During school holidays, accompanied children are welcome to join in too.
Happy to report that the Art Club will re-open this week, having been closed for over a year due to Covid restrictions.
We meet on Monday mornings (10-12) in the Old School village hall in The Street. We are a sociable and informal group with very varied levels of experience, ability and confidence. So whether you are a complete beginner or want to develop your existing skills, do come along.
Tutorial advice and feedback is available if you want it but everyone is encouraged to work at their own pace and to try out different materials and techniques. If you already have your own projects, you are welcome to work on these individually while enjoying the friendly company.
To find out more, please just come along on a Monday morning or contact Pauline Ridley on 01435 830152 or email p.ridley@brighton.ac.uk
In case you missed it in the longer general post about re-opening, this is a quick reminder that the library cafe will be open this Monday 29th July from 2-4pm. Everyone welcome; come and browse the new selection of books and enjoy a cup of tea and a chat.
“Woodlands at War: The impact and legacy of WW1 and WW2 on Britain’s Woodlands” talk by Clive Mayhew
Talk at Dallington Village Hall, Friday 6th August, 7 pm start. No entrance fee, but donations to cover the cost of refreshments would be welcome.
Description: The substantial contribution made by British woodlands over two world wars has been somewhat overlooked in subsequent histories. This talk looks at those pre-war woodlands,describes the extent of their contribution during these conflicts, and assesses its post war legacy. Continue reading “Woodlands at War Talk Friday 6th August 7pm”
(Posted on behalf of Diana Day) The bell ringers met up last week to see if there was support for some ringing to begin again at St Giles Church, Dallington. I’m pleased to say that we rang on Sunday and hope to ring again in two weeks time. This follows the pattern set before, of ringing for 2nd and 4th Sundays. Practices are not possible at present and will not resume until the Autumn at the earliest. One of the ropes broke and the bell has set itself, so this has to be tipped over, safely. This will probably be done on Wednesday, you will just hear the bell ringing until it stops by itself when fully down. Diana Day
We are finally reopening! After many months of waiting for national restrictions to be lifted, we can finally announce (fingers crossed) that Dallington Old School Village Hall will re-open for bookings from Monday July 19th. (All booking enquiries to Karen Gillingham on 01435 831563.) Continue reading “Village Hall re-opening soon!”
(Posted on behalf of Doug Edworthy, Dallington Tree Warden)
As part of the Tree Council’s year-long Close the Gap programme, their Community Hedge Fund is now open for applications. They will be awarding grants of up to £2,500 for volunteer Tree Wardens and community groups to plant new hedgerows, hedgerow trees and to gap up existing hedgerows in rural and urban areas across England this winter.
The deadline for applications is Sunday 8 August 2021. Your planting will need to take place between November and January. You can find out more about the fund and apply on The Tree Council website
In our rural parish of Dallington we have some lovely examples of ancient and veteran trees dotted around our hedgerows, fields, and woods. These living ‘carbon lock-ups’ and special habitats for plants and animals are so very important to the environment and to us. Butin Dallington we don’t actually know how many we have, what condition they are in, or whether they are facing risks from disease or potential damage.
I’m proposing to establish a Dallington Tree Group with three straightforward objectives: –
1) Get to know what trees we have by doing a survey of the parish,
2) Use the data collected to create a register of the parish’s tree stock, and
3) Formulate proposals to Dallington Parish Council for a parish tree management plan.
The survey phase will take the longest to do, and will need the assistance of volunteers to walk footpaths, etc., to collect data on trees and, where access is possible, to take measurements. I’ll train any willing volunteers in the measurement and assessment techniques required – so don’t worry if you haven’t done a tree survey before – and it will be fun!
If you can join our group, whether as an active walker of rights of way, someone with existing knowledge of special trees in the parish, or someone with IT database or admin skills, please get in touch with me, Doug Edworthy, via the email address treewarden@dallington.org.uk or my mobile number 07711 090 925.
The Bluebells are beginning to push their leaves above ground in preparation for the magnificent display they put on for us each year. But after seeing the recent damage to plants in Dallington Forest from off-road motor bikes I felt I should pen a short article about these beautiful flowers of ancient woodland.
Bluebells in Dallington SSSI. Credit: Doug Edworthy
Bluebells face two existential threats: competition with the more vigorous Spanish bluebell which has been escaping from gardens and hybridizing with our native species for 300 years, and the effects of change or disturbance (which is why they are an indicator of ancient, undisturbed woodland).
