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Beginning
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Ending
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We left a couple of strips for some scythe training after lunch
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Start of the day
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Scything doing a grand job of cutting the meadow
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Final strips being used to train new scythe users.
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Some of today's volunteers
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End of the day, cut and raked
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Andy's backhand
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Andy's Backhand with a nice follow-through
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Long reeds/sedge waiting to be cut back
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A lovely advert for Wickes!
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Wisely cutting in the few shaded areas
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John deep in thought. 'Scratching' & 'Surface' comes to mind
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A peaceful spot to live, with occasional views of OCV volunteers working hard!
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Lots of lily pads at the water's edge. We saw frogs too, but sadly no frogs jumping between lily pads
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We used hand tools to cut the reeds, like this sickle (or grass hook... anyone know the difference?)
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The cut reeds have to be bagged up and dragged off site
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Raking cuttings into a pile ready to be bagged 'n' dragged
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Dragging the cut reeds off site prevents the soil being enriched by the cuttings
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We are hiding the reeds in a large patch of nettles
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At some points it seems like a hopelessly big task
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With enough people, it's amazing how much work you can get done
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At the end of the day, the site is clear, and ready for some snake's head fritillaries to grow (fingers crossed)
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Before
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Kate looks authoritative
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After
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We found a message in a bottle
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There is a Steve under that pile of grass!
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Steve emerges from the pile of grass he was carrying
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The final tidy-up
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The obligatory 'before' photo
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Susan contemplates the task ahead
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Where do we start?
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tea break
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Drag-bagging the cut grass off the site
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Inigo in the sunshine
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The equally obligatory 'after' photo
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Packing up after a good day's work
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Starting work
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Cutting back the undergrowth to make way for fritillaries
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Habitat pile made from wood moved off the flood plain
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Something was already growing in the habitat pile
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4 men went to mow
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Finished endeavours
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Getting started
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Fighting their way through the grass
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Tea break
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Grass has been cut
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Everyone hard at work at the gathering-up stage
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The houseboats
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