Join us for a day of Rhodoendron Control at Bennel Wood! This wont just be hard graft, we'll be trialling different management techniques, considering how to measure the impact of our work on the site
Dumfries & Galloway Woodlands acquired Bennel Wood in December 2024, establishing it as a 'Woodland Laboratory'.
Our plan is for 2025 to be a year of data gathering and reports are now being received (will be published on our website shortly.) We have been looking at soil structure, mycorrhizal populations, botany, invertebrates and also emerging tree cover. One of the main recommendations from the report regards control of Rhododendron on the site.
Rhododendrons were brought to the UK in the 18th century for ornamental reasons, and still form a part of many gardens to this day. But left unchecked they can spread voraciously, dominating areas of woodland, crowding out native species. Bennel Wood has a small amount of Rhododendron on the site, suitable for management and allowing us to trial management techniques.
Plan for the day:
10am - Arrival and welcome, background discussion
10.30am - Attendees tackle Rhododendron on site, under supervision, manual removal using hand tools and plucking small stems
12.00noon: Lunch served - in or around the Bennel wood container (weather depending)
12:30pm: Afternoon session of Rhododendron control and gathering plucked stems into piles
1.15pm: A group walk to the summit of Bennel Wood
2pm: Event finishes
To make sure we are able to manage the event on the day, we are listing this on a '12 attendees' basis, asking people to book their spots. All equipment will be provided and obviously actual 'labour' element on the day depends entirely on your interest and ambitions! See you there!
(P.S. This is an outdoor event in Galloway in November so we will be monitoring the weather forecast. Our ambition is to proceed in the face of light showers or drizzle but if its going to rain throughout then we likely to cancel - we will advise booked attendees of decision before the day)
If you have any queries, please contact [email protected].