The Great Gates of Catton

No connection here with Emerson Lake & Palmer or Mussorgsky, but there will be a mention about the great gates later in the post.

The end of March 2022 saw a return to wintry conditions. Wearing extra layers to combat the cold and gusting winds, we planted out a mixture of Scots pine, Japanese larch, Caucasian fir & sweet briar rose - some in the picnic area and some along the new beds by the west woods.

Then it was back to more clearing of laurel in the woods near Catton Hall. There are now many piles of cuttings awaiting to be fed through the chipper, assuming we can negotiate a path to them.

A week later, and further strong winds. This time we were levelling mole hills in the picnic area, ready for the mowing season. This created about 3 or 4 barrow loads of soil, which we used to fill various 'dog burrowing holes' around park benches.

Then on to more litter picking. The favourite spots seem to be around the bus stops on St Faiths Road. Unfortunately, a popular place for people to discard their crisp bags, bottles, sweet wrappers and cans etc, whilst waiting for the bus. 

Responding to a report of possible storm damage to trees, we searched through the woods to make sure the pathways were safe. Luckily there were no fallen trees, but we did find some broken branches, a couple of which were still hanging precariously.

The rest of April and beginning of May consisted mainly of strimming and mulching (as you would expect at this time of year). Two beds in the picnic area and the willow tunnel were completely covered with woodchip, plus several caged trees.

There was a weeding & pruning session at Repton pond, followed by clearing some of the other prepared beds, mainly of nettles. This can be tricky, as we don't want to chop the hidden plants. We overcome this by locating and marking the each type with flags.

  

Back to the great gates, as previously mentioned. These beautiful Grade II listed gates are situated at South Lodge entrance on Oak Lane. 

Unfortunately, they had become covered in algae and needed a good clean. After cordoning-off the area and cutting back nettles and overhanging branches, we se about pressure washing.

This was quite a painstaking task, as there is a lot of fine detail to cover and you have to be careful not to do any damage with the force of the water. It took us a whole day to complete, but the results were plain to see.