Warning to dog owners

During the bank holiday weekend local vets dealt with a number of dogs with symptoms of poisoning. Three of those dogs had been at Wapley Common. In one case the vet suggested that the dog had eaten something natural like very mouldy food, mouldy poop etc. We have established that at least two of the dogs had eaten poop in the same location, the picnic field. So we now suspect that this was from an infected animal. The area has been checked and nothing else has been found, and no weedkiller etc is used in the area.

There have been some other cases in the wider area recently. In one place - not Wapley - some chicken carcasses had been thrown out on public land. Elsewhere at least one dog tried to eat something that looked like dog food, and was immediately violently sick. Add to this the number of common plants that are poisonous to dogs, all we can suggest is that owners keep a very close eye on what their dogs might try to eat while they are out and about.

Help pick litter at Wapley Bushes

There will be a litter pick and conservation morning at Wapley Bushes on Saturday 25th March 2017 from 10am until 12 noon. Meet at the Shire Way entrance to the Nature Reserve. All children must be accompanied by an adult. Litter pickers, black sacks, disposable gloves will be provided.

Wapley Bushes wins major environmental award for fourth year running

Wapley Bushes has just won the Green Flag Community Award, the only such award in South Gloucestershire. Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve, Wapley Common and the Orchard for the Future form one of the very best green spaces in the UK – and that’s official. The green space is among a record-breaking 1,686 places that have received the prestigious Green Flag Award – the mark of a quality park or green space.

A Green Flag is a sign to the public that the space boasts the highest possible standards, is beautifully maintained and has excellent facilities. The Community Award recognises sites that are largely managed by community groups, in this case the volunteers of Wapley Bushes Conservation Group.

The award, now celebrating its 20th year, recognises and rewards the best parks and green spaces across the country. Wapley's Green Flag was presented yesterday at the regional Green Flag Award event in Cheltenham. This is the fourth year running that Wapley has succeeded in gaining this award.

Success again for Wapley Bushes

Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve and the Orchard for the Future have won the Green Flag Community Award for the third year running - the only Green Flag Award in South Gloucestershire.

The Green Flag Award scheme recognises quality parks or green spaces. In total, 1,582 parks, cemeteries, universities, shopping centres and community gardens in the UK have met the high standard needed to receive the Green Flag Award or the Green Flag Community Award.

The Green Flag Awards are judged by an army of more than 700 green space experts, who volunteer their time to visit applicant sites and assess them against eight strict criteria, including horticultural standards, cleanliness, sustainability and community involvement. The Green Flag Awards Scheme is run by the environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy.

Obviously Wapley Bushes Conservation Group, who manage the Reserve, and landowners Dodington Parish Council are very pleased with this success. They are now looking forward to hearing the results of their South West in Bloom award entries.

Fruit tree pruning workshop

If you would like to find out more about fruit trees, there will be a free Winter Fruit Tree Pruning Workshop at Wapley Bushes on Sunday 15 February.

The workshop tutor will be local fruit tree expert "Mr Fruit" (Graham White), who supervised the planting of the Orchard for the Future in 2011. Advance booking is not needed - just turn up on the day. Meet at the southern Besom Lane entrance to Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve, Besom Lane, Westerleigh, BS37 8RW, starting at 10am.

Well done to South West in Bloom winners

The South West In Bloom awards included some fantastic results for locations in Westerleigh ward.

The Dodington Allotments Association (pictured left, who put in the hard work on the new allotment site this year) gained Level 5 Outstanding in the Neighbourhoods on the Pennant Route category.

Wapley Common & the Orchard for the Future (pictured below) also got a Level 5 Outstanding. Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve got a Level 3 Developing in the Neighbourhoods Awards.

Last night the certificates for these and all the other winners in the Yate and Dodington area were presented at a volunteers' evening at Poole Court. Congratulations to all concerned!

Free fruit tree pruning workshop 13 July, all welcome

Orchards are a South Gloucestershire priority biodiversity habitat because many orchards have been neglected or grubbed up in recent decades.

In order to help stem this decline, Wapley Bushes Conservation Group, Dodington Parish Council and South Gloucestershire Council are now all working together to preserve the traditional horticultural skills that are needed to maintain existing and newly-planted orchards.

