It does seem strange, and a bit guilty, to be composing this update this week because I was actually in Spain enjoying a short weekend break in the sunshine this morning, whilst the team, led by Sonia and Allan, were working hard in the park in the rain. Thank you both for doing such a great job and also to Kevin for providing the following excellent update report.

KEVIN'S REPORT ON TODAY'S ACTIVITIES

The day started with cold and rainy weather that soaked everyone to the bone. However, Sonia and Allan were able to quickly set up the tools and equipment for the rest of the volunteers.

Despite the unfavourable conditions, we had a good number of 20 volunteers who worked in the park today. Our primary focus was on general maintenance after the bad weather of the last two weeks.

Tree Removal

The heavy gang spent some time devising a plan to remove a tree root located next to the Didsbury Good Neighbours building. This tree had fallen during the last storm. Once the job was done, they proceeded to remove large, dead branches from nearby trees to prevent further damage during future storms. (Picture 1 shows the fallen tree last Wednesday - just after the storm)

Flower Walk

The team responsible for maintaining the Flower Walk recently spent some time cleaning up debris that had fallen from the new wall, to prevent any contamination of the soil. They also planted several Hellebores that had been donated. Since these plants were already in bloom, it was a wonderful sight to see flowers once again in this area.

Wildflower Meadow

A group completed the first round of weeding around the trees and hedges. To prevent further weed growth, we have placed woodchips in these areas. Picture 2 shows Sandra and Debbie, and picture 3 shows Allan and Gary all working on weeding around the tree bases.

Our horticultural team examined the wildflowers and concluded that we should remove the dead plants and grass from last year. We will replace them with grass-suppressing plants in the next couple of weeks. This will enable the flowers to thrive better this year.

Other Work

Other groups of volunteers completed different tasks to maintain and improve the park. Some volunteers worked on creating a natural fence using tree debris in the woodland area. Others replaced signs to remind people to keep off the areas where bulbs had been planted. Additionally, others focused on tidying up the entrance on Gillbrook Road, picking up litter, maintaining the areas next to the bowling green, and placing protection around the flowerbed on the roundabout.

As usual, we would like to thank everyone for their work this morning.

A COUPLE OF ADDITIONAL UPDATES TO KEVIN'S REPORT

Following the stormy conditions overnight last Tuesday, we suffered significant damage to 2 trees. I am delighted to report that Allan and Murray responded superbly and on the following day, the three of us managed to make both trees safe and remove the fallen timber from the site. As mentioned above, picture 1 showed one of these fallen trees, and picture 4 shows the other one, still containing a large tear, being worked on by Allan. This second tree actually fell across the path. Thank you, Murray and Allan, for this superb, timely response.

PAM TO THE RESCUE!

I would also like to give a special mention this week to Pam H, who noticed that the bags attached to our rubbish bins were being rapidly depleted whilst we await the delivery of our doggie bags for the dispensers. On her own initiative, Pam volunteered to restock all our bins with new bags and soon set about doing a few bins per day until they were all completely restocked by the end of the week.

Thank you, Pam. This has been really appreciated - especially by dog walkers. Picture 5 shows one of the restocked bins.

BAILEY'S BIRTHDAY PICTURE

Finally, we send our best wishes today to our Crufts competition winner and celebrity park visitor - Happy Birthday, Bailey!! The birthday photo contained in picture 6 is supplied courtesy of Louise - thank you.

Thank you all once more for your amazing support in some challenging conditions - it is appreciated.