SUMMER - life on the River Bank

In Summer the river bank ecology undergoes rapid changes. 

Only a few days ago there was no sign of Meadowsweet flowering but at the beginning of July flowers appeared and insects started crowding in.

Ragged Robin was a good find amongst many other plants in the damp

bank vegetation - hopefully it will spread along the river.

The Group met on 28th June 2015 and cleared the rubbish which always appears as soon as the weather warms up and people are out and about. The Group however had been active throughout the month clearing rubbish every few days and watering the new trees. Fortunately their roots are shaded by tall grasses, maintaining a damp layer of earth under existing mulch.

Survival depends on biodiversity, the variety of grasses and wild flowers provide shelter, collect moisture and provide food for wildlife all the year round and protect the young tree roots, sustaining growth.

SPRING INTO SUMMER, April and May 2015

Light rain all morning on our 31st May meet was welcome, at least for the plants and wildlife along the Riverside.

Here are some of the plants flowering well this spring on the land we protect: 

Germander Speedwell (Veronica chamaedrys) in the Wild Meadow

and damp verges - 25th May 2015

Guelder Rose (Viburnum opulus) flowering well this spring - 25th May 2015

Very attractive to insects

Buttercup (Ranunculus) prolific in the meadows and verges

with spider -12th May 2015

Blossom on a young Crab Apple tree,  one of the first to attract

bees in the spring - April 2015

SPRING DISCOVERED - 2015

March seemed to last a long time, with winter clinging on until the last few days.

The wild field appeared to be devoid of life but under the dry

stalks and grasses new growth was appearing, with Cuckooflower

plants in bud and the very first sighting of a butterfly - a Peacock -

then later in March, Brimstone and Small Tortoiseshell were seen.

Green woodpeckers have found plenty to eat in the form of ants

throughout the winter here in the sheltered earth along the river.

The end of March - Blackthorn blossom on the river bank.

The Group met on 29th and retrieved trolleys from the banks.

These appear at all times of the year! More mulch was added

to the new trees on 1st April as the ground was becoming dry after

weeks of sparse rainfall. 

WINTER - WORK GOES ON IN 2015

Our first scheduled group meet for 2015 took place on Sunday 25th January. 

With the earth hardened by frost, at least on the surface, the going was slightly less muddy than usual.

Some of the group are experts at removing trolleys from the river:

Here's an example of how to remove one in three easy steps.....

Step 1 - First locate the trolley in the fast flowing water and aim to

throw a line across the river to catch onto it.

Step 2 - If at first you don't succeed......approach from the opposite bank:

This worked, using two ropes and hooks, as the trolley was 

firmly embedded - not as easy as it looks.

Step 3 - Once the trolley is on the bank, extract the hooks,

which are actually small anchors.

First one retrieved, now where's the next one -

about half a mile away on the Arun....

Plans for the New Year 2015

Crab Apples last autumn 2014

The end of 2014 was quite hectic with planting activity taking priority. 15 trees were planted and about 1000 native spring bulbs went in along the verges under the hedges before the extremes of winter weather could prevent any further work.

Now the ground has become unworkable - after only 25mm of rain overnight - about an inch - the river burst its banks today and filled its natural wide river bed to the brim at about 11.00am - but the tide had turned down on the coast at Littlehampton, and the rain had ceased earlier in the morning. By the afternoon the water was quickly receding. With the Arun valley brooks full and the fields saturated, we wait for the low tides to allow the river water into the sea.

The river spreads to fill its natural and ancient river bed, the water

carrying mud from bare fields far upstream.

Looking ahead.

Birds this winter have rapidly finished off most of the available berries and fruits

and are busy on the ivy berries now, which have ripened just in time.

Our aim will be to increase the numbers of native berry and fruit-bearing plants and trees

along the river to sustain wildlife during the autumns and winters and also to increase the pollination corridors, using native blossoming trees and plants and early-flowering spring plants which can provide a continuous source of foraging for pollinating insects such as bees. Insects attracted to plants provide early food for birds too and are an essential energy source for hungry and exhausted spring migrants landing on our shores and making their way inland along the river.  

Hawthorn Berries - usually the first to be eaten!

Guelder Rose Berries - usually one of the last to go

There are still some hanging on to the bushes in January

How old are the Oaks?

MEASURING THE OLD OAKS

On our meet on 26th October we made a start on measuring the girth of the old oaks along the river in order to calculate their approximate age.

SEE

 Hills Farm Wildlife Conservation 

'Oaks in October'  record dated 28th October for all trees measured so far.

This oak is about 175 years old, middle aged, certainly not the

oldest on the riverside.

Detail of the trunk of an older oak.

We aim to measure all the old oaks eventually - their ages vary a lot, by hundreds of years, indicating an ancient woodland origin rather than a deliberate planting by a land owner to mark a boundary. During woodland and forest clearance in order to create space for agricultural use, trees were always left on the edges of the clearings to form natural boundaries, as part of hedgerows.

A Fine end to September

          MAKING THE MOST OF THE FINE WEATHER     

On Sunday September 28th the Group met to clear rubbish from the river and banks of the river Arun as well as covering the usual riverside area and footpaths. Here on the Arun the banks are steep and the river depth was tested and found to be too deep for anyone without waders.

Here is the result - an old rusty trolley found in the river (with 

some wooden fencing), a large red plastic trolley found on the

river bank and a double mattress which had been cut in half and 

thrown onto the steep river bank.

It was very hot work, even in the river

At last the trolley is hauled up - this was probably the last opportunity to remove things from the river before autumn and winter rains 

Other items recently recovered from the riverside by members of the group included a padlock and chain to the gate of the Green and parts of a nearby Bus Stop.