October 18th 2022…A really unexpectedly hot day saw a group of volunteers in Oakwood Park prepared to plant a great selection of water habitat plants in the upper of the five ponds created in the park. It is a major brave undertaking with five quite large ponds and several small swales (scrapes) interlaced via gullies that meander downwards from the top of the park.
Many dog walkers and locals seemed to be unaware of these developments and were really interested in what was taking place and we had an opportunity to discuss this with them.
Admittedly the area possibly looked at its worst during this early stage but once the water enters the top pond, it will slowly fill and when it reaches the top of each pond it is planned that it will then overflow into the gullies which then meander attractively down the slope via all the lower swales and ponds slowly filling each as ithe weather dictates
This is a well planned and large undertaking. A concern expressed was that it was now quite muddy and looks unattractive in what was a previously natural area. However, when the whole concept was explained (with the added benefit of the great weather) the concerned folk were able to envisage the planned beauty with water fringed with plants and teeming with wildlife.
Prior to this scheme polluted water with run offs from local streets caused many problem floods downstream and the benefit of flood prevention plus the importance of the whole scheme naturely filtering the potentially polluted water was an important consideration.
| Many Friends of Enfield Chase work with other volunteers on local projects and this is the final week of regular events. Yes, the project in it’s current form comes to a close. There were special thanks to ALL who have participated, helped the borough, had a bit of fun, and maybe even learned a bit from Gareth, Angus, Sam, and Digby at Thames21 andThe Waterways Team of Enfield Borough Council, who enabled this involvement and continue to improve the environment,…for us all. |
| Lots of fascinating work is currently being planned…so ‘watch this space’ |
| Thames21 is working with Enfield Council and the community to restore the borough’s rivers. They are doing this by working together to create new woodlands and wetlands and by providing exciting volunteering opportunities out in nature. |
At the start of the day…All the equipment unloaded and the plants ready for planting
at the start of the day..all equipment and plants unloaded
A safety briefing and then donning heavy duty wellies and hi-vis gillets we were shown the plants and had the various water preferences explained together with an explanation of the best areas to plant them. Armed with dibbers and waterproof gloves we entered the heavy mud of the ponds.
It was quite a strenuous excercise but we covered the whole upper large pond in a remarkably short time. Ten of us planted over 1400 plants during the day…
Taking photos ‘before’ and after’ was not totally satisfying as the ‘after’ pictures (due to the very small size of the plugs) did not really show the result of all our hard work but like our tree-planting everyone will enjoy the results in years to come.
…hard to see any of the tiny plugs..but, honestly, they are there..!!
After heavy rain for the best part of a week we went back and were delighted to see the cell (pond) level had risen considerably so our newly planted plants will have a good chance of survival this time (see below)
Don’t forget we are active throughout the year and welcome any help. All ages are welcome and we are are in the process of involving local schools and youth groups in our future plantings and maintenance. This will benefit everyone by becoming an integral part of the community, learning about nature, enjoying this wonderful environment and being part of the whole new green ethos from a practical as well as a theoretical viewpoint. Many volunteers are conservationists, many work in the community in other fields and many are just willing to be part of a bigger concept…let us add you to this ‘merry bunch’…Seriously though, we look forward to a really big influx of volunteers for the coming season..thanks so much for reading this and we hope you are inspired..