Many Tributes to The Late Ian Moody
Wenvoe Wildlife Group
Many Tributes to The Late Ian Moody
There were many tributes to the late Ian Moody in the last issue of What’s On but he also played a major role in the Wenvoe Wildlife Group. A founder member, it was Ian who started the ball rolling by suggesting we formed a group to start maintaining the Upper Orchid Field. Ian was closely involved with the planting of the orchards, the design and construction of the Bee Hotels, excavation and stocking of the ponds and clearance of vegetation. Ian also instigated and ran the monthly conservation sessions on the Upper Orchid Field. One of the activities Ian participated in was the recording of Ancient and Veteran trees. These receive no special protection and only by recording them on the Woodland Trust’s Ancient Tree Register can we reduce the risk that they will be cut down. Ian and Bruce recorded these whenever they came across them on their walks around South Wales. On one occasion Ian spotted a large Oak near Tretower.
The tree was measured and photographed, and it turned out to have been unrecorded up to that point. An Ancient, pollarded Oak proved to be one of the oldest in Wales. A WWG member subsequently mentioned reading a book called Running for the Hills by Horatio Clare in which he describes growing up on a farm near Tretower where there was a massive Oak. It turned out to be the same tree, so it had appeared in literature but had never been officially located and described. At over 9 metres in girth and many hundreds of years old, it was thanks to Ian’s eagle eyes that the tree was registered and celebrated.
So, the legacy is there. Orchards that should be good for 100 years and a tree that could have witnessed the times of Owen Glendower.
We shall be covering the topic of funding and what we spend it on in the next issue but meantime our grateful thanks to Glenys and Mike and everyone else who supported the event for raising the amazing sum of over £1,200 for WWG at the Village Show