Sunday, 17 February 2008
Troll Trail in Daily Telegraph Top 20
The Daily Telegraph recently featured the Troll Trail as part of its "50 great things to do this half term" article - we made page 1 of the weekend supplement, and were listed at number 13. The Telegraph recommend you "Follow the picturesque cycle track from Merstone to Shide (10-mile return trip). Spot wooden carvings and "hidden art" along the way." and who are we to argue?
Labels: troll trail
Thursday, 24 January 2008
New survey vessel
All we need to do is find a way to use it for Gift to Nature projects.... There must be some excuse, erm, I mean reason!Thursday, 15 November 2007
Arrivals at Merstone Station
We continue to get positive reports about Merstone station. Resplendent in its new benches the picnic area is hugely popular, with picnicers and resting cyclists marvelling at the beautiful carvings. The maze truly is amazing (if you'll pardon me using the oldest pun in the book) - kids manage to spend an age in the simple maze, developing endless new games.Even in the depths of November the site is well used, as the photos below show. Intrepid walkers from the Isle of Wight Learning Zone enjoy a break at the end of an exciting nigh-time troll stroll.
Labels: maze, merstone, troll trail
Wednesday, 17 October 2007
We're still here....honest
We haven't posted on the blog for a while. There are two reasons behind this. First, some of our blog posts appear to have disappeared. I have managed to resurrect one that was saved elsewhere and posted it posthumously, but others have vanished without trace.... Second, we are very busy! Gift to Nature takes a lot of managing, and unfortunately we don't have any dedicated resources to pay for this, so we are having to use bits and prices of money, such as income from our trading subsidiary to keep Gift to Nature going, but this does mean less time available for things like blogging, as we are busy trying to deliver other projects alongside Gift to Nature.We have developed a medium term plan for Gift to Nature which will enable us to develop the project so it becomes financially self sustaining within three years of the start of the plan. It will also allow us to grow Gift to Nature so we can develop more conservation projects and increase our role in communicating with visitors and residents about what's most exciting around the Island, and why it is such a special place for wildlife. We are in discussions to secure some funding to launch this new development phase, and we hope to have some news in the next few months. Watch this space - we'll certainly find time to blog that news!
Anyway, in the meantime, thanks for your interest in Gift to Nature, and a particularly big thank you to our members, both businesses and individuals, who enable us to keep delivering conservation projects. More information on our 2008 project will be available soon.
Saturday, 11 August 2007
Sow Snap Send - Free Wildflower Seeds at the County Show
Today saw the launch of our new "Sow Snap Send" initiative at the 2007 Isle of Wight County Show. The idea is you pick up a little packet of seeds from our stall, take them home and plant them in your garden, or a container if you don't have a garden but have some other outdoor space, then photograph the resulting beauty of them in bloom and email or post us a picture. We'll be posting pictures on our website as they arrive. Please don't plant flowers in the wild! Doing this could upset the natural balance of a particular habitat.
As I managed to mislay my list of which seeds were included, I promised several people I would post details online, so here is the list:
| % | wild flowers | common name | |
| 5.0 | Achillea millefolium | Yarrow | |
| 15.0 | Centaurea nigra | Common Knapweed | |
| 5.0 | Daucus carota | Wild Carrot | |
| 5.0 | Galium verum | Lady's Bedstraw | |
| 10.0 | Leucanthemum vulgare | Oxeye Daisy | |
| 7.5 | Plantago media | Hoary Plantain | |
| 20.0 | Ranunculus acris | Meadow Buttercup | |
| 7.5 | Rumex acetosa | Common Sorrel | |
| 15.0 | Sanguisorba minor ssp minor | Salad Burnet | |
| 10.0 | Silene dioica | Red Campion |
If you missed us today, we'll be at the show again tomorrow (Sun 12th Aug 2007) and then at the Wolverton Garden fair in September. We're also looking at ways to offer seeds via the website - watch this space!
Labels: county show, sow snap send, wild flowers
Friday, 3 August 2007
Friday, 27 July 2007
Troll Trail Launch Pictures (2 of 2)
Taken today at the launch of our latest project, the Troll Trail. Click on any picture for a larger image.
Labels: merstone, nature week, station, troll trail
Troll Trail Launch Pictures (1 of 2)
Taken today at the launch of our latest project, the Troll Trail. Click on any picture for a larger image.
Labels: merstone, nature week, station, troll trail
What a fantastic day, trolls 'n' all
Just winding down after a busy day launching the Troll Trail. There's been lots of work these last few weeks getting everything ready, but the reception it all received today was simply fantastic. Over 100 people took part in the launch event, with a cycle ride led by Ian, picnic at the fantastic new look Merstone Station, music from our station "buskers" Glen and Dave, stories through the day from Sue Bailey, sweep netting for bugs, pond dipping at Birchmore and more. Phew. Everyone seemed to have a great time, and lots of positive comments on both the conservation work and the public art. We have had so much positive feedback on the work along the troll trail, thanks for all of it, and keep it coming in - its nice to know when people enjoy things, rather than only hearing when they don't!I am almost reluctant to post photos of the work along the Troll Trail as I'd rather you went and saw it for real - the photos just don't do it justice. If you ask nicely though I'll post a few.
P.S. The replacement suitcases have set and look fantastic.
Labels: merstone, nature week, station, troll trail, vandalism
Monday, 23 July 2007
Near Real Time Blog! - Nature Week 2007 starts
I'm rather excited in a childish sort of way as I'm blogging about an event as it happens. No we haven't gone all technical and started blogging via mobile phone, its an event happening on the beach outside the office! I have nipped back in to organise some events later in the week (and get out of the drizzle!).We started off with but one family, but numbers swelled as we went along, we had at least 15 people when I left, and who knows how many more have been picked up along the way (especially as Ian was last seen holding a large net - prefect for catching small children to bolster numbers).
The weather's not great out there, though it has stopped pouring with rain, and thankfully we have nowhere near the rain levels of some parts of the UK. No complaints from the happy hunters, who are more interested in what lurks in the cracks and joints on the sea wall, and along the strand line than what's falling from the sky. Moving on to bug hunting in the woods later. Great stuff. More nature activities all this week. Follow the link from our homepage for details of Nature Week events.
The weather's not great out there, though it has stopped pouring with rain, and thankfully we have nowhere near the rain levels of some parts of the UK. No complaints from the happy hunters, who are more interested in what lurks in the cracks and joints on the sea wall, and along the strand line than what's falling from the sky. Moving on to bug hunting in the woods later. Great stuff. More nature activities all this week. Follow the link from our homepage for details of Nature Week events.
Labels: beach, east cowes, nature week, walking festival