Saturday 12 December saw the Friends of Shrewsbury Park Management Committee gather to plant some shrubs and small trees donated by the Woodland Trust.
We managed to plant around 150 plus some daffodils!
If this looks like loads of fun (it was!) then drop us a message and we will let you know the date and time of the next big dig!
Our plans for this year’s AGM have been scuppered so we are just going to update you on news of the park and leave the Management Committee the same for now: Sandra Bauer, Paul Buckley, Alan Deacon, Kris Inglis, Sonja O’Sullivan, Ron Senkus, Irene Telfer and Iris White. If you would like to join the committee and get more involved, there is a link to use later in this email. New members are always welcome.
Arising from the 2019 AGM:
Summary of past year…
We held a successful 2019 Quiz night with Shrewsbury House in November that proved a fun time and a good fundraiser. A member alerted us to the Celebrate National Lottery 25 Grant and turned the application around to meet the deadline. This gave us £775 for wildlife monitoring equipment, a decision based on last year’s AGM discussion of habitats. We have materials for hedgehog surveying, a nature cam and two bat detectors so far and look forward to working parties being able to carry out investigations. Many thanks to Les for all his efforts on this application.
After cancelling the March Bird Walk it became clear that every visit to the park would have to be self-directed for the foreseeable future. No Summer Festival, just walks for exercise, play, reflection and running around madly became the main focus. Thank you to everyone who continued to encourage social distancing, responsible picnicking and considerate dog walking during the most stressful times. Many people discovered the pleasure of this open space and experienced the natural world on our doorstep.
Have you seen the video showcasing FSP and the park? Or taken a turn on the swing that appeared in April?
Thankyous
We’ve had help with habitat management this summer. One was a survey done by Joe Beale, local environmentalist, who walked the park with a few members to identify habitat diversity and make suggestions as to how we can appropriately support and manage the space.
The Royal Borough of Greenwich Parks and Open Spaces were very cooperative when approached with FSP meadow care concerns: when they met myself and Les Clark they had already mapped out the next two years’ mowing from the same environmental criteria. There is a lot of expertise and experience we can draw on in P and OS.
Thanks to Michelle for providing several months of hedgehog news and guidance posted on the website. And to Les and Liz for establishing watering stations for wildlife throughout the summer and now. Thanks also to Sandra for providing the impetus and editing of the above mentioned video. And thanks to Anthony Hurren who shared his lockdown nature video and won the cover place on the 2021 calendar.
The Lockdown Gallery on the website started in March was a huge success – thanks for kicking it off, John! And of course this fed naturally into the 2021 calendar with voting online that went surprisingly well. The sale of the 2021 calendar was very successful and thanks for spreading the resulting product far and wide. The price increased to £6.50 this year and we sold about half in just one of those glorious weekends in the park in July. Results in the Treasurer’s report THERE ARE STILL 3 LEFT! Contact werfsp@gmail.com to get one.
May the new year bring more activities back to the park and keep all those positive ones that you’ve discovered in 2020. Feel free to send any suggestions or concerns via the email address.
See you in the Park
Kris Inglis, Chair
Delivery to the SE18, SE2 or DA16 postcodes is free of charge.
Those hedgehogs that had their litters in June will have started to take their babies out on foraging trips at night. This is so that the babies start to learn to find food for themselves. They won’t leave their mother just yet through, returning to the nest with her and continuing to take her milk as well as the food they find whilst out and about. It’ll be a few more weeks before they’re ready to leave, but they will be starting to develop the vital skills that they need to be able to survive on their own.
Did you know: the biggest predator of hedgehogs in the UK is the badger. Find out more here.
You may have seen in the news , headlines telling us that a number of our beloved native species are seriously in danger Amongst them is the hedgehog. If we all do a little bit to improve the environment for our prickly friends, we can play our part in helping to change that. Here are the things that you can be doing this month in your garden and in the local area to be kind to hedgehogs:
SPOTTED A HEDGEHOG IN YOUR GARDEN? If you spot a hedgehog either in your garden or somewhere in the local area, please let us know. It would be really exciting to build up a picture of where and when they are being seen locally.
You can also log your sightings with Hedgehog Street (the project run by the Hedgehog Preservation Society) who are building up a national picture of the state of our hog population. Find out more here
If you spot a hedgehog out during the middle of the day, they may well be in trouble. Contact Willow Wildlife for advice on 07956 472284 or Michelle (on behalf of Friends of Shrewsbury Park) on 07849 534759.
More from the Hedgehog Diaries next month.
The Yogathon returns to Shrewsbury Park for a third year, in aid of Greenpeace. You are invited to participate in the practice of 108 Sun Salutations beginning at 11am (10.15 am for registration). Participants should bring cash for your donation of £20. Greenpeace volunteers will explain the use of this money in their aims and work crucial to our environment.
There will be delicious vegan food and Thai massage available to keep you going as well! And a kids’ Eco Hero fancy dress competition!
The Cubs, their parents and their leaders made our Great British Clean Up Day a fun event providing 18 volunteers for two hours gathering (mostly) rubbish and litter along the Dothill pathway. And a big THANK YOU to the three(!) FSP volunteers who turned out.
We had some serious environmental chats with the Cubs who certainly know their way around recycling! Check out the Beavers’ posters still displayed around the Park.
Sunday 10 September saw the much-anticipated Foraging Walk take place at Shrewsbury Park. Around 35 local people attended the walk to learn which hedges, plants and trees to forage from, but also those to avoid. The park offers a huge array of plants which can be used as food in a raw state, cooked, or in the form of teas. Amongst others they sampled cherry plums, hops, sloes, ground elder, burdock, horseradish, yarrow and raspberries.
Kevin Godby, a local expert who works for Greenwich Co-operative Development Agency (GCDA) on their Growing Greenwich Project demonstrated how to find the seeds, berries and fruit and how to safely consume them. He shared home-made jam and produce that he had made from berries found in the park, pointing out where they grew as he went along the trail.
Kevin said: “It’s important to remember that foraging is about eating a little from a range of different fruit and not lots from one place, as the body needs variety and too much from one place can tip the balance the wrong way.”
Kris Inglis, Chair of FSP said “we have all learnt so much about what we can and can’t consume from the hedgerows. It is amazing to find so much in one space, which will change with every season. Until today we knew little of this intriguing aspect of the park.”
Michael Stuart, a keen forager from Kilburn also attended to offer his experience; his key advice is to observe an area to get to know it and see how it changes through the seasons which will lead to a deeper appreciation of the environment. He recommends winter and spring for the variety of fresh leaves available to add to salad.
By Sandra Bauer
Shrewsbury Park is the venue for a Yogathon in aid of Greenpeace, organised by Priscila Diniz, one of several local Iyengar yoga teachers instructing and guiding you through Sun Salutations on the day. For details of the format, how to register and what to bring, please visit http://yogabypri.com/yogathon.htm
Meet at the Garland Road entrance The free walk will take about 1.5 hours and finish at the car park off Plum Lane.
Join us as Kevin Godby leads this introduction to foraging walks, suitable for beginners. You will learn to identify around 18 common forageable species, be shown where they grow and taste some of them too!
You may also bring along something to take home the things you come across, if you wish.
Please wear suitable footwear and be aware we will be walking uphill. This walk is aimed at adults. If you have questions about the route re mobility please contact werfsp@gmail.com so we can help. No dogs, please.
This is an all-weathers walk!
