Danesbury Fernery

Researching and Restoring the Danesbury Victorian Fernery

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John Roper

No Voting required to join Our Party in the Fernery on 12th December from 10 a.m.

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Photo by Lucy Alexander

Friends of Danesbury Nature Reserve/Fernery – please note carefully

Our annual Working Party is one week early in December – THE SECOND THURSDAY – to do a bit of work and then celebrate all the hard work we have carried out during the year.

Nature Reserve Working Party – led by Andrew Beattie

After collecting their tools from the shed this Working Party will be working in the (new) Clock Meadow at the South East corner of the Fernery Field. They will continue the great scrub bashing start they made in October which will lead to habitat improvement in the New Year.

The Fernery Gardening Group

Led by Harry Ward this Working Party will continue bulb planting, site clearance and maintenance work, and anything else they can think of. Bridge building will be a month or so away – with more celebrations planned no doubt.

The Christmas Party

At the blast of the Fernery Whistle, all work will stop, tools will be returned to the shed, and the Party will begin.

Good weather Location – in the Fernery

Bad weather location – 6 Roman Way, by kind invitation of Hilary and Harry Ward.

Refreshments

Food and bites

  • Hilary is producing Sausage rolls and other ‘naughty goodies’
  • Sue is preparing flap jacks
  • Sara is baking Spiced Xmas Muffins
  • Jenny is producing chocolate cup cakes
  • John has already bought Stohlen (not stolen) cake

Drinks

  • Hilary and Harry are providing Mulled Wine
  • Colin is providing non-alcoholic beverages.

Before or After the real one – this Party will be worth a Vote – so please do not miss it!

We look forward to seeing you all there.

Report of Working Parties – 21st November 2019

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Weather Foretold

The forecast ‘gentle breeze’ was more akin to a ‘strong easterly freeze’.

Those in the Fernery Gardening Group found very little of the usual shelter in the dell, and most volunteers packed up and departed just as soon as the factory whistle blew at 12 p.m.

Work Party No 1 – The Local Nature Reserve

A group of 7 volunteers led by Andrew Beattie were kept very busy continuing the work started a couple of months ago in the Ancient Track. Apart from the ongoing need to tidy up the entry to the track from the Codicote road and clear it to its full length, the prime task was to clear the ground to receive primrose plugs in the next couple of months.

Nettles and brambles were cleared with little help from the strimmer which unfortunately needed endless cable re-loading. Tired elders were lopped, and cuttings were cleared away as much as possible to the top of the banks and out of sight.

Nina raked leaves along the full length of the track, and as the overall clearance work continued the team began to reveal ferns previously hidden.

Photos by Andrew Beattie
Photo by Andrew Beattie

Lucy uncovered an interesting Hart’s tongue fern tucked in a rotting log that is covered with candle snuff fungus.

The access path from the Codicote road is now clear once again and provides easy access to the track and the Nature Reserve.

Work Party No 2 – Fernery Garden

More work was carried out on the North Bank introducing more logs and old branches to retain the slope.

Harry and Alan worked to further cover the terram with a mix of soil and bark chippings.

Sarah led a team planting some 750 many very large Cammassia bulbs – the cold weather stopped them completing the task.

These giant plants will produce a rich blue bloom in the Spring/summer months.

Jenny with help from Sue and Christine continued the task of weeding and managing the wild flower bed at the top of the North Bank.

Fernery Garden – Frost Protection

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The volunteers use the WhatsApp Fernery Gardening Group page to arrange ad hoc meetings that are needed to keep on top of the many tasks needed to keep Presentation standards high.

At this time of the year it is necessary to protect the more delicate plants in preparation of the advancing frosts.

On Monday 11th October 2019 Harry Ward fitted patent Hilary Ward frost proofing bags which will do very nicely thank you.

Report of Working parties – Thursday 17th October 2019

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On a beautiful sunny day we had two very busy groups of volunteers out working.

Local Nature Reserve Working Party – adopting The Clock Meadow

This was the first visit by the volunteers to this site in the South East corner of the Fernery Field, by the Old London Road entrance behind Clock House Gardens. The Council’s contractors undertook a preparatory and very basic clearance of scrub earlier in the year, but this area has not been managed since the Borough Council acquired the Danesbury Nature Reserve in 1998.

Chris James from the Borough Council was present to introduce the volunteers to the site, which she named The Clock Meadow.

This was the start of what will be many visits. Along the way it will be decided to what degree we might be able to encourage the rich diversity of wildlife already in evidence.

A small band of volunteers led by Andrew Beattie started the task of selective clearance of scrub and elder, and lopping branches from trees in need of management.

A Public Footpath crosses this site, leading to the cattle fence and kissing gate entrance to the Fernery Field proper. It is a very well used path, and a section of regular walkers, and local dog walkers will for the first time enjoy new vistas as they open up.

