Yesterday at The Lancashire Wildlife Trust

Good afternoon avid readers of my blogs and welcome to yet another instalment into the on- going voluntary pursuits young Alex Ashworth is committing to.

Today marked the final session with The Lancashire Wildlife group and lead Chris Taylor's 'Bees, Butterflies and Bikes'.

As per usual I waited eagerly at the meeting point (outside The Anderton Arms pub in Fulwood) complete with my full gardening gear on (waterproof jacket and pants, boots and gloves). It was getting around 9.50am then all of a sudden a white van came speeding round the corner. It couldn't have been the postman because it was the wrong colour and it was also the wrong time for him to do his daily postings. As I came towards the van I gave the driver a big wave, it was of course Chris Taylor.

As I got in Chris' van it soon came to my attention that it was just the two of us today. Despite the lack of numbers we went to the Guild Wheel Cycle path site and used a variety of tools. Secateurs were used to cut back the docs, spades and balsams clubs just in case we were to use them.

The first task was to remove a large portion of the docs. We deposited them towards the hedge and continued with the next task. Chris noticed there was weeds covering some of the pear trees so we removed them.

As we walked further on we basically had a good review of the work carried out since last November and fortunately most of it appeared positive. It was only when we went to the other cycle path when Chris noticed an area that had some excellent planting done but was only cut back with a mower. I felt sad for Chris, especially after all the hard work gone into planting around there.

Resilient as ever though Chris found a more sustainable patch that looked more attractive and prosperous for the environment. He captured it on camera to document the work that had been done.

We were going to examine some more of the work that took place since November 2015 but sadly the heavens opened and it was game over for now.

Chris kindly took me back to my car and the initial meeting place at The Anderton Arms. He hoped to see me sometime in the future and made aware of some of the voluntary work to be scheduled several months down the line. I wished him all the best and it genuinely has been a real pleasure working for Chris every week and then every couple of weeks. I've learnt so much. It's been extremely valuable and I'll treasure this period of time in the months ahead.

This is Alex Ashworth signing off for seven months with Chris Taylor's group, 'Bees, Butterflies and Bikes'. Thanks Chris.