made last summer by Keith Brooks and Brian Mayling with their work to clear out and mow the "Green Mile" walk around the Bowley Field, in and out of the trees planted some 30 years ago by people such as the late Len Edwards. SODC Forestry gave us 120 trees to improve this scheme, so we have planted these in the form of a double staggered line across the middle of the Bowley Field, so that in 30 years’ time this will also be a colonnade of mature English oaks, hornbeam, beech, silver birch and about 10 other species of trees. Some of the trees planted 30 years ago have already fallen victim to disease, and there has been a major reduction, achieved by radical trimming, in the density of the trees on adjacent farmland to the west of the Bowley Field, so SODC will supply another 300 new trees for us to plant next winter to fill in the gaps and to thicken up the band of trees which effectively screens the village from the BMW factory, which we assume will be expanded in the next few years with a railway siding and body manufacturing facility to be located, according to an already existing planning agreement, on the Rover Sports Ground. The Parish Council’s view is that we will benefit by having as many trees as possible planted between the village and the factory by then.
 

The Wildlife Conservation Area

After the second year of winter droughts in 2005/2006, the Kimmeridge clay which is the rock underneath the ponds in the former railway cutting, developed cracks about 4 metres deep, and with even less water entering these ponds from the springs, they both dried out completely. The remaining 300 frog tadpoles were rescued by local volunteers who reared them in various plastic tanks in back gardens, and fed them until they became froglets with 4 legs and good lungs and could be returned to the dried- up pond. This year more than 100 male

frogs were ready to mate, in early February, and then the snow came, and so they could only mate later on when the females emerged in the warmer last 2 weeks of the month. About 100,00 tadpoles are now swimming in the pond, which has enjoyed very high water levels after the late winter rains, and should have enough water this year to see the froglets emerge onto dry land in early July.
Because of the generally mild winter, not quite so many bats (41) were found hibernating in the tunnel as last year (53), but there will be some further improvements to their winter habitat made by volunteers this summer. When we have a date for doing this work, it will be posted on the Horspath village website (www.horspath.org.uk).
Several thousand visits are made to the Wildlife Conservation Area each year, which have caused some wear on the mud paths, and so the top section of ‘circular path’ will be levelled in May and surfaced with gravel, to make it

easier to walk along there in any future wet winters. The Saturday morning when some more volunteer help with this job will be most welcome will be posted with further details on the noticeboard by the Butts Road entrance gate, and hopefully also on Horspath village website (www.horspath.org.uk) on the preceding Wednesday, by which time we should have a reliable weather forecast for the Saturday, as no one wants to work in the rain.
 

Shorter News Items & Dates for Your Diary
 

Horspath C. of E. Primary School May Fair will be held between 11.00 am – 4.30 pm on Saturday 12th May, and this year will be aimed at the wider community in the village, in addition to just Primary School parents and families, so other village groups will be given the opportunity to host stalls and events if they wish. Please contact Angela Julian on 872162 for more details.
 

On the evening of Saturday 9th June from 6.15 pm another impressive "Musical Extravaganza" suitable for all the family, will be presented in the beautiful gardens of the Manor House, with all proceeds in aid of St. Giles Church. Everyone who went last year enjoyed it so much that they will want to go again, and anyone who missed it last year will want to make sure they don’t do that again, so to make sure you get your tickets this year, make your initial enquires to Barbara Lewis on 872204.
 

The County Council is proposing to impose a 40 mph speed limit on the section of Oxford Road from the Stagecoach bus garage up to the entrance to the City Athletics Track.
 

The amount of litter which blows around the village in the wind when it is put out by residents for collection could be reduced if residents would kindly put the loose waste paper into plastic bags, or tie up the newspapers, or even just weigh the papers down with something heavy so they do not get blow around. Any food waste which is put out in plastic bags the night before the collection day is very often found at night by foxes, or other animals, which rip open the whole bag, so this is another thing for residents to be aware of in trying to keep the village tidy. If the SODC waste collection contractors still drop litter behind them on collection day, then complaints should be made.
 

The school bus company, which suffered from a renegade driver who embedded the bus into the village Green in Manor Farm Road one morning and even left the front bumper behind as evidence (!!), dispensed with the services of that driver within 48 hours of the incident, and has made an ex gratia donation of £75 towards the fund to maintain the grass on the Green.
 

Wheatley Choral Society is now rehearsing Karl Jenkins’ Mass for Peace, amongst other works, on Tuesday nights at 7.15 pm in the United Reformed Church, for the performance in St. Mary’s Church on 9th June to celebrate its 150th Anniversary. All new voices from Horspath are welcome. For further details please contact Celia Paget: 01865 872250.

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