Hybridisation
There is a real danger of losing the genetic integrity of one of our best-loved native wildflowers, not to mention the spectacular colour and scent, because our native bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) readily cross-breeds with both its Spanish cousin Hyacinthoides hispanica, often planted in gardens, and with the resulting fertile hybrid Hyacinthoides hispanica x non-scripta. But, do you know the difference between the species?
Image Credit: Doug Edworthy
Native bluebellHyacinthoides non-scripta
This bulbous perennial, native to north-western Europe, seems to prefer slightly acidic soils and partial shade. Early in the growing season, they can be a dominant species in coppiced woods on light soils, but they are also found on hedge-banks and sea-cliffs.
The native bluebell’s deep violet-blue flowers have a strong sweet scent, the pollen is yellow and the flower stems droop or nod distinctively to one side.
White-flowered native bluebells are exceedingly rare. If you are tempted to take one home, please note: it’s against the law to intentionally pick, uproot or destroy native bluebells.
Image Credit: Wikipedia Commons
Spanish bluebellHyacinthoides hispanica
This species, native to Portugal and western Spain, was first introduced in British gardens as an ornamental plant in the 1680s. It was favoured over the native because it can grow on almost any soil and has bolder blooms. It is a larger, more upright plant than the native bluebell. Its flowers range in colour from pale to mid blue, or white or pink, and has characteristically deep blue pollen but no scent. The Spanish bluebell was first recorded in the wild in the UK in 1909. This species is often confused with the hybrid and has therefore probably been over-recorded by botanists in the past.
Hybrid bluebellHyacinthoides hispania x non-scripta
The Spanish bluebell readily cross-breeds with the native bluebell to form the fully fertile hybrid. The hybrid was first recorded in the wild in the UK in 1963 and is also extremely common in gardens. Hybrid plants can demonstrate characteristics of both the native and Spanish bluebells.
What can we do about the non-native bluebells? Well, plant only native bluebells in your garden and be on the lookout for Spanish or Hybrid bluebells in the wild. If you find some, let me know and/or Sussex Wildlife Trust. Please don’t uproot them unless they are on your land, and then only if you are absolutely sure they aren’t native.
Disturbance
The other threat comes directly from the impact of us walking where bluebells grow and, unintentionally or not, damaging them. It’s against the law to intentionally pick, uproot or destroy native bluebells.
During their active phase, which runs from February through until the leaves have died back in Summer, they are extremely susceptible to damage from our boots. Treading on the soft, succulent leaves damages them so they can no longer photosynthesis and they die back. This reduces their ability to put food back into their bulbs, reducing the plants’ ability to produce flowers and seeds.
Also, soil compaction damages the bulbs so they won’t appear next year. You can see the effect of this along many woodland paths where not keeping to paths during the bluebell season has widened the paths as the bluebells recede.
Bluebell colonies take a long time to establish – around 5-7 years from seed to flower, and can take years to recover after footfall damage so please keep to paths and resist the temptation to step into the blue for a selfie or a photo opportunity. Your feet could be doing more damage than you realise.
Enjoy the sight and scent of these wonderful flowers and take care where you tread so they will still be carpeting our woodlands for future generations to marvel at.
(Posted on behalf of Doug Edworthy, Tree Warden/Champion, Dallington & Brightling)
For a number of years, the two parishes have shared one Tree Champion. But there is no limit on the number a parish can have. This was brought home to me recently during a zoom webinar on the new Rother Tree Champion scheme during which I discovered some areas have a half a dozen or more. There are so many things that need to be done in our parishes and I really need some help doing them.
Tree Wardens plant, protect and promote their local trees. No training or experience in tree management is needed – just a love of trees and a few hours to spare. Tree Wardens are organised into local groups. Each group is managed by a co-ordinator and is autonomous, meeting regularly to decide what they would like to focus on.
Some of the projects Tree Warden groups have done include:
Arranging local tree planting days
Pruning, watering and giving vital aftercare to local trees after planting Rejuvenating local woodlands in need of management Raising funds and identifying suitable land for local tree planting projects Going into schools to talk to young people about the value of trees.
To that list I would add:
Surveying the tree stock of the parishes so that informed decisions can be made about planning and other activities that impact our trees, and
Conducting guided walks for our parishioners.
Please get in touch if you think you could help (contact details below). You don’t have to be a tree expert (I’m not) – just enthusiastic!
In case you missed it in the longer general post about re-opening, this is a quick reminder that the library cafe will be open this Monday 29th July from 2-4pm. Everyone welcome; come and browse the new selection of books and enjoy a cup of tea and a chat.
