Our team have been hard at work on the Harpenden Road/Townsend Drive side of the heath. Laurels have been cleared, creating more light into the undergrowth. A giant lump of flint was obstructing one of the paths. The team put in a mighty effort and managed to dig it up.
In the process, interesting fun-guys uncovered some interesting Fungi. The orange coloured fungi may be a rare fungus called Sarcoscypha austriaca or it could be a more common fungus called Aleuria aurantia common name is Orange peel fungus.
The British Isles are host to many hundreds of wild, foreign plants, ‘invasive aliens’, introduced mostly by human action. The more aggressive are termed ‘High-impact Aliens’. Examples are Japanese Knotweed, Himalayan Balsam, Giant Hogweed, Pygmyweed, Rhododendron and Laurel.
Bernards Heath proper has had two (connected) occurrences of Japanese Knotweed in the 21st century, the last in 2016. The Friends dealt with it on the second occasion, and we wait to see if success was absolute.
Rhododendron, a native of Turkey and S-W Spain and Laurel, from S-E Europe, are similar in that (in this country) they eventually monopolise the under-storey of woodland to the exclusion of all other flora and thus all animal and bird life. The woodland floor becomes a sterile monoculture.
Since the end of brick-making on the Heath at the beginning of the 20th century, Nature has reclaimed most of that ‘brownfield’ land and it is now classified as Secondary Woodland i.e. not Ancient Woodland. Fortunately, native tree species have made good claim to the available space and aliens are not dominating so far, although it could be argued that sycamore is less than welcome as it is not a true native.
We are thankful that Rhododendron is not in evidence on the Heath and that Laurel, while present, is in what we judge to be manageable amounts. The one, notable occurrence of Laurel on the E side of Harpenden Road, against the S end of the fire station site, has been successfully eliminated within recent times.
Laurel is thus to be found principally on the W side of Harpenden Road and we have commenced a campaign to deal with it. The procedure with the larger thickets will be to cut down to ground level and then monitor in successive years, lopping-off re-growth as it appears. This procedure worked well by the fire station and the stumps gave up re-growth surprisingly readily. Grubbing-out would be difficult amongst tree roots.
Smaller bushes can be ‘weeded’ out and then monitored for any re-growth. Self-set new growth, originating with seed from outside BH will have to be continually watched-out for, but is easily removed when very young.
We are not able to engage in Laurel control during the Nesting Close Season, from the beginning of March to the end of August.
Many thanks to all volunteers who turned out on Saturday to help spruce up Bernards Heath, Beech Bottom Dyke, and the Sandridge Road Wastes. On a bright sunny morning, there were plenty of litter pickers out keeping our community clean.
The FoBH team also conducted maintenance on the Sandridge Road Wastes. They were clearing the ‘whips’ ( small secondary shoots) from the base of trees. This helps to keep the trees healthy and the Wastes looking good.
Another activity conducted by the FoBH volunteers with the support of our members. Find out more about our activities here: https://bernardsheath.org/?page_id=585
In the early morning of Friday 17th October a large tree fell across Harpenden road, between the Old Harvester and the Pioneer club. The council cleared the tree quickly, but our FoBH chair took the below photos for us.
This is a timely reminder that the heatwaves and lack of rain this year has put trees under stress. Please be aware of this as you enjoy the heath this autumn.
FoBH members report a large branch has fallen across National Cycle Route 6 – the path running between the school sports grounds and Harpenden road (pictured top).
There was also a branch across one of the paths near the old WWII water tank. The FoBH chair managed to shift it! (Pictured below.)
Please be alert for any other fallen trees or branches and do let us know so we can report them. chairman @ bernardsheath.org
Friends of the Heath report that the path along the bottom of Beech Bottom Dyke (BBD) is blocked by a large tree. The Friends do work hard to keep the paths in BBD, and across the heath, open. However, this job is too large for the Friends to manage and has been reported to the council.
The prolonged period of low rainfall has been obvious is the grass, which has been dying on the heath since the end of May. However, the parched conditions have now claimed a more substantial victim, a young cherry next to the cycle path on the upper heath.
The tree was planted several years ago, on top of the old air raid shelter. Despite the FOBH tree warden making the council workers aware of the problem, planting continued. The tree has exceeded expectations, until now. The attached photo clearly shows the parch marks of the old shelter in the ground, with the poor tree planted on top.
A substantial brach has fallen from an Ash tree and is blocking one of the paths off Spinney Lane. The branch fell during the weekend of the 12th & 13th July and has been reported to the council.
Please let the FOBH know of any ongoing access issues.
Plenty of activity on Bernards Heath as the flora and fauna wake following a long winter. The Friends planted another oak tree as part of extremely long-term planning! A young hedgehog was spotted out and about, and keep an eye out for bluebells in April.
Here are some of the lovely images captured by our spotters, please share your sightings below!
Members of the Friends plant an oak sapling for future heath users to enjoy.A wood anemone blooming in early springA young hedgehog spotted out and about.
The Friends of Bernards Heath held their 2025 AGM on Saturday the 1st of February at the Jolly Sailor. Many thanks to patron Paul for hosting us, and to all who attended. Please find the minutes below and contact us with any queries.
Topics addressed included:
Update on the possible development on the heath
possible changes to the Pioneer Club
review of FOBH activities: playground developments, picnic celebrations, maintenance…