The Fernery Gardening Group

Work continued led by Harry Ward, planting plants and shrubs in the Parsons Bed and above the grotto before the Autumn sets in.

Notice of Work Parties – Thursday 21st November 2019

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Given the constraints of the weather, and the number of volunteers on site, we are planning to operate two Work Parties on the 21st November:

  1. Local Nature Reserve – Leader Andrew Beattie
  2. The Fernery – Leader Harry Ward

Weather Forecast- long range

Light rain showers and a moderate breeze

Work Party No 1 – Local Nature Reserve

Park Field – Ghylls Hill – The Ancient Track – Habitat Improvement

With next month’s December meeting in mind when, for practical reasons, we will want both working parties working closer together to more easily join up for Seasonal celebrations, we have decided to return this month to the Ancient Track to continue the maintenance work of earlier work parties. The work area is reasonably sheltered and whatever the weather we look forward to a good turnout of non-gardening scrub-bashing volunteers.

A lot of scrub is re-growing at the bottom (Codicote Road) end of the Track and at the kissing gate access, which will be cleared once again with the strimmer.

We will also use loppers to clear scrub and bramble trailers along the banks, and rakes to reveal more of the established ferns and hopefully the bluebells that have been smothered (although not visible at present). We will also prepare the ground for the expected arrival of primrose plugs in the New Year.

Volunteers for the Local Nature Reserve Working Party should collect bow saws, loppers and springy wire rakes from the Fernery shed, and the spare First Aid Kit, before moving down to Ghylls Hill.

Clock Meadow – December and successive months.

This is the name we are giving to the newly managed area at the South East entrance to the Fernery Field by the Old London Road and Clock House Gardens.

We will re-visit the Clock Meadow in December 2019, because it is in line of sight of the Fernery (almost). In December the Clock Meadow volunteers will more easily be able to join up with the Fernery Gardeners for Seasonal Celebrations.

Having started and made such good progress with this area behind Clock House Gardens Chris James is keen for us to undertake more pruning, and removal of elders and some cherry suckers in December and beyond.

In the New Year we will begin wider publicity for this exciting new area of Danesbury which offers so much opportunity for habitat improvement, It is an area on the Nature Reserve which hasn’t previously felt the impact of the volunteer Friends of Danesbury. It will be seen by a different set of visitors to Danesbury Park as they follow the Public Footpath from the old Service Road behind the former Clock Hotel.

Work Party No 2 – Fernery Garden

  1. We have more old branches to fix in position to aid soil retention on the North Bank and further work to cover the terram with a mix of soil and bark chippings
  2. Bulb planting – we have a supply of spring bulbs from the Borough Council which need to be planted – the scale of this task might entail further ad hoc meetings
  3. Jenny needs support to weed and maintain the wild flower beds on the North Bank
  4. Colin has ferns to be planted in the tanked bed, and further fern transplanting and weeding.
  5. We will undertake general maintenance tasks including raking the Leaf drop for storage on the compost heap.

Meeting Place – both Work Parties

All volunteers should meet at the Fernery at 9.30 am where the leaders will allocate tasks and distribute tools as appropriate for the two working parties. Volunteers are asked to decide before arriving which of the two working parties they would like to join, as this helps the organisation.

How to find the Fernery

If you have not visited us before you will be made very welcome. Please read the directions to find us.

Bring a hot drink and refreshments with you, and wear strong boots or shoes and good quality gardening gloves. All tools will be provided.

On your first visit the Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council (the Owners) require that you complete a personal details Form which will be retained by them for Public Liability Insurance purposes.

Notice of Work Parties – Thursday 17th October 2019

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Objectives

We will operate two Working parties:

  • Local Nature reserve – Habitat Management
  • Fernery Garden – maintenance and some excavation

Weather Forecast – Long Range

Sunny Intervals and a moderate breeze.

Nature Reserve – Habitat Management

Andrew Beattie will lead this group which will start working in the new area identified by Chris James at the South East corner of the Fernery Field, and described last month.

The area of land between the start of the Public Footpath behind Clock House Gardens and the Fernery Field cattle fence, is owned by the Borough Council and for many years has been undeveloped scrub and grassland.

Earlier this year Maydencroft stripped the area of long standing brambles and scrub in readiness for management of the area and bringing it under control.

It is expected that volunteers will start planning and shaping the area to encourage wildlife, and better use and enjoyment of the space.

Fernery Gardening Group

The Fernery Team led by Harry Ward has been busy over recent weeks in ad hoc groups working on pressing tasks. Details of some of these tasks are included in the Report of the 19th September Working Party; they include opening the Parsons zigzag planting bed, and positioning and planting the recently installed Oak logs on the East Bank.

