CROW (Conserve Reading on Wednesdays)
Wednesday, 6th May 2015
The Holies (NT), Streatley ~ Thistle and ragwort clearance

The objective of the task was the remove invasive Creeping and Spear Thistles together with any ragwort we might find.

The site is in part SSSI and the remainder unimproved chalk grassland, one complication being that it is home to other, rarer species of thistle such as the Dwarf or Stemless Thistle and the Woolly Thistle.

For the task the National Trust provided Grubbing Forks and Chisel Hoes from The Lazy Dog Tool Company.

The Grubbing Fork on the left was used to uproot ragwort whilst the Chisel Hoe on the right cut through the thistle root below ground level allowing it to be pulled out.

We will be returning to the site later in the summer when the emphasis will be on controlling ragwort.

Created: Saturday, 23rd May 2015
Photographs: John Lerpiniere