Recently our team of LDV NNR volunteers travelled away from the Lower Derwent and over towards Doncaster, where they joined up with staff from the ‘Life’ project at Humberhead Peatlands NNR at Thorne Moors, to help the team with a planting task and to enjoy working on a different site for the day.
The task involved the planting of over 7,000 cotton grass plugs on areas of bare peat as part of the first stage of peatland restoration, where cotton grass is used to plug bare, wet, or previously drained peatlands. The cotton grass plugs are planted in a diamond pattern which will in time see sphagnum plugs planted in the centre, which will be sheltered by the cotton grass. These root systems help stabilise loose, bare peat surfaces, thus reducing further erosion, as well as creating suitable habitats for insects (e.g. caterpillars of the Large Heath butterfly) and nesting birds, whilst encouraging the return of bog-forming vegetation, and in doing so turning carbon-emitting bare peat back into a carbon-capturing sink and in storing more water, and generally in helping in the second phase of peatland restoration, after water tables have been raised by blocking drainage ditches and grips.
Many thanks as ever to our ‘LDV super team’ who can turn their hand to anything and always bring plenty of enthusiasm and good humour to the day. Looking forward to doing more of this going forward and returning to Humberhead Peatlands NNR in the autumn to help with the sphagnum planting.
If you'd like to lend a hand and join our volunteer group, or work for an organisation that offers corporate volunteering days, please contact us via: Lucy.Murgatroyd@naturalengland.org.uk
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