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New Spring photos added to Monthly Pics Page

Send your Ridge Wood pics to info.forw@gmail.com


Minutes
Minutes of the recent meetings are available here
Latest Meeting - 20/09/2022

Apologies: We are experiencing technical difficulties uploading new pictures and documents

Fire Alert Tel No
Police Contact Number for reporting anti-social behaviour/problems in the Wood

0845 4567000 . . . ( In the event of fire - phone 999 )

Events Banner

Updated 11/03/2024
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work morning
Sunday - 17th March - Work Morning
10:00 to 12:00 noon
Meet up at Jubilee Gardens Entrance
Work scheduled to be on the top field
All Welcome


work morning
Further proposed work morning dates:-
t.b.a



Importantly, please do not attend if you have any symptoms of Covid-19 infection, or if you have been in contact with somebody who has.

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Events Completed:-

2024

Sunday - 25th February - Work Morning

Sunday - 14th January - Work Morning


2023

Sunday - 26th November - Work Morning

Sunday - 22nd October - Work Morning

Sunday - 17th September - Work Morning
Big tidy-up to the Quarry Road entrance
Many thanks to all who attended. Grand Job.

Sunday - 5th March - Work Morning


Sunday - 5th February - Work Morning


Sunday - 15th January - Work Morning

Work Crew

First work morning of the year and a great result achieved, clearing the bramble from the wild flower area.
Many thanks to all who attended.

Work Area


2022

Sunday - 3rd April - Work Morning

Great morning out in the sunshine yesterday for our final work session of the winter.
work crew



Sunday - 13th March - Work Morning

work crew


Thanks to all who attended, on a nice sunny morning, where we continued to cut back the ride edge towards the Quarry Rd end.

work in progress



Sunday - 23rd January - Work Morning

Thanks to all who attended our work morning last Sunday, we achieved a fair amount of clearance on the bank near the footpath at the Quarry Road end of the wood. See the before and after photos below.

The woods were very busy with walkers and dogs, several people complimented us on our beneficial work keeping the woodland tidy. Our thanks in particular to the kind gentleman who gave a generous donation to our Treasurer. Most appreciated, as our usual methods of raising funds have been hit badly over the last two years.
work crew

work crew - 2


Tree Works - 2022

T1 T2














On the left: Ash tree. Now leaning over main path adjacent. Potential hazard / impact of ash die back. To be felled. Create dead hedge on site.

On the right: Ash (has 2 stems) - Now leaning over main path adjacent Melrose Close. Potential hazard / impact of ash die back. To be felled. Create dead hedge on site.

There is also a split / hanging tree to be felled, at top of flight of steps for path into Compartment 1 (southern end of woodland).


2021

Sunday - 21st November - Work Morning

new hedging

New hedging at the Greenways Road entrance

Bat Walk
Thursday - 23rd September - Evening Bat Walk


2020

Work Morning - Sunday 6th December


Work Morning - Sunday 18th October
work crew

11 willing volunteers came along to our first (socially distanced) work morning of the Autumn / Winter season.

One team tackled the wildflower area at the top of the woodland, continuing our work cutting back vegetation to allow smaller plants and flowers to emerge.
work crew 2

A second team carried out a much needed tidy-up of the Quarry Road entrance, which is now looking a lot smarter.
work crew 3

Many thanks to all of those who attended, hope to see you next month





2019

May - Evening Bird Chorus Walk

April - Work Morning




March - Work Morning
work crew

12 volunteers turned out on this very windy day (which also saw rain and even some hail!) for our work morning. We completed the cutting back of vegetation along the main path towards the Quarry Rd entrance, giving smaller plants a chance to thrive and maintaining good access to the woodland throughout the summer months.
We also cleared vegetation from along the path by the Jubilee Gardens entrance.
Thanks to everyone who took part.
after shot
The completed bank



February - Work Morning
dead hedging 1

The chilly weather and threat of rain didn't deter the 10 willing volunteers who attended our latest work morning. We continued our work clearing vegetation and small trees from the edge of the main path in order to create new habitat; hopefully this will be completed at our next work morning in March. Thanks to everyone who took part!
work crew 1 work morning 2


