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Category Archives: Environment
2017 EVENTS
Below you’ll see the events planned, so far, and we hope they whet your appetite to get outdoors in the Park!
Clean up Day – Sunday 5 March at 1pm
Spring has sprung and so have loads of brambles around the Park! Meet on the Dothill path near the nature reserve entrance gate…
Thank you, Team!
Thank you very much to everyone who turned out for bulb planting. The weather was kind and we managed to find homes for all 1000 crocuses and 1000 native daffodils. After scientifically considering the light, drainage, views – and if we could manage to get a trowel or spade into the ground – we planted in several areas which will be revealed this spring.
BULB PLANTING THIS SUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2PM
Get off that computer and get outside!
There are 2000 free bulbs to plant in our lovely Park, come and join in for an hour or two.
We will meet at 2pm in the middle of the woods by the large fallen oak tree. Hope to see you there!
Thank you
The Management Committee
Butterfly Walk Saturday 16 July at 2.30pm
In case you missed it, we enjoyed a fascinating wander amongst the trees last Saturday, discovering so much about the Park’s treasured trees and habitats. Following that successful walk, John Denton will be leading a butterfly walk this Saturday.
He aims to help you:
1) Identify the summer butterflies in the park.
2) Try to observe the differences between the sexes.
3) Link their behaviour to the different habitats in the park.
Meet by the carpark notice board. Route will be off and on the paths, so please contact fspdog@hotmail.com to help us accommodate mobility issues. This is a very much a weather dependent walk, and if the forecast is for heavy cloud, rain or showers it will not take place.
Here’s hoping for a sunny day!
Tree ID Walk Saturday 9 July at 11am
Join John Denton, a woods-wise FSP member, as he leads us on an hour’s walk through the Park; identifying trees by leaf/fruit/bark, finding the height of trees, calculating their ages, making bark and leaf rubbings AND tree beating!
Correct meeting place is by the notice board in Plum Lane carpark . Wear sturdy shoes. Route will be off and on the paths, so please contact fspdog@hotmail.com to help us accommodate mobility issues.
Members free, others £2 (but free if you join the Friends)
Park Maintenance this Saturday (4 June 2016)
It’s all hands to the pump – or the secateurs – for bramble clearing from 10am to 11am this Saturday.
Meet at the Garland Road entrance to Dothill. Wear long sleeves, sturdy shoes and bring your gloves and secateurs.
Donation of hedge trimmer
We would like to thank Jon Crouch, Store Manager at Tesco’s in Erith for the donation of a cordless hedge trimmer. We will be using the trimmer to help cut back the brambles in the park, to help make the park more accessible.
Annual Housekeeping
Each winter the bird boxes sited along Dot Hill path need to be checked and emptied in order to be ready for new occupants in the spring. Martin and Peter from RBG Parks and Open Spaces met us early morning on December, set up the ladder and then opened each box in turn.
The blue tits have been busy again this year and we found nine boxes containing successful nests. Some were more cosy and substantial than others, maybe built by more experienced birds – we had fun speculating. The remaining three boxes were empty.
Results show that #7, #11 and #12 have been empty two years running and Martin suggested moving them if this occurs next season. The boxes are easily visible this time of year so have a wander and see if you can spot them. They are numbered in order, 1 – 13, and you will notice that #4 is ‘in need of rennovation’ as it was damaged in 2014. Look out for the one with the extra front door…
FSP would like to thank Parks and Open Spaces for accommodating this visit in their packed work schedule.