Leicester Parks

The Grass Reapers Scything Group teamed up with the Sedgebrook Community Gardeners last week to mow the wildflower area at Sedgebrook Open Space.

After mowing, the cuttings were spread out over the area to dry. The gardeners plan to return to in a few days to turn the hay and then remove it a few days later.

This traditional management reduces nutrient levels and maximises seed drop to ensure a beautiful show of flowers the following year.

We are set up at Knighton Park Show! Come and say hello to Rob and Nicola if you are nearby 😊

LEV yesterday headed to Spinney Hill where they got to work removing the brambles and burdocks that had started to run rampant across the feature garden.

Removing them will ensure the flowers have enough space to continue to grow and will create safer walkways for people to enjoy this area.

As you can see from the before and after photos, they did a great job!

A big thank you to all who attended. We will be running more sessions in this lovely garden in the future, so if you would like to get involved, please keep an eye out on Assemble!

Join the fun at the Rowley Fields Allotment this Sunday, as we continue to celebrate National Allotments Week!

There is never anyone as resilient as an Leicester Environmental Volunteer!

Smiles on Bell Boats in the pouring rain.

Thank you all for litter picking on the Old River Soar this week.

Today is National Plum Day!

The Leicester Tree Wardens gathered for some harvesting of fruit at The Orchards LNR with Alan (LEV) to pick some plums in celebration of this special day.

In addition, we found some ripe apples, plenty of blackberries and pears.

Whilst we were there, we also cleared some of the pathways, making access easier for others to harvest too.

Thanks to everyone who came along. We had a really fun session.

LEV members provided some much-needed TLC to trees planted in February last year at Knighton Park during the Saving Saffron Brook Project. They did a fabulous job too, with more than half of the trees in the plantation being weeded and re-mulched. Thank you!

This dog was found on it's own on Victoria Park this morning. A Parks Officer got him safely on a lead and he is currently with the Dog Wardens.

He isn't chipped and didn't have a collar, so if anyone is looking for him, please get in touch with the Dog Wardens - https://www.leicester.gov.uk/your-environment/pollution-and-pests/dog-control #:~:text=Dog%20warden%20service,-Report%20a%20dangerous&text=We%20also%20respond%20to%20dog,us%20on%200116%20454%201001.

He was a lovely dog, so we hope he finds his way home.

The Rowley Fields Allotment are also opening their gates in support of National Allotment Week. Enjoy a look around the site and the stalls.

Volunteers did amazing job yesterday widening this path that follows the river alongside the nature lake at Watermead Country Park!

It's exciting to know that next session will take us around the corner and we'll see the end in sight!

Amazing efforts all round - it's a great team effort! Thanks again for all your hard work.

A Leicester's Growing Spaces local community growing hub is flourishing.

On Cossington Recreation Ground, the Belgrave Community Gardening Project started to grow food to the side of the library and nearby community centre.

They are also successfully improving the park to benefit the wildlife, as well as attracting new volunteer members, which is fabulous news. Well done!

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Volunteers recently headed back to Shady Lane Arboretum where they continued to clear competing vegetation from around the orchard trees to improve access for those wishing to forage the fruits.

The fruit trees are almost ripe enough to pick, just look at those tasty apples and plums!

Why not join in at the Washbrook allotment, as they celebrate National Allotment Week.

Volunteers visited St. Mary’s Open Space last week to cut back along the path linking Old Saffron Lane and Hughenden Drive.

The path was established during the Saving Saffron Brook Project and scythes provided by the project were used to mow encroaching long grass.

Within the wooded section, small overhanging branches and brambles were cleared from the route and the area was also litter-picked.

Thank you to the volunteers for their excellent work!

We are so grateful to our Litter Champions, Leicester Environmental Volunteers, Parks staff, everyone who litter picks, and those that take their litter home.

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During National Allotment Week, we are celebrating the results of the Leicester Allotment Garden Council’s (LAGC), Best Kept Allotment Competition 2024.

Twenty-three allotment societies entered their best three plots to be judged. The judge had a most difficult task this year, as the standard of the plots entered have been improving every year.

Our congratulations go to Kris & Margaret Gula of the Belgrave Allotment Society on the Red Hill site, the winners for a second year in succession.

They will receive the Albert Thornhill Memorial Trophy during the Red Hill allotment open day on 17th August. Our thanks go to LAGC and all who took part.

LEV were back at Fosse Recreation Ground to continue litter picking the brook and clear silt clogging up the channel where it enters the park from under Glenfield Road.

