Thursday 20/8/26 A pair of swans were in the river on our way to the mill. The railway wagon doors were hard to open so Eddie oiled the hinges. Rain was forecast all day, but it was a sunny start so we decided to cordon off the area we seeded last time to stop anyone walking or driving over it, particularly at the open days next month.
There is no more fencing tape or rope so I found some old bunting from the Coronation and VE Day celebrations which was in the cupboard under the seat in the wagon. We tied the bunting between the small oak tree and the hedge, then hammered stakes in along the edges and put the bunting around them to fence off the seeded area. Bunting flapping in the wind should also deter birds from eating the seed.
We didn’t water the seeds today as there was heavy rain later. I sorted out the cupboard in the wagon and put everything back so the Heritage Open Days banners, bunting and self-guided maps are on top ready for the open days.
Coreopsis, viola and cosmos are still flowering in front of the visitor centre, but the sunflower has finished, we’ll keep some of the seeds and replant them, birds can have the rest. Lobelia and hollyhocks are still in flower around the trees.
The water butts we use to water the gardens ran dry this summer, so we had to use buckets of river water, I checked that this was allowed and monitored the river level. Its better to use river water than treated drinking water which is more precious in a drought. I checked the water butts today and they are nearly full again.
We had a cup of tea outside while it was sunny and saw a pair of cormorants fly over. There was also a red kite over the field and a little egret flew over the mill. A kingfisher flew from the river across near the wagon and over to the stream on the other side, but I couldn’t get a photo. There was also a robin in an elder bush near the bridge.
There was heavy rain later so we worked indoors. The wildlife sign for the meadow has a whiteboard area for new sightings, so I added red admiral butterfly and wren to the board as both were seen recently. The board is put in the meadow at open days.
There were exhibits on the visitor centre floor including a historic hand drill, we mounted them on the wall above the cabinet, which looks better. Eddie swept rust (from the metal items) off the top cabinet shelf and re-arranged the displays. We had lunch outside but there was a thunder storm in the afternoon, so we had an early finish.
Saturday 22/8/26 Nar Valley Benefice held an event called Everyone Has a Story in the local churches. I told the story of how I got involved with the bone mill, with displays in Narborough church. See the updated article for more information.
It was back in August 2021 that we were awarded a grant to create our wildflower meadow, the 5 Years Ago link (below) can be used to see the announcement and early stages of work on the project.
Thursday 27/8/26 Thunder and heavy rain were forecast all day so we decided to work under cover at The Maltings, taking seats out of the trailer ready to take the mower to the mill and cut grass for the open days nearer the time. We also need to cut down the wildflower meadow soon.
We previously removed two trailer seats to fit the mower, but due to the drought we haven't needed to cut the grass since. Fred and his family camped at the mill last month and they put the seats back in the trailer as they needed it for transport, so today Eddie worked in the trailer with a spanner on the bolts and I laid on the ground underneath undoing nuts holding the seats and we removed the two bench seats.
Fred gave us captive nuts which have claws to grip into the underside of the wooden trailer floor to make it easier to get seats in and out, as bolts can be undone from above without having to lay underneath. We fitted nuts for the first seat in the trailer by putting bolts through and tightening them up which pulls the nuts into the wood.
We went to the mill as there had been no rain yet and we needed to drill out four smaller holes in the trailer to fit captive nuts for the other seat, and our drill is at the mill. We also had things to take back to the mill. On the way we saw horses in the field.
It rained hard soon after we arrived, but we had covered the remaining seat in the trailer with black material to keep it dry, so we had a cup of tea in the railway wagon. We brought the displays back from My Story last weekend and I put the copy of the information sign back on the wagon wall, put pictures back in the folders and the old notice boards in the visitor centre loft.
When the rain eventually eased up I went over our bridge with one of the Open Days flyers left over from My Story, which I had laminated, I stapled it to the gate frame so walkers will know about our open days on 19 & 20 September.
We then drilled out the small holes in the trailer floor to suit the captive nuts and fitted them by pulling them into place with bolts. Eddie repaired a broken broom handle with builders band, screws and Duck tape, he tested it by sweeping the floor.
Some of the paper Coronation bunting flags used to cordon off the seeded area had come off the string in the wind and rain, so I tore off the rest and put them in the rubbish bin, the other bunting is weatherproof plastic which survived. We took the trailer back and saw swans in the river on the way.
Graham Bartlett
Interactive Plan Activity Previous Projects Workers 5 Years Ago