Tasks for Thursday 17th October are expected to include the following:

  • Planting ferns and weeding with Colin and Sarah.  
  • Working with Jenny on the wild flowers beds.  
  • Raking leaves and twigs off the grass banks and paths. 
  • Work on the north slope; cutting out areas of terram where the mulch has washed away, and infilling with soil and mulch. 
  • Starting to excavate the newly exposed South Bank around the terracotta brickwork to establish its depth and possibly uncover another Parsons bed with a hard base and drainage.  

Meeting Place – both Work Parties

All volunteers should meet at the Fernery at 9.30 am where the leaders will allocate tasks and distribute tools as appropriate for the two working parties. Volunteers are asked to decide before arriving which of the two working parties they would like to join, as this helps the organisation.

How to find the Fernery

If you have not visited us before you will be made very welcome. Please read the directions to find us.

Bring a hot drink and refreshments with you, and wear strong boots or shoes and good quality gardening gloves. All tools will be provided.

On your first visit the Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council (the Owners) require that you complete a personal details Form which will be retained by them for Public Liability Insurance purposes.

Report of Work Parties – Thursday 19th September 2019 and subsequent days.

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Two work parties met up at the Fernery to receive instructions from the leaders and to collect tools.

Working Party on the Local Nature Reserve – Habitat Management

Andrew Beattie led a small team which continued previous months’ work in the Ancient Track on the Park Field. Much of the work was to clear scrub on the banks, exposing the natural ferns, bluebells and primroses which were becoming smothered.

It is hoped that now that the Autumn and Winter months are facing us, work for the volunteers in the Fernery Garden will ease off. With more volunteers working in the Local Nature Reserve we will be able to build an interesting habitat management programme.

We do need more volunteers to work on the Nature Reserve, particularly between now and March/April 2020 when birds start their nesting.

The Fernery Gardening Group

Harry Ward led a team which faced multiple tasks. Maydencroft were on site undertaking the final excavation programme for 2019.

Rabbit Proofing

Harry and Alan completed the task of fixing wire all around the extended wild flower beds on the North Bank in order to keep rabbits out.

Excavation

The Maydencroft team had three primary tasks to carry out over two days:

  1. To dig-out the zigzag bed at the North end of the Dell in order to discover if it was an original ‘Anthony Parsons’ bed, with solid base and drainage holes. This would enable the volunteers to test the soils for ancient fern spores, and then re-build it as a swampy bed over a waterproof membrane.
  2. To drill out the three very heavy, but rotten, Oak Logs (felled in recent weeks from outside Waitrose in Welwyn Garden City), and position them on the East Bank ready for use as natural planters.
  3. To excavate the South grassy bank to see if more planting beds, steps or paths are buried under the spoil.

Digging out Anthony Parsons’ zigzag bed

This bed was cleared and we could see the Cement base with drainage holes, in perfect order, just as Anthony Parsons first built it 160 years ago.

To our amazement, the zigzag planting bed precisely matches the description of its construction in Robinson’s Book of 1870. Solid Portland Cement bases presumed to be covering layers of brick and tiles, and with 3″ drain pipes. The side pipes and their bases are about 4″ higher than the main base and drains, so clearly designed to drain to the bottom. But it is not at all clear where the lowest pipe would have drained to, because it is currently below ground level.

Colin took samples of the soils from these beds so that he can start tests for ancient fern spores. The beds were then re-filled with soils over a membrane designed to retain water and encourage wet-loving ferns. But 21 days later on 10th October 2019 it was decided that the smaller ‘arrow bed’ should be left exposed as having architectural and historical interest for visitors.

Therefore, after heavy rains, Harry once again dug out the, by now, saturated and heavy soils (the membrane clearly beginning to work), before fixing temporary safety ribbons.

We look forward to a Report in due course from Colin on his fern spore discoveries, and a Progress Report as he tries to cultivate the ferns which were originally planted in these beds.

Oak Log Planters

We are fortunate to have been offered logs from the ancient Oak recently felled from Hunters Bridge near Waitrose in Welwyn Garden City.

Subsequently Colin and Harry manoeuvred the stumps into their final positions in the shade on the East Bank and, after lining the two hollow logs, they filled them with soil mixed with leaf mould, ready for planting with ferns. The third log will be drilled out ready for planting later.

Excavating the South Bank

Unfortunately time ran out before the work was completed.

The brick edged path that led in a curve into the slope did not, as we had expected, run up the slope and end in steps, but mysteriously turned right towards the base of the dropping well, implying a circular platform in front of the grotto. But this needs further testing – and tons of soil would need to be removed.

A wall runs in a large curve left to right half way up the slope, and it became apparent that this wall would have joined the wall in the May Bed, just about where we have introduced one of the new wooden steps.

