Club Environmental Activities - January - March 2024

Rotary Club of Loughborough Beacon

Crocus Planting

Planting 'End Polio Now' crocuses at the Arc Community Hub, Loughborough. 

So cold...only the most intrepid!

Litter Picking

Members of Loughborough Beacon joined the North Leicestershire Litter Wombles (NLLW) on a chilly morning to litter pick at/around Derby Road lay-by (Lisa's Cafe). 

About 10 people there but not all were present when we took the pictures. NLLW are a terrific group - join your Wombles group wherever you are.

Litter Picking

Loughborough Beacon Rotary in association with the North Leicestershire Litter Wombles, clearing up the A6 lay-by next to The Otter Kegworth.

Rotary Club of Huntingdon Cromwell

Snowdrop Bulb Planting

Huntingdon Cromwell have been busy planting bulbs again at Castle Hills on Huntingdon inner ring road. This time we helped Huntingdon Town Council Estate Services team plant 2,000 snowdrops in just 1 hour.  

These add to the already impressive snowdrop display at this historic site.

Litter Picking

In aid of the Great British Spring Clean a group of Huntingdon Cromwell members carried out a litter pick at a local community centre and park. Seven bags of rubbish was collected on the cold and windy day.

Rotary Club of Leicester De Montfort

Tree Planting

On a bright early spring morning seven substantial fruit trees of heritage varieties were planted by members of the Club and Knighton Wild, in Knighton Green, close to St. Mary’s church.

The project was funded by the award of a District Environmental Micro Grant, with the balance of expenditure contributed by Knighton Wild.

Thanks go to Adam’s Apples of Cullompton and Goscote Nurseries of Cossington for supplying heritage apples trees and a local plum tree respectively.

Tree Planting

Club members braved the elements on Saturday 23 March to plant trees at Aigburth Care Home. The project was part funded by a District Environment Micro Grant (DEMG), the Club and the Aigburth Garden Volunteers.

Four varieties of crab apple trees were complemented by three varieties of rowan trees. Planting the trees in the area of the gardens set aside for crab apples proved immensely difficult with the few inches of topsoil being underlaid by a mixture of mill waste and Leicestershire clay. All four seasons were experienced over the course of several hours hard labour!

Rotary Club of Kettering Huxloe

Litter Picking

We organised a community litter pick at the Grange Pocket Park as part of the Great British Spring Clean campaign from Keep Britain Tidy. We had 23 volunteers join us and we collected 21 bags of rubbish. We enjoyed Celia's lemon drizzle cake and a cuppa afterwards while the children were given sweets as a thank you.

Tree Planting

Our Environment Officer, Kim Parry, helped the members of the Natural Ise plant 300 hazels trees today in Wicksteed Arboretum.

Rotary Club of St Neots St Marys

Reponding

Creation of Forest School and rewilding pond. Working with school, PTA, 1 St Neots Scouts and SNSM Youth Committee as a joint venture with the Club's Environment Committee.

Rotary Club of Market Bosworth

Bosworth Park Community Orchard

Leicestershire County Council launched its new Community Orchards Programme in August 2023, as part of its annual free tree scheme. Under the new initiative, groups were encouraged to apply for free orchard packs, which contained 10 apple and pear trees, stakes and other equipment needed to establish the orchard.

The scheme was to encourage schools, groups and parks to plant and create orchards throughout the County. Market Bosworth Rotary Club saw the scheme with a view to working in partnership to create an orchard at Market Bosworth Country Park.

The area chosen by David Luther, Bosworth Park Warden, is next to the Park car park. This site was chosen to encourage the public to sample the fruit when they ripen.

Ten bare root apple trees were planted on Friday 22 March. Working together with LCC Forestry officers, Jamie Cutts and Henry Pearson, Rotary members and Bosworth in Bloom members agreed on suitable locations within the Park. Jamie advised how we had to plant each tree. A hole 50 cm square and 50 cm deep was dug for each tree. A turf of grass was laid upside down followed by a layer of compost. The tree was ceremonially lowered into the hole and gently spread with a layer of bone meal. Soil was then carefully placed on the roots of the apple tree. A bucket of water was emptied onto each tree, although it had not stopped raining for the last two weeks!

Varieties include Annie Elizabeth, Suntan, and Ribston Pippin. Laxtons Superb, Pitmaston Pinoopple, Ashmead Kernel and Ellisons Orange. The trees will be watered and cared for by Rotary club members during the next two years as they establish; they will then require formative pruning - again, this will be carried out by Rotary, Rangers and volunteers.

We plan to create an orchard trail through sections of the Park over the next three to four years, to include plums, cherries, filberts pear, and other fruit trees. We hope to source Leicestershire and Heritage varieties to maximise their benefit to the Park. It is hoped Market Bosworth visitors and residents will enjoy the fruits from the trees.

River of Gold

Another 7000 daffodil bulbs were planted last October to fill the few empty spaces along the “River of Gold” and the glorious results are evident today

The “River of Gold” is the 200 metres of daffodils that welcome visitors and families into the village of Market Bosworth that line The Park road. 

Rotary Club of Market Bosworth revisited the park last year after taking photographs of the spaces that were evident last spring.

Previous years the Rotarians have taken spades to dig the trenches, fill with daffodils and replace the soil. Unfortunately each year the members get older, the spades get heavier and the joints less supple so this year we recruited two helpers. Firstly Darrell bought his excavator along which made the digging so much easier and secondly Rotarian Paul Davonport was available to treat muscle fatigue.

Claire Ashdown spoke for all present when she said” I am sure all the empty patches are now filled with new bulbs and I am confident we will not need to come next year!!”

Rotary Club of Kimbolton Castle

Young Environmentalist Compeition

Young Environmentalist competition entries at Kimbolton Preparatory School. 

Three entries into the under 8 individual category were judged by Rotarians Chris Davies and Richard Marriott.

Two entries focused on reusing single use plastic in artistic displays and the winner, Isaac Coleman, devised a chicken composting system - wonderful!

We look forward to running the compeition again in 2025!!

Entries from left to right: Robert Brown, Emmy Green and Winner Isaac Coleman