A free fruit tree pruning workshop is being held at the Wapley Rank cottages opposite the southern Besom Lane entrance to Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve, Besom Lane, Westerleigh, South Gloucestershire, BS37 8RW, starting at 10am on Sunday, 13 July 2014. The workshop tutor will be local fruit tree expert Mr Graham White. No advance booking needed - just turn up on the day.

Wapley Bushes - footpath closure

The footpath on Wapley Bushes from Shire Way south westwards for 172 metres will be closed from 7th March so that a railway bridge can be demolished and replaced. Although the notice allows for up to 6 months closure it is anticipated the work will take about 3 months. A temporary footpath will be provided to the east.

Local Nature Reserve celebrates triple award success

Wapley Bushes Conservation Group is celebrating triple success, having won three environmental awards this year.

The Nature Reserve has been awarded the prestigious Green Flag Community Award under the national award scheme for well-managed, high-quality public and community parks and green spaces, plus a Level 4 “Thriving” award from South West in Bloom. The Conservation Group’s latest project – a community orchard – also won a Level 3 “Developing” certificate. This project aims to restore heritage varieties of fruit in a new public orchard.

The Conservation Group’s volunteers were officially presented with three awards at their November work morning by Cllr Christine Howard, Chairman of Dodington Parish Council, pictured holding the flag in the photo above.

Cllr Paul Hulbert, who has taken an active part in all the Wapley projects, said “We’ve had a busy year, and it’s good to have our volunteers’ efforts so well recognised. We were particularly pleased to get a Level 3 award for the Community Orchard, which only started two years ago. We would like to thank Dodington Parish Council and South Gloucestershire Council for their support and encouragement.”

Wapley Bushes Conservation Group welcomes volunteers at its regular workdays, including accompanied children. Full details and photos of the reserve are on the Wapley Bushes blog www.wapley.blogspot.com.

Major award for local beauty spot as Wapley Bushes wins Green Flag

Wapley Bushes has won the Green Flag Community Award 2012, the national award scheme for well-managed, high-quality public and community parks and green spaces.

The entry combined Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve, including the recently-planted Jubilee Hedge, with the new Orchard for the Future, which aims to restore heritage varieties of fruit in a public orchard.

It is particularly pleasing that Wapley has gained the Community Award because it recognises the efforts of all the volunteers from Wapley Bushes Conservation Group and other organisations, with the support of Dodington Parish Council and South Gloucestershire Council.

The award will be presented at the next Wapley Work Morning on 8th September, meeting at the Shire Way gate at 10.00 am.

Orchard planting day a success



Claire Young, Paul Hulbert and Graham White (front left to right) with Parish Councillors, members of Wapley Bushes Conservation Group and local people at the orchard planting



On Saturday, local South Glos councillor Claire Young joined Dodington Parish Councillors, members of Wapley Bushes Conservation Group and local people to plant a community orchard on Wapley Comon and nearby.



More than 40 trees were planted, with those on the Common being local types of apple plus a few plums of a rare local variety.

"It's good to do something so traditional yet so future-looking", said Dodington Parish Cllr Paul Hulbert, who organised the event. "We're very grateful to expert Graham White - known locally as Mr Fruit - who guided us through the planting."

Claire Young commented, "This was a great way to spend a beautiful spring morning - fresh air, good company and exercise with a legacy that should last years."

The planting was jointly funded by Dodington Parish Council and South Gloucestershire Council. Claire explained, “When South Glos transferred its council houses to Merlin Housing Association, there was a small amount of money left in the Housing Revenue Account. Each South Glos councillor has been able to choose schemes that would benefit people in their wards, so when local people suggested a community orchard I thought that it would be just the right project for the rural Wapley area. Not only will local people be able to pick the fruit in years to come, this is also going to be an important gene bank, helping to protect local varieties that may have useful traits.” 



Community orchard planting this Saturday!

Dodington Parish Council, South Gloucestershire Council and the Wapley Bushes Conservation Group are coming together to create a Community Orchard by planting groups of fruit trees at various places around Wapley Common.

