Welcome to our monthly newsletter – keeping you up to date on Woodland matters.
Community Tree Planting Days in March
We will be holding community tree planting days on Sunday 22nd and Saturday 28th March in our community woodland – This will be above the area of trees planted by community volunteers in the last two years.
All volunteers are welcome including families! The ground has been prepared using a tracked digger and we have 1850 young trees to plant – oak, aspen, Scottish elm and Scot’s pine and possibly some redwoods. More details to follow on CCDT’s Facebook page and website. If anyone would like to help then we will meet at the owl carving at 10am on both days. This is straight up hill for about 400 metres from the Gillies Hill garages entrance to the woods. Wear good shoes or boots and clothes appropriate for our Scottish weather.
Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease is present in Scotland and is spread by ticks. The Lyme Resource Centre and Community Woodland Association (CWA) share the ambition to enable the public who enjoy woodlands to better protect themselves from ticks and Lyme disease. They have posted an advisory webinar online (see button below) and there is also advice available on the NHS website at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/lyme-disease/
It describes how an individual should dress and use insect repellent to minimise risk of tick bites, and demonstrates how to safely remove attached ticks using tick removal tools
It also Identifies the signs and symptoms of early Lyme Disease which should be looked out for if a tick bite has been detected and describe what to do if these are experienced.
Woodland Restoration
The Dark Woods remediation is complete now – with path routes cleared and the brash cleared into piles. The ground is still very muddy so please wear suitable footwear if using the paths – they should dry and firm up over the spring and summer.
Wood Milling Weekend Success
The 14th and 15th March saw another successful two days spent milling timber. We contracted Keith Threadgill and his mobile “wood-mizer” sawmill, and with the help of an intrepid band of volunteers we have turned some of our logs into useful timber. We milled over 1000 tree stakes for tree planting projects over the next year or two, and much more timber for community projects. Thanks once again to all the volunteers who came forward and braved the weather. A very enjoyable weekend with good company.