Task at the Thames and Severn canal disused section near Coates, April 16th2023.
Five of us from GVCV met five Cotswold Canal Trust volunteers at the disused canal section near the old Tunnel House Inn. Half of us worked to clear saplings from the steep side of the canal, not an easy task because of the steep slope and some water in the canal. The rest of us worked further along the towpath outside the neglected roundhouse built in 1791 as a dwelling for the ‘lengthsman’ whose job was to keep the towpath and drainage ditches clear.
The Roundhouse
Our job was to cut saplings actually growing in dry stone walls and to clear vegetation which was smothering new barberry shrubs (Berberis vulgaris) which had been planted to encourage the rare Barberry Carpet moth which feeds on them.
Barberry Carpet moth
Both sites looked much clearer at the end of the day, a satisfying outcome.