01344 771251
Recreational Facilities
Circle Hill & Walter Recreation Ground
01344 771251
Circle Hill & Walter Recreation Ground
Circle Hill & Walter Recreation Ground
Despite high winds, most notably Henk, Isha and Jocelyn, Circle Hill escaped very lightly this winter. The most evident damage was a large bough, which was completely torn off a mature Scots pine by the wind, but landed conveniently in the undergrowth and not across the path. Other limbs were damaged and left hanging so were tidied up by the tree surgeon if they were over a high use area such as a path.
More than 40 people turned up in the sunshine to give both Circle Hill and the Walter Rec a spring clean in an event run in conjunction with CROW - Plastic Free Crowthorne.
Volunteers from as young as three, collected an amazing 29 sacks of rubbish, which included clothes, hub caps, cable and bottles. In addition, there was a dining table, bath chair, corrugated sheets, tools and a shopping basket all removed from the undergrowth so they are no longer a danger to wildlife or visitors.
Many local residents attended the litter pick event and collected litter of all shapes and sizes.
Litter, collected as part of an organised event using pink bags, can be piled up and collected by the borough council..
A new fence has been installed along Pinewood Avenue. The cleft sweet chestnut rails are a sturdy, rustic solution to channelling visitors to any of the three official entrances along this boundary. This ensures that the vegetation is not trampled between the paths and the conservation value of this site can be maximised.
Cleft rails will last for decades and are a sustainable fencing solution which is very strong as the wood has been split along the grain.
Ten bird and bat boxes were installed in March by CPC staff and charity trustees. The bird boxes, made by the Men's Shed, with entrance holes of varying sizes to suit different species, were placed between 2 and 4m high. Bird boxes are best installed facing north east so they do not suffer from wild temperature fluctuations. In contrast, the bat boxes are generally placed as high as possible with multiple boxes per tree. This allows the bats to move around between roosting options, depending on the season and temperature of the boxes.
The routine spring growth is particularly abundant this year, since the dark laurel bushes were removed last summer. The plant with white flowers and a distinctive, triangular-shaped stem are thriving.
This false garlic is a native from S America but fortunately, our native invertebrates can still enjoy the nectar. Trustees and council staff will keep an eye on it to over the coming years to make sure that it doesn't swamp the other species.
Native saplings planted in March are doing well and are coming into leaf, even the ones planted on the top of the hill to help decommission the stony path. The trees were part of a 'wild harvest' pack so they will provide plenty of nectar, fruit and nuts for local fauna when they are established.
Please do get in touch if you have noticed whether the bird boxes are being used, both in the Walter Recreation Ground and Circle Hill. These were put up in January with the help of the Men's Shed volunteers.
Planting native trees March 2023 in the Walter Recreation Ground.
The popular, local, cut-through to the High Street and pedestrian crossing, is now more useable throughout the whole year.
The steep, rooted path has been closed off for safety reasons. Please keep on the new path so the vegetation can start to recolonise the disturbed areas.
Funding for this path was awarded by Involve and The National Lottery Community Fund. The Walter Recreation Ground is managed by the Walter Recreation Ground Charity.
