Working party testimonials
What do people think of the Coombe working parties?
"After taking my eldest to her early Saturday job at a newsagent's for seven, I set off for Okehampton to pick up the willing working Wooffer who I'd arranged to give a lift. We got to Coombe and put our sleeping stuff away in the allocated, most beautiful bedrooms, in the old farmhouse. The kitchen was already buzzing with people and more were arriving.
We got our wind proofs and boots on and a small group of us got started by sorting out the right proportions of trees for the first native hedge and loaded up the LandRover with them and the spades.
Klaudia with a handful of trees ready to be planted
It was a bit of a walk to the field where we were going to plant the first hedge and we spent some time working out the planting distances to get the pattern right and a ensure a good mix of trees. There were a variety of native trees, the occasional one to be left as a standard at a later date, including: hawthorn, holly, hazel, cherry and ash. There were also some ramblers and shrubs e.g. rose, blackthorn and spindle. Once we decided on a pattern we got digging and planting and completed the section before lunch.
Back at the house a lovely warm lunch awaited with heartwarming soup and bread. After a little respite we got to the top field to start on the main sections to be planted. We tried out a simpler planting method to speed up to process a bit and got cracking again. After a while we had a system going with some people preparing holes and others planting and we worked our way along the fence until it started getting dark and we were tired and hungry.
A wonderful hot meal had been prepared by the kitchen crew and I had a bath to ease the muscle ache before dinner. A bit of a social was had in the farmhouse in the evening with the fire going lovely.
Up next morning for another session after breakfast, with some people notably absent after the night before and some there and going for it. New arrivals joined in and the largest section got completed early afternoon. A final section at the bottom also managed to get done that afternoon, but I had to go and collect children again, so I didn't see that finished.
All in all a lovely way to spend a weekend, feel looked after, get some healthy exercise outdoors and watch the buzzards fly and deer run across the valley, fingers crossed they would leave these trees alone."
xx
Klaudia
The hedge planting working party at Coombe
"When we all arrived a few people didn't know each other but it didn't matter we soon all got stuck into planting. After a few hours good hard work with our breath rising in the cold morning air we all had good appetites and were lured back to the house where warm soup, bread and friendly chats awaited.
Spurred on by several steaming cups of tea we set to it again in the afternoon. We all worked till it started to get dark, not because we felt we had to but because we were all enjoying it so much.
Hot baths and showers revived us for a delicious supper and then the music began with some fun dancing and a little drinking. We all went to bed feeling that we deserved the lovely soft sheets and cosy douvets.
Sunday saw us planting even more hedging and by the end of the day we were a slick team and had probably planted twice as much as on the Saturday. We all returned home much invigorated by the companionships and communal effort and by Coombe itself"
Sune : )