January - Work Morning

Ten willing volunteers turned out today for our first work morning of 2019!
The weather was grey and a little cold, but there was plenty to do to keep the winter chill at bay. We concentrated on clearing vegetation and ash / sycamore regrowth back from the main path to create a ride-edge habitat. This will allow dappled shade to reach the forest floor encouraging a greater diversity of plants and, in turn, insects and other species to thrive within the woodland.
This work will continue over the next couple of months towards the Quarry Rd entrance.
Many thanks to everyone who took part.
Work Crew


2018

November - Work Morning
13 willing volunteers came along today to tackle some coppicing, dead hedging and scrub clearance along the main woodland path and on the bluebell banks. Overhanging vegetation was also cut back from a couple of the more minor footpaths within the wood. It was lovely to have some new volunteers join us for this work morning - we hope to see you again!

For more information regarding coppicing, pollarding etc, see the Conservation Page.

work01work02


October - Fungi Foray
Fungi Foray

Click the basket ( above ) to view a fungi collage

What a beautiful morning for our Fungi Foray!
Around 15 people accompanied our expert guide Lee Hayward as we discovered and learned more about the fungi inhabiting the woodland. From edible mushrooms to dead man's fingers and puffballs, we were all amazed by the variety of species found. Many thanks to Lee for a wonderfully informative and enjoyable morning



September - Work Morning
Work Crew

9 volunteers turned out on our first work morning of the season. We tackled some scrub clearance along the main path and on the bluebell banks, and also some coppicing. The noticeboards were also given their annual coat of teak oil. Thanks to everyone who came along to help

August - Forest Fun Time

Forest Fun Time Group

Click the image above to display a collage view.

More photos available here, thanks to Geoff

Many thanks to all those who supported this event. Attendance was superb, 35 adults and 59 children followed a challenging trail through the wood. At the end of the trail they enjoyed refreshments and a variety of woodland activities, including:

Leaf Printing
DIY Bee Making
Woodland Ker-Plunk
Woodland Skittles
Woodland Hoopla

Our thanks also go to Hansons for their support, to Forest Schools and to all the volunteers who helped to make this such a successful day.


May - Evening Bird Chorus Walk
An evening stroll through the wood with Ed Drewitt

Ed is a freelance naturalist and is a regular contributor on BBC's Springwatch and The One Show etc. Further info on his website here.

April - Woodland Work Morning
wood view

9 volunteers came along to help out on this beautiful spring morning. Work undertaken included a litter pick and some further work cutting back overhanging vegetation along the footpaths. We also undertook our annual survey of the bluebells in the wood, checking for any non-native bluebell plants or hybrids. Any of these plants that we identify will be removed, to ensure that the British bluebells continue to thrive within the wood.

The bluebell display is approaching its peak, so a walk in the wood in the next couple of weeks is highly recommended.


March - Woodland Work Morning
Work Crew

Many thanks to the 10 members who met up on a fine Sunday morning.
Work continued on vegetation clearance along the main path to create new ride-edge habitats.
The vegetation along the loop path, at the top of the woodland, was also cut back and a new dead hedge constructed.
Also our thanks to the two members, who couldn't make Sunday, but completed litter picking along the main and top paths earlier in the week.


February - Woodland Work Morning
Work Crew


On this beautiful sunny morning, 9 willing volunteers braved the cold to tackle some scrub clearance along the main path. By cutting back brambles, blackthorn and young self-seeded ash trees, a new ride-edge habitat was created and the path was widened and made lighter. Several bags of litter were also collected, to keep the wood looking its best.



January - 2018 - Woodland Management Training
WMT pic

The Woodland Management Training session was well attended by 10 volunteers.

Anna Brunton, of The Forest of Avon Trust, covered various key tasks including coppicing, scrub clearance and dead hedging.

Members also found the tree identification and tool safety sections most useful.

The volunteers then put their new skills into practice, undertaking further coppicing of some of the hazel stools along the main path.

We extend our thanks to Anna for her time and expertise.



Remember to check back regularly for further updates

Have a look back at some of our previous events, here.

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Forest Schools

feiTeachers! These outdoor classrooms make the most of the fantastic open spaces, woodland and meadow sites in the Ridge Wood area. Forest School is an inspirational process that offers children, young people and adults regular opportunities to achieve, develop confidence and self-esteem. Find out about Forest Schools, and training opportunities in South Gloucestershire: 01454 863595 or email: naturalenvironment@southglos.gov.uk



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Montage of photos from Ridge Wood