St Albans
Future of Batchwood Hall Announced Steve Marshall (Nov 2023)
A press release confirms the Hall, built in 1874, will become a ‘high quality hotel, restaurant and bar’. Most recently a vaccination centre and famously a nightclub, the Hall has been closed for a long time. The lease will be held by Oakman Inns who operate The Beech House in the city centre. The new venue is not expected to open until 2025. Find out more on the Council website.
‘White’ Buzzard Spotted in Woods Miles Soppet (Nov 2023)
Buzzards are often seen in the area, however one that is mainly white is rare. Common Buzzards are mainly brown and have a white underside to their wings. It is much less common to have predominantly white feathers all over. If you spot it, let us know where in the wood you saw it. Even better, get a photo. Contact us at friendsofbatchwood@gmail.com
D0E Award volunteers make an impact Steve Marshall (Nov 2023)
The new group of ten Duke of Edinburgh Award volunteers gave their second month of four-hours volunteering time. They have made huge a impact on the clearing they are working on. The group are coppicing an area alongside the green of Hole 10. You can see their work following the path to the right as you reach the edge of the wood on the entry drive.
Uprooted Tree Removed Miles Soppet (Nov 2023)
A mature Sweet Chestnut tree across from the main Batchwood Car Park started to uproot itself. It was a potential hazard and and the team at Batchwood Golf and Sports Centre arranged for it to be removed on 14 November.
Sweet Chestnut is an excellent wood to work with, so we have asked the Arborist to leave the felled tree trunk in segments we can plan to use. This tree is ideal for milling into planks and other similar projects because it does not easily rot.
Friends for 25 Years Roma Mills (Oct2023)
Friends of Batchwood started in 1998 and has been a guardian of the woods on behalf of the local community. The original goal was the restoration of the wood from a derelict state. Today we help the wood to thrive and invite a new generation to enjoy it.
We acknowledge the amazing energy those original volunteers demonstrated. Sadly, several are no longer with us, but the legacy of the commitment of those people is seen in the thriving wood we have today.
It is also a time for looking to the future. In the year ahead we will focus on finding the next generation of Friends to continue this important work.
Duke of Edinburgh Scheme Returns Steve Marshall (Oct 2023)
In October a new group of ten teenagers started their volunteering as part of earning their DofE award.
They will be taught coppicing and basket weaving, as well as developing teamwork and the skills to use the tools. We partner with The Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trusts to run four-hour sessions on the 3rd Sunday of each month.
The teenagers attend several different local secondary schools who each operate a DoE scheme. Following our successful first year in 2022, we are excited for what they will achieve.
Autumn Woodland Update Miles Soppet (Oct 2023)
Our work planting saplings in the unplayed areas of the golf course has met with mixed results. Saplings planted adjacent to the roundabout on Batchwood Drive were vandalised. They were replanted them but most died. There are some self-set oak saplings that look good but none of the other species seem to take. We suspect this is soil related, certainly it is different to most other areas we have planted.
The planting for the Queen’s Jubilee in 2022 has done better than we thought after the early drought, there were not as many losses as we had expected. We were given quite a lot of small Mountain Ash (Rowan) saplings which we planted to the left of the access parallel to the fourth fairway. They all seem to have thrived and are looking good as are most of the other ‘Jubilee’ plantings.
The coppicing that the Duke of Edinburgh award volunteers completed at the top of the wood is looking good. All the woven baskets have done their job keeping the muntjac deer out and the regrowth has got off to a good start.
Honda strimmers that we bought last year have really come in useful this year. We have fitted the solid steel cutting discs rather than using cords. These can cope with the abundant brambles and nettles without any difficulty.