Clearing the Fromebridge Towpath

A couple of different jobs for the Fromebridge Friday team today with the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust. The first was not too far from the carpark and it was just trimming some of the overhanging vegetation by the towpath to allow easier access to the reserve. There’s a huge amount of Poison Hemlock growing here, which is fatally toxic to humans if ingested, but great for wildlife. Cutting back towpath vegetation We took no more than about 50cm each side which was a mixture of thistle and other plants. We then disposed of the arisings in a couple of discreet spots where they will rot down. After tea break, we decided to head to the species rich grassland and control the thistle coming up there. It’s been off this year with the grazing – although they have had full access the whole summer to the field, it has hardly been touched. As a result it looks the best we’ve seen it so far, and there were plenty of bird’s foot trefoil, red clover and other species. While the rest of the team…