Volunteer Stories – Hreod Burna Urban Forest

Meet our volunteers – Gaby & Juanjo

Gaby and Juanjo have been regulars at our volunteer sessions since 2020. They have tried their hands at most of the things we get up to, from coppicing to tree planting.

Photo of Juanjo and Gaby planting a tree in the Miyawaki mini-forest. The sapling sits in its pot waiting for Juanjo to dig the hole, while Gaby supervises. — Juanjo & Gaby helping to plant the Miyawaki Forest in 2022

My husband and I walk daily in this lovely forest and are grateful to all volunteers who look after it. Today we spent a very pleasant afternoon with nature-loving people working together for present and future generations.
Planting a tree is one of the most rewarding things one can do. It is a thrilling experience placing the small tree carefully in its place whilst imagining what it will look like in the future when it reaches its full splendour. Today, we planted many trees and this feeling multiplied.
Gaby

Photo of Gaby, spade in hand, standing posing for the camera. — Gaby

Close-up photo of Juanjo putting the finishing touches to a newly planted tree, patting down the soil with his hand. — Juanjo

I walk in the Hreod Burna Urban Forest and The Venny every day, and I feel privileged to have such wonderful spaces so close to where I live.
Volunteering now and then to plant trees, coppicing or just picking litter up while I walk, is my way of giving a bit back for that privilege.
Juanjo

Juanjo has also used his camera skills to document some of our activities. If you’re part of our Facebook group, you might have seen his video fly-through of the Burna during a session spent battling the invading Himalayan Balsam or his montage of one of our coppicing sessions.

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Volunteer Stories – Kate

Volunteering / By Andy

Kate returned to help us with the Miyawaki Forest after previously coming out in 2019 to help with the planting of the Cricklade Field. She’s busy with all sorts of projects in the local community around Swindon so it was great to be able to welcome her back to HBUF.

A picture of Kate standing out in the new Miyawaki Forest area, stopping to pose for a photo while digging a hole for her tree to go in

Two enjoyable hours spent in the fresh air and sunshine.
There’s something very satisfying about planting trees. My friend said she likes to imagine who last dug this soil when it was allotments. We thought it most certainly would have been used to grow vegetables during the war years.
To the sound of birdsong and quiet conversation, I imagined what this mini forest will look like long after I’ve gone. Who will harvest it’s fruit or rest in it’s shade?
Yes, a very rewarding couple of hours with the added bonus of a little bit of physical exercise, and great company.
Kate

Our volunteers always go away with a smile on their faces. Why not come along and join in? We have regular sessions on the third Sunday of every month.

If you’d like to round up members of your community, hobby or interest group, or colleagues from work, then we’re happy to arrange one-off sessions for you to do something together as a team.

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Volunteer Stories: Chris & Lizzie

Posts, Volunteering / By Andy

Chris and Lizzie joined us to plant our Celtic tree circle in February. Like a lot of people, Chris had been planning to come along for a while, but things just seemed to always get in the way.

Finally the stars aligned…

Lizzie and I came along despite the drizzly weather as we wanted to get some fresh air and do something good for wildlife in Swindon! We had a lovely time digging holes and planting trees with the very friendly group – we’re looking forward to going back to see how the trees we planted are getting on.
Chris

Lizzie got the oak (everyone wants to plant an oak tree!)

The pair say they’re looking forward to coming back again to help out. Not least because it’s a great way to spend a morning, even when the weather isn’t on your side!

If you don’t want to miss out on your chance to get involved, you can subscribe to our mailing list and we’ll let you know what we’re up to each month.

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Why not be like Mike?

Posts, Volunteering / By Andy

One of the volunteers who came out to plant our Celtic tree circle was Mike, who has been working locally as part of the Borough’s Livewell team.

We asked him to let us know why he’d decided to get involved with HBUF and pose for a quick photo 🙂

“I was thrilled to get my Birch rooted into the ground today even if it was bleak weather. A few years from now it will be interesting to see how the Celtic Circle is developing with the variety of trees likely to bring yet more biodiversity to the Urban Forest, beautiful visuals and some shade in the Summer months.
For me, working in the Livewell Team in Swindon Borough Council, I am always passionate about what the community can generate by pulling together and relying on their shared knowledge to drive towards specific goals. The Hreod Burna Urban Forest is a great example of this, which adds value to nature, the community and provides a setting that can be cherished the many dog walkers of the locality.
Forgetting the professional angle, more than anything, it personally feels good to get together with others who are also keen to be active in investing in the local environment, at a time when it is easy to feel very powerless in the era of climate change and environmental degradation largely led by big, faceless corporations. Having a chuckle with the HBUF gang and contributing to the biodiversity of Pinehurst, will not change the world overnight, but it’s something.
On another note, it is good for fitness. My lats are still aching today!”
Mike

We are always incredibly grateful to people like Mike, who choose to come and help us with the never ending list of work we need to do to look after our little bit of forest. Whether its with the tree planting and maintenance (those fallen trees don’t unblock the paths on their own!) or the less glamourous stuff like litter picking that makes HBUF such a wonderful place for the people of Gorse Hill and Pinehurst to enjoy.

If you’d like to get involved, why not sign up to our mailing list to get updates about what we’re up to, and advanced notice of volunteering opportunities, or join our Facebook Group to share your pictures and stories of your HBUF adventures?

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