Back to Work

It is now two weeks since workdays resumed in the Wood. Much of the work completed has been attempts to mitigate the damage done during the recent lockdown combined with the wet winter. In many places, paths have expanded to twice or even three times their original width, as people tried to keep social distancing rules and in places, to avoid particularly muddy sections.

The new dead-hedge at the junction of the path into Dulwich Wood from the old railway line. The bare earth on the bank behind it shows the effect of excessive trampling, with no ground cover being able to survive.

 

The closure of Cox's Walk Bridge has caused a worrying amount of new paths to have opened up as people sought short cuts though the cutting. This has caused damage to some of the most ecologically sensitive areas of the Wood. In particular, trampling has widened the path which has had a detrimental effect on  the patch of sweet woodruff (galium oderatum). To try to encourage people to stick to the path and not trample the woodruff, new path edging has been installed near the gated entrance. It should be remembered that dogs must be kept on a lead in this area and, as it is bird breeding season, they should be on a lead at all times in the whole of the Wood.

New path edging to protect the sweet woodruff, which is beginning to emerge in the middle distance, just to the left of the path.

 

 

 

Finally, as part of the Great North Wood Project, contractors have been brought in to upgrade some of the main paths in the Wood. At the moment, they are working on the main path from the Crescent Wood Road entrance towards the cedar of Lebanon. They will also work on the path from the same entrance down to the old railway line. The effects of the increased visitor numbers can be see clearly by the serious erosion of the steps, something the contractors will be addressing. More on this as work progresses.