3 and 4) to enter a competition to think of a name for our new 'des res' and design an explanatory poster to display to all the woodland wanderers.
THE WINNERS ARE... 
Lauren Diduca for 'Beastly Towers'.
Lily Shirred for her well thought out design (shown above).
We hope you all enjoyed your prizes!

New Housing development in Buckle's Wood

James brought the pallets up to the wood last weekend and arranged them in this inspirational way, so that when the children from years 3 and 4 arrived with their collection of natural building materials, they were keen to get started!

They pushed hay, straw and crunched up egg trays into the middle and then began to make interesting holes and routes into our construction, to make easy access for the future residents.

With a roof on top, and lots of different gaps and spaces, I think everyone has done a jolly good job. Let's hope the mini beasts think so too!

These people helped us with this project. Hilary Furlong found the pallets, which were given to us by Andy Barnes. Parents gave us the internal fitments. Badgers, guided by Mrs Burdiss, completed the building with gusto! Thank you .

The magic of moths

After a day of heavy showers, the sky cleared and the moths arrived as it grew dark. Not as many as usual, as the temperature was a tad cool, but our knowledgeable expert Tony Prichard was able to capture and identified about 15 different moths.
The Privet and Lime Hawk-moths were magnificent. Taking photos was tricky and the images don't reflect their true beauty.

The Lime Hawk-moth (above) was a female with an bulging abdomen full of eggs.

The evening was summed up in an email from John, a member of the group
"Just a note to say thank you for organising last night’s moth hunt. It was a most enjoyable evening and the hot dogs and soup were delicious! The sight of the privet hawk moth will stay with us a long while!
We would like to thank Tony for giving us a splendid evening.
There are over 2,000 species of British moths and Tony Prichard has photos of many of them on his website. It's well worth a look!
As promised, Tony has sent a list of the moths that we looked at during the evening.

0014 Hepialus humuli ~Ghost Moth. 00 17 Hepialus lupulinus~ Common Swift. 1011 Pseudargyrotoza conwagana. 1082 Hedya pruniana~Plum Tortrix. 1333 Scoparia pyralella. 1376 Eurrhypara hortulata Small Magpie. 1727 Xanthorhoe montanata ~Silver-ground Carpet. 1782 Horisme tersata ~Fern. 1825 Eupitheciacentaureata~Lime speck Pug. 1906 Opisthograptis luteolata ~Brimstone Moth. 1976 Sphinx ligustri ~Privet Hawk-moth. 1979 Mimas tiliae ~Lime Hawk-moth. 2089 Agrotis exclamationis ~Heart & Dart 2107 Noctua pronuba ~Large Yellow Underwing. 2126 Xestia c-nigrum ~Setaceous Hebrew Character. 2128 Xestia triangulum ~Double Square-spot. 2194 Mythimna albipuncta ~White-point .2337 Oligia strigilis~ Marbled Minor. 2339 Oligia latruncula ~Tawny Marbled Minor. 2387 Caradrina morpheus ~Mottled Rustic. 2477 Hypena proboscidalis ~Snout

New housing development in Elmsett!

During the next half term, with help from the pupils at Elmsett School, this pile of old pallets will be transformed into a desirable residence for the smaller, wildlife inhabitants of our woodland.

A great way to recycle pallets and do our bit to support this year's environmental theme

BIODIVERSITY.

Watch this space!

Three cheers for our football team!

Elmsett School's fete turned out to be a successful event for all.
The school won the football tournament, the weather was dry (for most of the time, we were able to give our treasurer some profit from our stall and the raffle prize winners were cheerfully surprised!
James Hitchcock is looking forward to afternoon tea at Hintlesham Hall.
Margaret Nelson will enjoy using the eco-friendly contents of her Buckle's Wood Bag.
David Cross will use his binoculars to look for his lost golf balls.
Liam Glennon will be able to use his wind up torch on the Moth Hunt in Buckle's Wood on the 31st May, with Tony Prichard as our guide.

