A green and heartwarming end to 2019

An update from the Chalk, Cherries and Chairs Landscape Partnership, from our delivery partners Chiltern Rangers.
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We hedged our bets on the weather on Monday the 2nd December and headed out, en masse, to Chiltern Forest Golf Club this time to plant a new hedge, and what a day it was!

Thirteen members of Chiltern Forest Golf Club were joined by the Chiltern Rangers team to plant a mix of hedge species – almost 1,000 new hedge whips were planted, totalling almost 200 metres – that’s got to be some kind of record! The hardworking team planted a mix of species, including Hawthorn, Buckthorn, Field Maple, Hornbeam, Guelder, Spindle Mountain ash and even some Wild Cherry trees, creating a boundary line across the top field to mark the border between the Golf Club and the adjacent Farmer’s land, as well as along the fence line that marks the boundary between the green and the field.

Hedgerows can provide homes and habitats or be a food source for a whopping 1,500 species of insect, 20 species of mammals and 65 species of birds. Helping to replace some of the 1,500 miles worth of hedge that have been lost in the UK since the second World War is very important conservation work! We couldn’t have asked for a more hardworking and enthusiastic group of people to plant a hedge and we doubled what we expected to get done, a fantastic achievement!

A big shout out to everyone from the Golf Club who gave up their Monday to come out and plant and of course to our Chiltern Rangers volunteers who came along to help get this important work done. We couldn’t have done it without you – THANK YOU, from the bottom of our green hearts!