March2010 Edition - Hatfield Heath Village Magazine

PERFORMANCE
SINGING LESSONS
in Hatfield Heath
Now available Monday and Wednesday mornings
for adults and Wednesday afternoons/evenings
for children
- improve your voice (both speaking and singing)
- learn to breathe for better health
- improve your confidence
Special discount for seniors
01279 730 731 or 07812 158 563
Live recording on
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLM7TyYUai0
Hatfield Forest Highlights
Hello everyone,
We have been very busy over the winter in the Forest,
with lots of exciting projects on the go including
the massive changes to our Marsh.
Our Marsh Restoration project will make a big difference
to our reed and sedge beds in this area. In
recent years, willow and hawthorn scrub have intruded
on to the Marsh, shading out some of the
smaller plants and reducing the amount of reed habitat
for nesting birds such as the Water Rail. This
project has employed a specialised team to cut, remove
and dispose of the willow and hawthorn to
allow the reed to re-establish. Once they have been
removed, we will be able to look after the Marsh and
remove any future re-growth.
We have also been hard at work on our veteran trees.
In 2002 we carried out a detailed veteran tree survey
of 800 trees. As each one is so important and unique
an individual management plan for each tree was
drawn up. We are now using pioneering tree surgery
called ‘environmental arboriculture’, mimicking the
trees’ natural process, balancing out the canopy,
trunk and branches using specialised cuts. Without
this work the veteran trees are at great risk of collapsing
under the weight of the branches and their valuable
habitat will be lost.
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