Apocalypse scenario: A riverbank erodes. The churning water eats it away slowly as chunks of mud and debris are blasted off into oblivion. Disoriented sticklebacks plot revenge. Buzzards circle. Badgers forget to be badgerly, hogweed burns like lava and dismembered toads croak helplessly. Willows weep as the landscape chokes on its own despairrrrrr.
Or, alternatively, we could sacrifice all the feeling in our toes by clambering into some huge waders and SAVE THE DAY by rebuilding the missing jigsaw piece. So, we opted for the latter.
Having recently indulged in a spot of willow fence weaving around a community orchard in Rouken Glen, we cranked it up a notch at Dams to Darnley Country Park, using willow to rebuild the eroded section of the riverbank. The willow will take root and join its nearby pals in stabilising the ground, in an ecologically sound manner, no less!
It felt like the first proper day of Spring and sunlight makes all the difference to a good conservation day. And then, it seems, we tested out our work by having the whole team pose standing precariously on the ground we had just built…
