The Headley Fete is held on the Village Green every other year, and this was the year for it! Despite a threatening forcast and a bit of a breeze, we barely had a sprinkle of rain and lots of people turned up. We had our stall there as usual to raise awareness and recruit more supporters. It was also great to meet so many FVWPA Friends who dropped by for a chat. We ran a Pond Friends Treasure Hunt for the little ones, although it was hard to compete with the live animal petting farm behind us! We all had an enjoyable day nevertheless and we are already looking forward to our next event.
We were sad to hear of the death of Harry North on 17th July, aged 91. He will be sadly missed by very many in the village.
He was one of our founding committee members when the pond restoration project began, and among other things helped to build the outflow weir (see photo).
The water rose unexpectedly quickly and they had to hurry the construction, completing it in 10 days in order to beat the rising tide. Finally water flowed over the weir on 24th October 2003, and we had our pond back!
Jo Smith
Chairman FVWPA
This year we were able to tackle to Himalayan Balsam as soon as flowers were spotted, and a group of FVWPA volunteers spent Sunday morning tackling the invasive plant. It was important to do this before it had a chance to set seed, because it is an annual, fewer seeds means fewer plants next year.
We had some isolated plants in hard-to reach places, masses of plants smothering some areas, and others dominated by stands of Himalayan Balsam over two metres high. However, by the end of the morning every single flowering Himalayan Balsam around the pond was destroyed except for a couple on the island. We’ll have to find a way of reaching those!
We also dragged a channel through the floating grass to provide an easier passage between the two halves of the pond. However, there is probably plenty of water under the grass so no fish were trapped in the “muddy end”, which is what we feared.
On the topic of fish, while we were catching our breath and enjoying hot coffee and biscuits a kingfisher swooped down, grabbed a fish from the surface and zoomed off to a secluded tree branch to eat it. What a treat to see!
We will probably need another Balsam Bash later in the summer as more flowers appear. If you would like to join us for good company, chocolate biscuits and a chance to see the kingfisher make sure you add your name to our Friends list to make sure you receive an invitation.
Thank you everyone that came along to help, it was great to see you and we can definitely say “Mission Accomplished”.
I was alerted by a sharp-eyed local resident to this bike which had appeared in the middle of our pond. I popped down to fish it out with our grass-raking grapnel and while I was there, I had a look around to see what was going on.
I was delighted to see hundreds of small fish but due to their size, muddiness of the water and complete lack of cooperation on their part I couldn’t identify them. How they got there in those numbers is a mystery, because the pond dried up only a few years ago.
We are blessed by some very beautiful wild flowers which although they can be very small they make up for that by their lovely colours and form, and also some brilliant names. I use the free PlantNet app on my phone to identify them, and I much prefer the common names so that’s what I’ll use.
This needs no introduction, but the display of foxgloves by the pond is spectacular. The bees love them.
This one is less obvious but the name makes up for it: Broadleaf Enchanter’s Nightshade:
You might think this is a buttercup, but this is a special type of buttercup called St. Anthony’s Turnip. I’m not sure why!
Another very tiny one, a very small type of geranium called Little Robin.
Apparently, plants with “wort” in their name have healing properties so you can probably guess what Hedge Woundwort was used for:
Finally, the most spectacular of all and easiest to photograph if the damselflies could please get out of the way: Yellow Flag
Here’s a quick update on the long-awaited work by Hampshire County Council Highways on our pond. They arrived in March as promised but had to go away until a DNA check on the water indicated there were no protected species present. They returned in May to do the scheduled work to clear the reeds which were choking the top quarter of the pond and remove the silt. In addition, they have been clearing the pipes and gullies into and out of the pond. We have also won a new gate to replace the broken fence section!
The work was done strictly in accordance not only with wildlife legislation but also the guidance given by the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. The work was limited to one quarter of the pond which meant that there was a clear escape route for any wildlife into the much larger undisturbed area which was strictly off-limits for the workmen. I was very pleased to see that these environmental protection requirements were observed to the letter by the contractors. I was also impressed by their professionalism and obvious concern for the environment. These guys are contracted by HCC Highways as pond specialists and do this type of work all the time. I was expecting a lot more damage to plants around the pond but because they used a floating digger-tank, disturbance was minimal.
The net result is that we have a much larger area of water now which will be attractive to ducks and other pond creatures for many years to come. We still have more grass raking in the main pond area to do in the autumn but now we have discovered the winning technique this will be a lot easier!
Bank Holiday Monday 5th May was the 100th Anniversary Celebration for the Headley Village Hall. There were stalls on the Village Green and lots of activities in the Hall to recognise the many and varied community uses of the building over the years. FVWPA took a space on the Green to promote our activities and despite the cold wind and occasional showers, we had a great time!
Our faithful gazebo came out again, and we have salvaged some display panels which we used to create a display of our history and plans for the future. We organised a Treasure Hunt for the smaller children and a Word Search game for the older ones. Hugo wouldn’t miss a public appearance for the world, and he did a great job supervising activities.
We would like to thank those that made such generous donations and we welcomed new Friends to the FVWPA. Thanks also to the Volunteers who helped man the stall during the day, even though it was rather cold at times! We hope to meet new and current Volunteers at our next event which will be a Balsam Bash, some time in the next couple of months when the flowers appear. Details will be circulated nearer the time.