And just above that wall is another retaining wall which initially looked to be protecting a path running above the planting bed – but this ‘path’ suddenly narrowed and fizzled out into an irregularly shaped ‘bed’. Many large roots were removed during this process and it is likely that whatever path or bed is underneath, the soil will have been dislodged over the years by the Lime Tree.

This excavation has left us with more questions that when we started, and more study of the South Bank is now needed.

Notice of Work Parties – Thursday 19th September 2019

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Objectives

We will again be operating two work parties this Thursday.

Because Maydencroft are scheduled to be on site in the Fernery to undertake final heavy equipment work for 2019, we must limit the number of volunteers working in the Fernery this Thursday, for health and safety reasons.

We therefore encourage Gardening volunteers to work on the Local Nature Reserve with Andrew Beattie’s work party.

Long Range Weather Forecast

Sunny with light winds.

Nature Reserve Work Party – Leader Andrew Beattie

As stated many times before, scrub-bashing work on the Nature Reserve is less likely to disturb wildlife, in particular nesting birds, from September round to March/April each year,

From now until Spring 2020 we therefore encourage volunteers to join Andrew’s scrub-bashing Work Party.

Regular tasks can be expected to include path clearance of overhanging brambles, nettles and tree shoots and runners.

Work on special projects will be agreed in advance between Andrew and Chris James and are likely to include continuation of ancient track clearance down to the Codicote Road, hedge layering, and the clearance and burning of brash left laying around from earlier work parties. Some basic tree pruning might also be on the agenda.

An interesting new Project proposed by Chris James is to develop an area on the South East corner of the Fernery Field into a wildlife study area. The area (outside the cattle fence) owned by the WHBC behind the rear of houses in St John’s Close and the Clockhouse Gardens development and Old Roman Road was cleared by Maydencroft during the year

These are all good seasonal fun tasks for colder Autumn and Winter days as the work of the Fernery Gardening Group falls off.

Fernery Work Party – Leader Harry Ward

Because Maydencroft are on site, we need only a limited number of volunteers to be in the Fernery. Apart from undertaking light tasks, these volunteers will in part supervise Maydencroft’s work in the absence of hands-on WHBC management.

Maydencroft will be:

  1. Mechanically digging out the zigzag bed at the North End and moving soil and turves to other parts of the site
  2. Lifting, moving and installing the three very heavy hollow Oak logs from the North end to the East end.
  3. Excavating the steep South Bank to uncover hidden Anthony Parsons beds.

Scheduled tasks for the few volunteers will include:

  1. Fencing the northern slope where we’ve planted wild flowers and where we’ll plant herbaceous shrubs in October. (Alan and Harry)
  2. Weeding the North Bank wild flower beds (Jenny +1)
  3. Moving last years leaf mulch from the front enclosure to the back one, thus allowing this Autumn’s leaf fall to go into an empty enclosure (Colin + John)
  4. Working with Maydencroft on the zigzag bed, testing the soils for ancient fern spores, and re-positioning the turf. (Colin + !)

More demanding seasonal work such as leaf collection, strimming, grass cutting and general tidying will wait for the October Work Party.

Meeting Place – both Work Parties

All volunteers should meet at the Fernery at 9.30 am where the leaders will allocate tasks and distribute tools as appropriate for the two working parties. Volunteers are asked to decide before arriving which of the two working parties they would like to join, as this helps the organisation.

How to find the Fernery

If you have not visited us before you will be made very welcome. Please read the directions to find us.

Bring a hot drink and refreshments with you, and wear strong boots or shoes and good quality gardening gloves. All tools will be provided.

On your first visit the Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council (the Owners) require that you complete a personal details Form which will be retained by them for Public Liability Insurance purposes.

Anglia in Bloom – the 2019 Awards

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On Tuesday 10th September Harry and John joined other volunteer representatives, including the Sherrardspark Wood Wardens, at the Awards Ceremony at St Ives Cambridgeshire. The team from the Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council included the Leader of the Council, the Chief Executive, and Ann MacDonald among others.

Friends of Danesbury Fernery

Mindful that last year we won the Special Award for Conservation Projects, this year our entry had been short-listed by the visiting judges for a Special Award in the Community Project section.

We did not win, but we were presented with a splendid Certificate, which we will hope to show you on 3rd October 2019 at our AGM, after corrections to the typescript have been made by the Organisers.

In conversation with the judges at the end of the Ceremony, we gained the clear impression that had we been categorised in the Conservation then we would have won once again.

The Sherrardspark Wood Wardens

We heartily congratulate our SPWW colleagues who won the Gold Award in the Woodlands Category against stiff opposition from Linslade.

Other Welwyn Hatfield Awards were gained for The Longcroft Lane Allotments in the Grow Your Own Category, and the Borough Council won two Category Awards for a) Environmental Quality, and b) the Local authority Public Open Space Floral Display for Parkway.