Picking off some of the stragglers Monday 25 July

I dealt with a few stragglers dotted around the field behind St Peter's and quite a few on the riverbank. Some were out of reach without getting into river but I cleared all I could reach, mostly by slashing rather than pulling.

I then walked up towards Cogmill and cleared a few hidden in the undergrowth on the way up towards Black Rock. I also cleared a few which were flowering at Black Rocks.

Nightingale Bridge and Hilly Fields

While waiting at Parsonage Bridge, John spotted this egret looking for its breakfast and managed to get a quick photo before it flew away.

We walked down from Bridge House to Nightingale Bridge clearing a few stragglers as we went. Thanks to our previous visits this area is a significant improvement over last year. Instead of pink balsam, the edge of the field is covered in white cow parsley.

2015

2016

The cow parsley and the nettles are making the footpath a bit more difficult to access however.

At Nightingale Bridge we crossed over into Hilly Fields and cleared huge numbers growing along the field edge by the river.

From this...	... to this

There's just one more massive clump in the corner of the field still to deal with. There's also a lot growing by the bridge on the Watley's End side of the river and spreading up a ditch towards the stables. We didn't come across any ripe seeds yet so we might be able to get in  few more sessions to deal with those.

A good day for wading

With water levels low and the temperature soaring it was a good day to wade across the river so five of us headed up the Frome Valley Walkway from St Peter's Church. Just beyond the Centenary Field a trodden path leads down to the river and a spot on the far bank where a clump of balsam was in full flower.

Donning wellies and waders we crossed the river which was relatively shallow and cleared this clump before heading upstream towards Black Rocks clearing balsam as we went.

At Black Rocks itself there were a few odd balsam plants to be seen unlike last year when this area was badly infested. This year there were pleasing signs of native wildflowers, including meadowsweet and purple loosestrife which were flourishing without the competition from the balsam.

Meadowsweet

Purple Loosestrife

Continuing upstream we worked along the far riverbank clearing balsam from amongst the undergrowth and up to the edge of the field beyond. We were hoping to clear all the way up to the metal footbridge at Cogmill but it was a little slower going than anticipated. However we cleared a huge amount and another visit should clear the rest.

We also saw some interesting wildlife including a glimpse of a kingfisher as it flashed up the river and this stunning damselfly which was a little more cooperative for the camera.

Nightingale Bridge

Nightingale Bridge is an ancient stone bridge used now as a footbridge for crossing the Frome between Frampton Cotterell and Watley's End.  It was nice to meet and talk to dog walkers there who make their own contribution to eradicating balsam while out with their pets and also to speak to some schoolchildren on their way home from school and to explain to them what we were doing to help the environment.

Balsam is now growing strongly and is producing its distinctive pink flowers. This at least makes it easier to spot amongst the other plants on the river bank. Once you've spotted one, there's almost certainly going to be others nearby.

Balsam was growing strongly on both sides of the river by the bridge and we were able to clear some large patches. We also cleared the footpath alongside the field next to the bridge. The path itself is barely visible as many people choose to walk across the field at this point rather than follow the footpath around the edge.

The balsam is often found amongst nettles which are a favourite food source of the caterpillars of the peacock butterfly. At this time of year these can be seen in large colonies which we try not to disturb as we cut our way through to reach clumps of balsam.

Peacock butterfly caterpillars

Along the river bed from Church Rd to Bridge House

Some of the balsam near the river bed along this stretch was getting very tall and flowers were beginning to develop so we decided to see whether river levels had dropped enough to enable us to wade or whether we could hack our way down through the undergrowth.

Fortunately we were able to wade as the dense undergrowth and steep sides made access from the top of the bank quite difficult in places.

Our intrepid team worked along the river bed from Church Road bridge clearing some large clumps and some of the largest plants we've encountered so far this year.

The river was still a bit too deep in places to wade safely but we returned to the river at Parsonage Bridge and cleared many more plants there.

A very successful and satisfying afternoon!

Informal survey of Frome Valley Walkway from Frampton Cotterell to Yate - 29 June 2016

A long stroll from St Peters Church, along the Frome Valley Walkway (FVW) up to Yate to check for Himalayan balsam along the way.

River Frome near stables north of Hover's Lane

I found balsam growing on the banksides in several places.  It enjoys unshaded stretches with sloping banks.  It takes hold on any nearby flat area which floods.  In heavily shaded areas with a good overhead canopy and/or stretches of the river with fast running water and steep banks with thick vegetation it is less common.

In several places the FVW takes the walker away from the river itself.   Near Algars Manor; and the long stretch from just beyond Tubbs Bottom Bridge to Nibley will only be accessible from the river itself, requiring a canoe or waders!    In some areas access to the river is restricted due to fencing (e.g. near the stables north of Hovers Lane) or natural obstacles and dense vegetation.  

There is significant growth in the following locations :-

Large stand just off FVW between Hope Lane and Yate Road

Field bordering on FVW just west of Algar's Manor

FVW between Hope lane and Yate Rd

FVW near railway crossing by before Celestine Rd

Further photos and locations can be found by viewing the map on the right. Red markers indicate spots with noticeable HB growth.

See below for album of photos taken on walk.

Revisit Area between Nightingale Bridge and Bridge House

A sunnier day than of late but recent rain mean that river levels remain quite high. We revisited the area between Bridge House and Nightingale Bridge which we tackled a few weeks ago. We knew there were some clumps of balsam which we hadn't tackled on our previous visit and were interested to see how much regrowth there had been.

The nettles were 2 metres tall in some places but balsam was beginning to appear above them. A lot of slashing was needed to get through the nettles to tackle the balsam but we cleared a lot from the boundary with Bridge House down to the first gate.

In the areas we cleared last time, there had been some new growth and the odd one we'd missed but the plants were a lot smaller than the clumps which we hadn't tackled.

We sowed some seeds given to us by AIWF to see whether native wild flowers and grasses can be encouraged to re-establish themselves. I'm not sure how they'll get on competing with the nettles and comfrey but it's worth a try.