In the Merry Month of May

This photo of our stall at the school's fayre was taken last year. Lots of people enjoying the sunshine, buying raffle tickets and Buckle's Wood bags!
After weeks of sunshine and no rain, the prospect of heavy showers for this year's fete on Saturday, is not good. But we shall be there with our gazebo, hoping that the rain lands on Buckle's Wood and not on the meadow.
There will be super prizes to be won in our raffle and lots of bargains on the nearby stall belonging to the school's recycling centre.

Moth Hunt

Yes, I know it's a Red Admiral butterfly, not a moth, but I'm hoping to take loads of photos on the 31st May, when Tony Prichard will be leading our moth hunt. The evening will start with refreshments at 8.45, and finish late! Tony is Suffolk's moth expert and is not charging us for this event. You will find lots information about and photos of moths on his website.
Numbers will be limited, so if you would like to join in with the fun send an email to eggscheme@gmail.com

Easter Egg Hunt

We had a good time looking for Easter eggs in the wood on Saturday and all the hunters received a chocolate one, as a reward for their efforts! The refreshments were delicious, as usual! Four lucky people won more chocolate treats in our raffle.

Many people had not visited Buckle's Wood before and were impressed by our achievements. Members of the committee have worked hard to ensure a successful event, so a big thank you to Fiona and Pam (hunt and Easter egg organisers), Jackie, Caroline, Alison and other refreshment providers, and last but not least, Maria and Wheaten Mill for providing the raffle prizes.

Spring and Easter Eggs

The sun was peeping out every now and then as I wandered around the wood, admiring the lovely display of flowers on the blackthorn bushes in the hedgerow. There were lots of bumble bees hovering along the ground, looking for suitable holes to lay their eggs and a Peacock butterfly was sunning itself by the side of the ride. Let's hope that Saturday morning on the 16th April will be sunny and warm, for our EASTER EGG HUNT. It starts at 10.30 (meet at the village hall) and finishes, with a raffle and refreshments The following evening was warm and windless. A good time to see if the barn owl was about. No barn owl, but a lovely sunset!

National Nest Box Week.

The snow on our Barn Owl box looked undisturbed by anything large , but perhaps
some smaller birds sheltered in there when the weather was really bad.

All the sticks and debris left by previous occupants (not Barn Owls) have been cleared by Roger's ornithologist friend. Perhaps the pair of Barn Owls that were hunting over the wood on Monday will be tempted to make this their home, although they might be put off by at least two people aiming cameras at them!

For those people who want to encourage more birds to nest in their garden, this page on the BTO site might be useful.

Hedge Laying Day

Due to circumstances beyond our control, we have had to postpone this event, but we hope to hold it before the new growth starts this spring.

We shall be laying our next section of hedge on
Saturday 12th Feb, starting at 10 o'clock.
There is a "how to do it" video clip on this very interesting
site about woodlands.

The length of layed hedge needs tidying up and we want to
find a suitable spot for a pond or boggy area. This year we want
encourage a greater variety of wild life into our woodland.

Selling our forests.

If you are concerned about the news that the government are planning to sell our national forests to private companies, go to 38degrees and join the 100,000 plus people who have signed their "Save our Forests" petition.

Jonathon Porritt makes his views clear on his blog--as usual!

The children at Elmsett School have their own area in Buckle's Wood. They used logs as seats , to make an outdoor classroom near their trees. They also helped to plan our woodland and were asked to write down their wishes for our woodland's future. Many hoped that it would be a peaceful place, full of wildlife and give pleasure to many future generations.

We've made a good start.

A.G.M.

Our A.G.M will be held at Elmsett Methodist Church on Thursday 2nd December, starting at 7.45.

Many people enjoy walking round the wood and have kept the grass along the centre of the rides under control.

James has cut them back to their original width, to help Barn Owls with their winter hunting and to ensure that our walkers aren't faced with a thin muddy track when the weather gets bad.