Spring is an incredible season for all wild areas, and particularly ponds. Although the land around our pond might look very green, hidden among the new grass and leaves are some very beautiful flowers, even if some of them are very small! Here are a few that I spotted in early May.
Our heading photo is Arum maculatum which is the posh name for Lords & Ladies. In the autumn the flower will have become a mass of highly toxic red berries which will be very easy to spot!
Other flowers I noticed were Common wood sorrel (Oxalis acetosella)
Wood violet (Viola riviniana)
Wood Speedwell (Veronica montana)
Using Latin names makes it appear that I know what I am writing about but that is far from the case. I use an excellent App called PlantNet, which is free and absolutely devoid of advertising.
Fullers Vale Wildlife Pond Association were invited to support the launch of Headley CAN’s (Climate Action Network) launch of the 12-month “Greening Headley” campaign on 18th February. We are delighted to be involved because one of the five Pillars of the campaign is closely aligned to our own mission, Space for Nature.
The Greening Headley campaign is supported and resourced by the Lottery-funded Greening Campaign, which is led by Terena Plowright, a long-time climate campaigner. The purpose of the launch meeting was to introduce these five Pillars and invite members of our local community to register their interests in any combination of these.
We were delighted to see so many people coming along on a cold February evening – so many that we had to rush about finding more chairs and I don’t think we could have fitted any more in the hall! Luckily our Headley CAN hosts had been extremely generous with their preparation of home-made nibbles and warming drinks, so everyone had a great evening.
Terena spoke passionately about the need for everyone to be more aware of the impact of our daily activities on the climate and environment, and make whatever changes, however small, that reduce our collective impact on the planet. This may sound like a repeat of all the Green Campaigns we have heard over the years but this approach is refreshingly different. Instead of protests against the activities of big organisations, Terena encouraged us to make small, practical changes and help others to do the same. Many small changes add up to a lot, and we can be motivated by the changes we make instead of being frustrated by protests that are ineffective.
Recognising that some areas are of more relevance and interest to some than others, the campaign has been divided into five Pillars. Each of these will have their own resources, local leaders and activities.
- Space for Nature – both protecting the existing environment and making small changes in our own gardens to help nature move around and survive.
- Energy Efficient Warmer Homes – we can reduce energy consumption (and save money) by identifying and stopping wasteful heat loss from our homes and public buildings.
- Health Impacts of Climate Change – recognising that the climate is changing anyway, there are actions we can take to reduce the health risks of excessive heat or cold for more vulnerable people
- Cycle of the Seed – promoting the importance of food security, understanding soil health and if we are able to, support for growing our own food
- Waste Prevention – we probably all know that recycling waste has many challenges, so this pillar focusses on reducing and stopping waste in the first place so there is less need for recycling and waste disposal.
Over the next 12 months, Headley CAN will be organising talks, training, practical group sessions, visits and other activities so if you would like to be involved in any of these free events please register using this link: Sign Up
Headley CAN also has a Facebook Page where news about Greening Headley and other Headley CAN events will be published.
Neville Merritt
Headley Greening Campaign Launch Meeting Agenda
Hugo was very disappointed that I forgot to take him to our Quiz Night, so I have to make it up to him by letting him man (or heron) our table at the Headley Greening Campaign Launch Meeting. This will be held on Tuesday 18th February at 8pm in the Church Centre, Headley. Here’s the agenda:
- Introduction by Headley CAN
- Short contribution from one of our very junior community members
- An overview of the Greening Campaign, the Five Pillars and free services available by Terena Plowright
- Q&A
- Opportunity to look in more detail at each of the five pillars that interest you and meet the Headley CAN Leads:
- Space For Nature
- Energy Efficient Warmer Homes
- Health Impact of Climate change
- Cycle of the Seed
- Waste Prevention
Tea/Coffee/Nibbles will be available. Do come along to find out more, and sign up if you want to be involved in the free services, guest lectures and training that is being provided over the next 12 months as part of the Greening Campaign. There are practical things we can all be a part of that are fun and make a real difference.
Hugo is getting very excited. He doesn’t get out much in the winter so he and I are both looking forward to seeing you.
Neville Merritt, Deputy Chairman FVWPA
On Tuesday 18th February, the Headley Greening Campaign will be launched! Headley CAN (Climate Action Network) is a local group with similar environmental objectives to ours. They have won a one-year support programme from the Lottery-funded Greening Campaign. This means for the next year Headley residents can make use of their support.
On Tuesday 18th February at 8pm in the Church Centre, High Street, Headley CAN will be launching the Headley Greening Campaign and introducing their projects for the next 12 months. This will include information about our health in a changing climate, food production and biodiversity, waste prevention and reduced energy use. One service already being rolled out is a free thermal imaging survey of your home to pinpoint areas of heat loss.
The Greening Campaign is supported by Headley Parish Council and FVWPA because this campaign will bring real benefits to our community, as well as making a valuable contribution to addressing the climate emergency.
I hope you can come along to the meeting to hear more about these projects, ask questions and discuss how you could make use of them.
