Geoff Freeston

It's been a great year for fungi, sadly we haven't seen many Wax Caps but we have seen spectacular examples of Dog Vomit Fungus on grass in the Garth field probably Didymium spongiosum Dog Vomit Fungus is not actually a fungus but a Slime Mould, an interesting group of organisms somewhere between a fungus and a protozoa. There is another variety which is even more spectacular being shiny yellow. Not fixed to the ground they can actually move and have been shown to take the shortest possible...

The whole front was in a sorry state with rotting window frames and door post This week our intrepid volunteers ripped out the whole front The most difficult part was the removal of the metal sheets By lunchtime it was nearly all gone A tarpaulin was added to protect the room until next week Meanwhile bench seats are being installed And interior walls are being painted Next week we will be rebuilding and adding two donated windows

Another great day with our wonderful Thursday volunteers, real progress is being made with lining one of the sheds in preparation for school visits Also today, mesh grills have been put on the gutter to keep leaves out, another lawnmower has been brought back to life, a window has been painted and more non native invasive plants (Galeobdolon ) have been removed

It's a great year for seeds and nuts but also a great year for fruit with huge crops of Crab Apples and Sloes at Knaresborough Forest...

Our wonderful Thursday volunteers have been working hard at the Garth Four IBCs have been installed to collect rainwater from one of the shed roofs They sit on wire gabions filled with stone and rubble from around the site We have repainted the shed roof ( rust cure + primer + 2 coats topcoat! ) and we are now working on the gutter and linking pipework.