• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Danesbury Fernery

Researching and Restoring the Danesbury Victorian Fernery

  • About
  • Volunteering
  • History
    • The House
      • Historical note – the Closure of Danesbury Hospital in 1993
    • The Families
      • A time Line – Post Fernery
    • The Fernery
      • Fern Fever
      • The Gardener
      • Pulhamite
  • Garden
    • Design Objectives
  • Location
  • Calendar
  • Support Us
    • Funding
    • Donate
    • Join us
  • Photos
    • Victorian Fernery
      • Excavation – stages
      • Garden Restoration – stages
    • Ferns
    • Wildflowers in Danesbury Fernery – Jenny’s Index
    • Local Nature Reserve
    • Butterflies/Invertebrates
    • Fungi
    • Wild Flowers – Nature Reserve
  • Reports
    • Progress
    • Visits
  • Contact
You are here: Home / News / Notice – Workparty- Thursday 21st October 2021

Notice – Workparty- Thursday 21st October 2021

18th October 2021 By John Roper Leave a Comment

Weather Forecast – long range

Light rain showers and a fresh breeze.

Work party Leaders will decide on the day if recent heavy rain has made the Fernery footpaths unsafe for normal work. An announcement of cancellation will be made as soon as practicable via the WhatsApp groups.

Management of Work on Danesbury Nature Reserve

Over recent times it has become evident to all walkers and users of the Park Field that habitat management by the Council contractors, and indeed by the volunteers, has fallen off over the past year. The Council’s normal Management Plan schedules have been disrupted by the strains on resources that has affected many services.

The Danesbury volunteers have been able to start to balance out these shortcomings, and good work was completed last month, but we are in need of Volunteer Leaders

Group 1 – Fernery Gardening Group

Jenny will lead this Group which will continue general management of the borders and beds. As colder months approach work will undoubtedly switch towards seasonal leaf gathering and mulching.

Some of the new outer fencing on the east side has some gaps that will need repairing if the Gardening Group have not managed this on their regular Tuesday afternoon meeting this week on 19th October.

All volunteers for Group 1 should meet at the Fernery Shed at 9.30 a.m. for a prompt 10 a.m. start.

Group 2 – Local Nature Reserve

Alan Tayler will lead this Group which will continue the work to cut back the considerable undergrowth of brambles and nettles that have taken over the perimeter paths on the Park Field.

Beyond this work, and as the Autumn/Winter season develops, projects on the lower slopes will continue to manage and arrest the uncontrolled spread of scrub in order to preserve the grassland which is at the heart of the 2013-2023 Management Plan’s objectives.

Volunteers for Group 2 should bring their own ‘favourite’ hand tools, such as secateurs, bow-saws and loppers, and meet the Leaders at the bottom (Codicote Road) end of Danesbury Park Road where parking is available. The Leaders will collect suitable Team Tools from the Fernery Shed, including the strimmer, rakes and bowsaws, and bring them down to the start point.

Where to Meet

As stated above –

Group 1 volunteers should meet at the Fernery Shed at 9.30 a.m. for a prompt 10 a.m. start.

Group 2 volunteers should meet at the Codicote Road end of Danesbury Park Road.

Volunteers are asked to consider in advance which Work Party they would prefer to join as this helps the leaders organise groups and distribute tools.

If you are a new volunteer and are not sure where the Danesbury Fernery is located, please go to the website where a map will show you where we are.

New Volunteers

New volunteers will be asked to complete a Registration Form which the Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council will retain confidentially for Public Liability Insurance purposes.

Please make sure that you are wearing boots or other suitable footwear, and gardening gloves, and also bring a hot drink and refreshment for break-time.

Covid-19 Rules and Tools

The application of current rules are the responsibiity of all individuals and groups of individuals.

For this reason, it would be helpful at this time if volunteers bring their own ‘favourite’ hand-tools in order to reduce the need for sharing and subsequent issues of sterilisation.

If you have any queries please contact any committee member or

Filed Under: News, Work Parties

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Earlier News

Notice of Work Parties – Thursday 19th May 2022

Weather Forecast - long range Sunny intervals and a gentle … [Read More...] about Notice of Work Parties – Thursday 19th May 2022

The Rockwork Repaired

Following the closure of The Fernery and restoration of the rockwork by Alan … [Read More...] about The Rockwork Repaired

A new Chairman for the FODF

Following the retirement of John Roper, we are delighted to announce that Sara … [Read More...] about A new Chairman for the FODF

Archives

Follow Us Online

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2022 Friends of Danesbury Fernery (FODF). Non attributed photography by John Roper.