Ants in your Plants*

Seven of us got together to help out at Manor Woods Valley on another gloriously sunny Saturday morning.

Our first task was to remove ants nests from the protective plastic covers wrapped around the trees that were recently planted there. The covers help encourage the trees to grow vertically against their support - and prevent any rabbits chewing at the base.

The ants love these cosy new homes but can prevent proper ventilation and cause the new growth to become damp, ultimately killing the tree. We went around cleaning out the covers and then raising them slightly to deter future nest building.

In all we cleared around 36 nests having visited 700 trees to find them!

With 15 mins remaining there was just time to move on and clear some brambles from the base of a nearby apple tree, hopefully making the fruit more accessible to passers by.

(*the pun works best in a sassy Virginian accent, thanks Danica 😂)