Friends of Marple Memorial Park Task Days
The Friends hold regular task days in the park on the last Saturday of each month in the winter and the middle and last Saturday from March to November. Everyone is welcome to join in for as long or as short they wish during the specified times. Please note that children and young people under 18 must be accompanied by a responsible adult.
If you are interested becoming a volunteer with us please get in touch and we will add you to our Task Day notifications.
We like to keep a record of what we get up and here are details of past task days.
Task Day 19 June 2021
Wildflower meadow starting to show promise at last
As many will know, creation of our wildflower meadow on the site of the Lock 11 compound was delayed by the Covid19 pandemic. We were all set to sow seed in March 2020 but it didn't happen until the autumn in less than ideal conditions. This year we've been waiting patiently for it to spring into life but it has been very slow to take hold, apart from the self seeded Dock.
Today we decided to get a small team on it at short notice to give the Dock a good bashing before it dispersed seed again. It has made quite a difference and it is actually starting to look like a wildflower meadow at last. Although results of the seed we sowed in autumn still seems to be quite sparse, wildflowers are now starting to show and there are encouraging patches in bloom.
We did sow a huge amount of seed in autumn, including Yellow Rattle of which the is no sign at all. Today we also sowed a load more seed in anticipation of some rain to get them going.
Task Day 15 June 2021
Chipping away at Town Centre bench maintenance
Well not literally, but we are working our way through the retreating of the Marple Town Centre benches, this time completing one on Market Street and another on the Hollins.
We're also starting to think about how we can clean up and repaint the metalwork too and it would be easier if we had access to an outside tap. Is there an owner of a business premises or residence that could help us with this please?
Task Day 12 June 2021
Everything is growing so quickly now and there's lots of work for our volunteers!
Now that we are allowed to use power-tools in the park again we were able to catch-up on maintenance of the bandroom garden by strimming (with our new cordless strimmer) and mowing the grass. Lots more work on the flowerbeds too, which are now filling out nicely thanks to the sunshine.
We also gave shrubs alongside Hollins House a good pruning and others cleared weeds from the park entrance on Stockport Road, which has made a huge improvement.
We also called local councillors and the emergency control room to get the park toilets opened as the were still shut at 10am.
And last but not least, we took delivery of the plywood boards for the Pavilion Art Project, which is very exciting.
Park visitors said thank you by placing over £18 in our collection bucket.
Task Day 10 June 2021
Three more Town Centre benches knocked off the list!
Another three Town Centre benches were sanded and treated by Friends of the Park today, as we gradually make our way towards Stockport Road. Special thanks today for refreshments from Aggie's Bar and to Forever Yours of Cheshire Bridal Shop for helping us out with parking because the car parks were all full.
A huge thank you to the two people who donated £130 + Gift Aid between them via Local Giving after seeing this article too!
Task Day 5 June 2021
Squeezed in another Task Day with only 24 hours notice!
As the weather was so good we organised today's task day with only 24 hours notice, so some of our volunteers couldn't make it. However, there were enough to make a difference and the Allotment Team were out in force working on their plot. As well as working on the flowerbeds, we pulled a pile of self-seeded saplings from several of the shrub beds.
Thank you to park visitors for just over £11 left in our collection bucket!
Task Day 22 May 2021
Another busy day in the park with lots of work completed in several areas...
While one team focused on a further tidy-up and maintenance of the main flowerbeds and the war memorial beds, another scoured the top half of the area used for the Lock 11 repairs for stones that could damage the council's mower again (they keep rising to the surface). The top third of this area should then be mown to return it to grass, while the rest is to be left wild and, hopefully, the wildflower seed we sowed in the autumn of last year will put on a better display than it is currently doing.
At the same time others were working on clearing weeds, grass and moss from around and under benches and the steps down to the library, and on the allotment plot too.
Thank you to generous park users, who popped over £34 in our collection bucket!