Barrow loads of silt were removed, but there is still more to do, although we completed the litter pick, recovering 23 bags of litter and 32 bulky items from the watercourse.

A huge thank you to the volunteers for all their hard work!

It is National Allotments Week!

Groby Road allotments will hold an open day from 10am-12noon, with bric a brac, raffles, crafts and home-grown vegetables for sale, as well as refreshments and cakes.

During National Allotments Week (12-18 August), Red Hill Allotments - on the edge of the city, close to Birstall - will be celebrating with their open day, offering refreshments, fresh produce, homemade cakes and plants for sale on Saturday 17th August, from 12-4pm.

It is a great free family event to enjoy.

Volunteers produced a Herculean effort this week, battling the water lilies, silt, and incredibly shallow water to rid the River Soar basin at Abbey Park of its infamous collection of traffic cones! To access the offending litter, volunteers had to punt their Bell Boat rather than paddle, due to lack of water depth. Despite the difficulty, 17 bags of litter were removed as well as 24 bulky items, including 14 traffic cones, two car tyres, cushions and even a quilt. An amazing effort!

This could have only been done as the day before volunteers helped move the Bell Boats to the basin, and also collected litter (and cones!) from canal and basin.

Thank you.

ALLOTMENTS across the city are opening their gates to show off their sites to the public.

Next week is National Allotments Week (12-18 August), and to mark the occasion, some of Leicester’s allotments are holding open days so that people can take a look around sites that are normally reserved for plot holders.

Stokes Wood Allotment Society will also hold an open day on Saturday 17th August, from 12-4pm, with a scarecrow sale, cakes and fresh produce on offer, books and bric a brac to browse and the chance to enjoy some singing and line-dancing.

Their annual horticultural show is also open to the public on Sunday 18th August, from 12-4pm. Exhibits will include vegetables, fruit, flowers, baking, preserves and crafts.

Have you ever wondered about what life lurks within a pond?

LEV recently spent a sunny morning at Bennion Pools, where they used the OPAL Water Survey Method to monitor the biodiversity and health of one of the ponds on site. Volunteers identified a range of different creatures living within the pond, including whirligig beetles, water boatmen and even smooth newt larvae!

Using this method, volunteers were able to give a Pond Health Score of 28, which is classed as quite healthy! This work will help to inform future conservation management of these important habitats. Thank you to all who got involved!

If you would like to test the health of your own pond, you can find the OPAL Water Survey Booklet here:https://www.imperial.ac.uk/media/imperial-college/research-centres-and-groups/opal/WATER-16pp-booklet_legacy.pdf

*all creatures were safely returned to the pond after identification.

Volunteers at Watermead Park worked together to widen a massive 150m section of path.

What was once a single path in some places is now wide enough for people to walk side by side, and for wheelchairs and mobility scooters to go through with ease.

A massive thank you to all that came!

Dawson Way Open Space in Knighton benefitted from an LEV session last week. The path that we widened back in April was topped up with fresh gravel and the site was cleared of litter, with volunteers removing a whopping 18 large items (including three scooters) and 11 bags of rubbish from the area.

As always, a big thank you to everyone who took part.

Introducing the new scything group within LEV! 'The Grass Reapers' used their inaugural session to mow overgrown vegetation at Washbrook Nature Area.

Training was provided as part of Saving the Saffron Brook, and now we can continue to use this sustainable method to manage some of the grassland sites.

LEV regulars pulled out all the stops at Knighton Park last Tuesday, installing a run of sleeper steps on a slope leading down the Saffron/Wash Brook.

This area is a popular access point to the brook, so the addition of the steps will make it much safer, especially in winter when the slope can become slippery.

A huge thank you to all the volunteers, many of whom stayed late to finish the job!

Volunteers took on the sweep net survey at cardinals meadow yesterday. We found 21 insects, 4 butterflies, and 27 plant species! A great way to slow down and observe what's on site.

Thank you for helping us. We can use this data and influence future management plans.

To mark the occasion of National Allotment Week this year, several of our allotment sites will be opening their gates during August, so we can take a peek inside a site which is normally only reserved for plot holders.

The Stokes Wood Allotment Society are holding an Open Day on Saturday 17th August 12-4pm.

There is the opportunity to take part in the scarecrow trail, browse the books, jigsaws and bric a brac for sale, buy cakes and buy fresh produce and enjoy some singing and line dancing while you have a cup of tea.