We are planning another hedge laying session, when the leaves have dropped.

Bye-bye Butterfly?

This week the Butterfly Conservation Trust is urging everyone to spend 15 minutes looking for and recording the butterflies that inhabit their garden or local area. There are more details and forms to fill in and return on their website, but it is best to choose a sunny day.

Loss of habitat and climate change are two possible reasons for their decline. There are too many gardens covered with decking and used for offroad parking . Butterflies need flowers that that attract insects. Many of the wildflowers that we have planted have survived and are attracting butterflies, bees, hover flies and other pollinating insects.

But why a photo of a Cinnabar Moth caterpillar? Well, environmental scientists are concerned about their welfare as well. This one was tucking into some ragwort in Buckle's Wood and although this plant is poisonous to livestock, and the caterpillars that feed on it, distasteful to predators, it would be sad if both disappeared from our landscape.

News and Next Working Party

James has cut the rides, with a few extra diversions, a pleasing number of wild flowers are thriving and butterflies, insects and other small creatures were apparent when I wandered round yesterday with my camera.
I shall have to get help with identifying some of the things that I photographed, like this construction in the grass
There's a website that will do just that for people like me, who have a great interest in the environment, but not the knowledge to go with it! So why not bring your camera to our next working party.
Saturday 17th July. We'll be starting at 10 o'clock

Marvellous Moths

Everyone had a good time on Saturday, with thanks to Mark who writes:-

Thank you having me along this morning to show what came to the moth traps last night. A wonderful gathering for a Saturday morning, which goes to show how much regard everyone has for their woodland wildlife. The bacon sandwich was a real bonus.

The following is a list of species encountered:
Pale Tussock~ Spectacle ~ Buff Tip~Vine's Rustic~ Buff Ermine~ White Ermine, Oak Hook-tip Brown Rustic~ Nutmeg~Common Swift~ Setaceous Hebrew Character
Mottled Rustic~ Pale Mottled Willow~ Heart and Dart~ Light Emerald
Small Waved Umber~ Small Magpie~ Shoulder-striped Wainscot
Common Wainscot Not forgetting the birds: Last night there was a Barn Owl hunting the field to the east and a Little Owl on the telegraph wires.
Today, we heard and/or saw:

Blue Tit~ Great Tit~ Yellowhammer~ Chaffinch~ Dunnock~ Whitethroat,
Lesser Whitethroat~ Song Thrush~ Wood Pigeon~ Jackdaw.All I need now are some photos please!

Discovering Moths

Our next event, on Saturday 12th June, will be a moth hunt, led by Mark Nowers, the RSPB warden at Wolves Wood. It will be an early start, as we shall look at the moth trap with Mark at 8 o'clock.

Not all moths are boringly dull and just fly at night. Pyraustra purpuralis, (above) which is small enough to fit on a 5p coin, was flying about the borders in bright sunlight.

Here are some more interested facts to whet your appetite, with grateful thanks to an article in this Saturday's environmental section of the East Anglian Daily Times!

More than 2,500 species of moths have been recorded in Britain and the Channel Isles.

Some moths travel here from Europe and North Africa.

They pollinate plants and are eaten by bats and birds.

And, like other forms of wildlife, their numbers are declining.

We shall have a short break for a bacon butty breakfast and then Mark will help us to identify bird songs, as we stroll round the wood.

If it's wet, the event will be cancelled

School Fete

The School's annual village fete is next weekend (22nd. May) and the EGGS team will be there with our Buckle's Wood, long lasting and sustainably made bags. These are much better for our planet than plastic bags. Have you read about the huge area in the Pacific Ocean that is clogged up with tiny pieces of plastic, carried there by the world's ocean currents.
We shall fill a Buckle's Wood bag with eco-goodies, to offer as our raffle prize and bargain second hand books for you to purchase and enjoy at your leisure.