Wednesday 9 November 2016

Corehead Autumn Adventures

In the School Holidays for the past two years we have run an 'Adventure Club.' This is open to people of all ages (adults, families and children alike! ) to take part in a wide range of activities, games and crafts at Corehead Farm.

The aim of these sessions are to use a diverse range of activities to help people connect with and learn about our natural world. Its about looking at the details in nature, helping notice what is around us and inspiring each other to take part in actions which conserve and restore it.  This can be through art and craft, wildlife surveys, bush craft, survival skills and nature games.

This October half term, we ran two sessions:

The first was all about hibernation and winter survival. We looked for hidden clues in the forest to discover how our different mammals adapt to the winter. We discovered Badgers, squirrels and mice aren't true hibernators, where as hedgehogs and bats are - dropping their body temperature and heart rate considerably.


We talked about different adaptations creatures have from the downy under feathers of small birds, to the cosy drays of squirrels. We then had a go at building our own dens... to house a hot water bottle....the challenge to see many degrees its temperature would drop in different dens!  Who could keep it the warmest!?

The winning Den!
Looking cosy!?

We then talked about the importance of fire for human survival in winter. lit our own fire and drank hot apple juice!



The second was more crafty, celebrating the turning off the seasons, by making leaf candle holders, and telling stories round a camp fire in the woods.



If you'd like to be updated of future Adventure club sessions in 2017 please email

Corehead@bordersforesttrust.org to be added to our mailing list.

Ali Murfitt
Site and Community Officer




 

Friday 4 November 2016

Community Bake Off!

What a beautiful Autumn its been this year! At Corehead, our conservation volunteers and Junior Rangers have been out and about, enjoying the Autumn sun, helping look after the orchard

Here are some highlights: 

The orchard
This is the first year that the trees have been old enough to leave some of the fruit on the trees, and after a good session of weeding round the trees it was apple picking time for the Junior Rangers !

 
Orchard Celebrations



First we had the Junior Rangers out in the orchard, weeding round the trees, raking up grass 

Then the picking commenced

The fun way to pick apples !

and the apple tasting!
Which variety tastes best!!?


Plenty of apples to go round!



Junior Rangers took them home to enjoy and have a go at baking with fresh apples from the tree

Here are some of the results
Apple Pie 

Reuben's crumble 
Apple Turnover

Apple smoothie! Yum!! 
Danny won the bake off challenge for productivity and variety, making a smoothie, turnover and crumble from the apples he took home!! Great stuff!!

Our adult volunteers have also been hard at work replacing and reinforcing the tree guards.





This winter we'll be holding a pruning workshop in the orchard...details coming soon

Ali Murfitt
Site and Community Officer