ITS NATIONAL CEMETERIES WEEK. A TIME TO CELEBRATE OUR CEMETERIES.
Here are a few photographs taken by visitors to the cemetery that show what a peaceful and inviting green space it is. These photographs cover a very small area of Brandwood End. Pop in and take a stroll. There are plenty of benches to sit and listen to the bird song or watch the wildlife. Fifteen minutes in here will nourish your body and soul……..
This Sunday the 1st June we will have our early Summer LITTER PICK. Meet by the Lodge at 10am. We will be on site till 11.30am but how long you stay is up to you. Why not come along and enjoy a peaceful walk in this amazing green peaceful space.?
We provide the bags and pickers but suggest you may want to bring your own gloves.
Stout footwear and suitable outer clothing is advisable and children are welcome but under 16’s will need to be accompanied by an adult.
A last minute visit by four employees of Deutsche Bank meant that we were able to clear an area at the back of Section 14 yesterday. Our thanks to Steven and Malcolm, who help organise the areas cleared and cheer the volunteers on, and also to Gill who helps provide refreshments (Always arriving with extra biscuits)
Before and after photographs show how hard they worked
The Friends have designed 4 measured and timed walks in the cemetery to suit all fitness levels.. You can run, jog , walk or amble. Whichever suits you (times are geared for walkers)
To see where they lead and how long they take, click on this link.
Enjoy the trees, monuments, bird song and peace that Brandwood End Cemetery offers.
During Heritage Open Week in September we will be holding an event that will add an additional dimension to one of these walks. Watch this space.
Gardening Volunteers from FBEC had a fantastic morning in the sunshine with Laura and her helpers from Fruit and Nut Village. They kindly donated 5 trees,( 3 Hazels and 2 Walnuts) to kick off our 20th Anniversary Tree Planting project. Our aim is to try and plant an minimum of 15 trees in the cemetery to replace 21 lost in recent storms. The tree stock has been depleted by over 150 in the last few years due to storms, disease and general age and as most of the cemetery was planted up over 125 years ago we can expect to lose many more in the next few years. We have raised over £4000 already but need to get to £6000 to complete the project next Autumn.
If you would like to see some of our planting photographs from today then follow this link.
Spring has sprung in a really unusual place. This was obviously a very determined daffodil!
Before Covid we worked with Birmingham Trees for Life to plant 15 standard size trees on the boundary with Broad Lane and Sunderton Road. A few years on these trees needed their tree ‘guards’ and stakes removing so this morning seven volunteers from our Grave Gardening group set about that task and also made a start clearing brambles around the. Our thanks to all of them for their efforts as brambles are especially unpleasant to deal with !
The Friends are continuing with their monthly sessions to clear shrubbery from graves and also around some perimeter areas. We welcome help at each of these events and whilst we do have our own group tools we always welcome supporters bringing their own tools with them. Can we suggest that you bring your own gardening gloves, if you have them, and wear suitable footwear.
We will be meeting by the Lodge at 11am but then moving to another area of the cemetery.
This is our last chance to get the flower papers and litter out from under bushes and hedges before it disappears into the greenery till next Autumn. Come along and help us with this final push.
Despite the damp and miserable weather we were joined by 23 people who all spent close to an hour and a half learning a little bit more about the trees of Brandwood End in Winter. Our thanks to Malcolm who had spent time planning and leading a great Tree Walk. Lots of interesting facts and questions and so many different trees still remaining to cover at another time.
Hopefully the next Tree Walk will be a ‘Summer’ one with better weather. Thanks again to Malcolm for all his time and effort, and to those that attended and make it all worth while.
If you enjoyed todays walk and want to help us replant some new trees for those you saw that were lost recently then watch this space for details on how you can donate/sponsor new trees.
