Clearing brambles with the Green Shoots Project!

Brambles! Nature’s barbed wire. Brambles are an important part of the ecosystem because they provide a habitat for a variety of different animals, insects, and other invertebrates. They also offer a food supply in their fruit and roots, which is particularly important during the colder Autumn and Winter months. On top of this, brambles are important to our resident endangered Water Vole as the shrub offers a place of protection when Water Voles are hiding and escaping their predators.

But, if left unmanaged, brambles can cause a problem as their fast and widespread growth means that they will become the dominant plant species and will block the light, preventing other plants from growing around them. To allow for more biodiverse growth of flora which will support a larger variety of animals, the Green Shoots team are cutting back the bramble at Berwick Hills Nature Reserve. Making sure that we leave the fruit that the animals are dependent on but leaving a stretch of bramble to continue acting as a protective habitat, we are cutting back the shrubs which will allow wildflowers, herbs, and other plants to grow back in their place.

If you’re interested in joining our team, then Green Shoots are looking for volunteers to help us in our work! If you are 16-24 and unemployed, or a refugee or asylum seeker, or if you are from a BAME group we would love for you to get in touch! Please email jade.harley@menvcity.org.uk or casper.scallen@menvcity.org.uk to find out more information. Alternatively contact us by telephone 01642 579820.