Pub Quiz at Poppy and Pint

Join us for the South Notts Local Group General Knowledge Pub Quiz, this time at Castle Rocks Poppy and Pint in Lady Bay, Pierrepont Road, West Bridgford  (NG2 5DX), on Sunday 11th February starting 7.30 pm. Teams of up to a maximum of four people  at a cost of £2.50 per head and we can take a maximum of 25 teams. Book early to avoid disappointment, contact gordon.dyne@gmail.com or 0115 8784842 to reserve a place.

You could also help us by donating raffle and tombola prizes to use at the Pub Quiz and also the Spring Fair. If you have anything you would be prepared to donate please contact me on gordon.dyne@gmail.com

WINTER 2017/18 MISTLETOE SURVEY FOR RUSHCLIFFE

Mistletoe is strongly associated with Christmas, but did you know Mistletoe grows in Rushcliffe?

Last year Rushcliffe Nature Conservation Strategy Implementation Group (RNCSIG) carried out a Mistletoe survey, which was very successful and generated over 25 records, 14 of which were from locations in West Bridgford.

We now know that Mistletoe grows in Aslockton, Cropwell Bishop, Edwalton, Gamston, Keyworth, Lady Bay, Radcliffe on Trent, Ruddington Tollerton and West Bridgford. RNCSIG wants to find out how common it is in those areas and if it grows elsewhere in Rushcliffe.

We are interested in mistletoe because it supports a wide range of wildlife, some of which can be rare and adds value to the biodiversity of an area. Winter is a particularly good time to spot it in the trees and it has a characteristic appearance, as illustrated by the photo of Mistletoe in a West Bridgford tree.

If you are new to the survey and suspect that Mistletoe is growing in a local tree, please let RNCSIG know by completing the online record at www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/R_mistletoe. Also, if you participated last year and spotted some new locations we’d also be very pleased to hear from you.

Some mistletoe facts:

  • In Britain it grows mainly in the SW Midlands of England.

  • Most of the seasonal mistletoe harvest comes from traditional apple orchards – apple being mistletoe’s favourite host tree. 

  • Mistletoe’s other primary habitat is in gardens where it is usually planted on fruit, particularly apple trees. It also grows on many other trees including pear, lime and silver-birch.

  • There is some evidence that they are species specialist and so their seeds germinate more readily on the species that the parent plant is growing on.

  • It is a parasitic plant and is known as a hemiparasite as it still uses photosynthesis to create energy.

www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/R_mistletoe.Top of Form

Co Op Community Funding

Very happy to announce that last week we had three new projects funded, so if you are a Co Op member please consider choosing one of these as your funding option (BEVS and Skylarks are Rushcliffe based projects).

  1. Infrastructure for conservation grazing at Foxcovert Nature Reserve (linked to Gedling Local Group) –https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/17587 (we will receive approx£2,000 for this in Dec 2018)
  2. Green Rangers youth volunteering at Skylarks Nature Reserve (linked to the Keeping It Wild Youth Group) –https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/14852  (we will receive approx£2,666 for this in Dec 2018)
  3. Badger Edge Vaccination Scheme (NWT) – https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/14394  (we will receive approx£5,166for this in Dec 2018)

Also, we now have the final figures raised through the four current/previous projects – these being:

  1. Skylarks Nature Reserve – tools and reserve improvements (NWT city group/Keeping it Wild) – (we received £1284.00 for this in April 2017)
  2. Wild Science – educating kids about nature (Attenborough Education Programme – linked to Beeston Wildlife Group) –https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/7943 (we will receive £2362.84 for this in Dec this year)
  3. Keeping it Wild roadshow of events (NWT) – https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/10489  (we will receive £1802.91 for this in Dec this year)
  4. Pondemonium! Wilford’s Wetland Wonders (linked to South Notts Local Group) – https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/10863  (we will receive £1958.05 for this in Dec this year)

So that’s at least £17,000 income from the Co-op in total spread over two years – a very good reason to like the Co-op at the moment!!!

Treswell Award for Local Member

 

Every year the Trust gives the Treswell Award in recognition of long service of a volunteer. The award is named after the first woodland the Trust ever purchased and first presented it to John McMeeking who was heavily involved in that acquisition (and indeed many other sites). This year it was presented to a local member namely Gordon Dyne for his work as Reserve Warden at Wilwell Farm Cutting Nature Reserve,  with the South Notts Local Group, Rushcliffe Nature Conservation Strategy and as a Trustee of Notts Wildlife Trust over a period of over 20 years.