Conservation Group members and friends will be meeting on Saturday 12th March starting at 10.00 am from the Shire Way access to the Nature Reserve, next to the zebra crossing near Cherington. Local people are very welcome to join in – if possible they should bring a spade, gloves and suitable footwear.

The planting session will start with a workshop led by local supplier “Mr Fruit” (Graham White). “We’re used to planting woodland trees, but fruit trees are more fussy and we want to do it properly” said Cllr Paul Hulbert. “Our vision is that we’re planting a community orchard for the future, where our children and grandchildren will be able to come and pick delicious fruit straight from the trees.”

Tim Fairhead of the Wapley Bushes Conservation Group said “Fruit trees used to be a common part of the rural landscape but there are fewer orchards today. When the community orchard was being planned, we found some examples of a rare local plum variety. Planting the new trees will increase the biodiversity of our area, and they will also become a biological resource for future generations.”

The project is being funded jointly by Dodington Parish Council and by South Gloucestershire Council. Cllr Claire Young explained, “When South Glos transferred its council houses to Merlin Housing Association, there was a small amount of money left in the Housing Revenue Account. Each South Glos councillor has been able to choose schemes that would benefit people in their wards, so when local people suggested a community orchard I thought that it would be just the right project for the rural Wapley area.”

Foray for Fungi

Ever wondered how to tell the difference between mushrooms and toadstools? Find out on Monday 1st November at Wapley Bushes. Meet at 2pm at the Shire Way entrance for a two hour foray with Justin Smith.

Look for owls at Wapley Bushes

On Monday 25th October you can join Ian McGuire for a twilight walk searching for owls at Wapley Bushes. Meet at the Shire Way entrance at 7.30pm.

Wapley Bushes Nature Reserve - evening walk, Tuesday 22 June, 7pm

Come and join an evening walk round Wapley Bushes Local Nature Reserve with Rupert Higgins of Wessex Ecological Consultants, the expert who has just revised the Reserve Management Plan. This will be an opportunity to find out about how the Reserve is looked after and the plans for the next five years. Everyone welcome - meeting at the Shire Way gate. Please wear suitable footwear.

Conservation volunteers work with Europe to defeat elm disease

On Saturday Claire Young (right) joined members of the Wapley Bushes Conservation Group to plant new elm trees on Dodington Parish Council land.

Over the last few decades Dutch Elm Disease, a fungus spread by bark beetles, has devastated the British elm population to the extent that many people have never seen a live mature elm tree.

Now however a multinational project involving Wapley bushes may hold the key to repopulating elms in the UK. Members of the Wapley Bushes Conservation Group discovered a a native Wych Elm on the reserve that has remained unaffected by the disease, and they have have sent seeds from to the French national State Forestry Nursery for analysis to assess the extent of disease resistance.

The aim of the European project is to identify types of elm that are resistant to the disease so that eventually the resistant specimens can be planted out to repopulate the European countryside and help the many species that are dependent upon elms.

Tim Fairhead (also pictured above) of the Conservation Group explains “In return we received seeds from ancient elm trees in a French Nature Reserve, and these were grown on at Portsmouth University. These particular trees contain high levels of unique bark compounds that deter feeding by the beetles so they are less likely to get infected in the first place. We hope these trees will go on to provide a resource and home for threatened and vulnerable species like the White-letter Hairstreak butterfly”

This is the only elm repopulation project of its type in the South West and one of only four sites in the UK.

Survey at Wapley Bushes

A recent survey by experts found that the wide range of species at the Lower Meadow at Wapley puts it in the national top grade of grassland. It's of a standard to be considered a Site of Special Scientific Interest, but this is only done if the site is at risk.

Paul Hulbert, a member of the Wapley Bushes Conservation Group, said “This is great news, and confirms that our management plan is working”.

“However, some local people have asked why the Lower Meadow has been cut earlier than usual. This is based on expert advice to stop the spread of meadowsweet and other invasive plants. It's a compromise - some of the valuable species have only partly set seed, but they could be in danger of being strangled”.

The next Wapley work morning will be on Sunday 2 September – for further details contact Paul Hulbert on 01454 315851 or Isabel Ryan on 01454 313055.

Wapley Bushes also has its own blog (online diary) with lots of photos of the reserve – see www.wapley.blogspot.com.