Erin McDaid of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust speaks about Farndon Willow Holt nature reserve next to River Trent

In over 30 years at Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, I’ve become attached to many of our nature reserves and have fond memories down the years, writes Erin McDaid, of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust.

A site I’m particularly fond of is Farndon Willow Holt, right next to the River Trent in the village, where we have recently harvested a crop of cricket bat willows.

The latest harvesting brought back many memories, not least the difficulties we had in getting the previous crop felled 20 or so years ago.

Having taken on the site in the mid-1980s, after the death of the previous owners, Leaver and Brenda Howitt, the trust set about restoring this former working willow holt, including a collection of willow species that the Howitts — acclaimed botanists who authored the last full account of the county’s flora back in the 1960s — had curated at the site.

Identifying the dozens of different willow species and hybrids among the tangled mess of aging and fallen willows was no easy task.

In the end, it was only possible thanks to the commitment and determination of Mark Woods, who was then working as a lecturer at Nottingham Trent University’s Brackenhurst Campus.

Mark’s work, alongside students, helped to pick out the various types of willow — some grown for their suitability for basket making, others for their colourful stems or their ornamental form.

Once identified, cuttings were taken and propagated for future replanting at the willow holt and a ‘mirror’ collection was created at the campus to help provide future security for the collection.

Alongside efforts to restore the collection, work began to clear fallen trees and plans were made to harvest a crop of mature cricket bat willows along the riverside.

These were already well beyond the standard age for harvesting and work was further delayed by the site, along with the rest of the countryside, being deemed out of bounds during the foot and mouth outbreak in 2001.

Subsequent flooding and wet winters made accessing the site to fell and extract the timber without causing excessive damage impossible.

It seemed that fate was not on our side.

The frustration of the delays and fragile ground conditions even had us considering whether we could transport the timber via the Trent; but eventually a contractor was chosen and plans put in place to finally harvest the crop.

However, the lengthy delays and a change of personnel at the trust led to an embarrassing faux pas where world-renowned Nottingham based cricket bat manufacturer Gunn & Moore felt they had missed out on utilising the crop.

Thankfully, after a quick conversation with the chosen contractors, JS Wright & Sons of Essex, a regular supplier to Gunn & Moore, a perfect compromise was found — with a supply of the timber in the form of carefully shaped and seasoned ‘clefts’ going to the company after all.

For a site that already had a fascinating history as a working willow holt, supplying willow for Newark’s thriving basket-making industry and as home to a collection of willows from across the world, the appointment of JS Wright’s added another serendipitous layer.

When they harvested the trees, it transpired that the company had originally planted the crop for the Howitts decades before — only to lose track of them until the trust got in touch!

Due to the age of the trees and the lack of management as a crop for harvesting, there was some trepidation as to how useful the timber would be, but to everyone’s delight, the trees provided a significant amount of high-grade timber for bat production.

As well as taking a supply to turn into bats for professional cricketers, Gunn & Moore kindly produced a couple of bats that they donated to the trust to mark the harvest.

This provided me with yet more memories, having watched the clefts, provided by JS Wright, progress through Gunn & Moore’s state-of-the-art factory in the company of England Test bowler Ryan Sidebottom.

After the harvest, JS Wright replanted the site with high-quality young willows and has subsequently helped us establish a crop at our Idle Valley Nature Reserve.

Unlike the crop we inherited, the trees planted at Farndon were carefully tended by our Nature Recovery Team, and we are delighted that a site with links to the county’s willow growing history is once again being regularly harvested to not only help support the craft of cricket bat making, but also to help offset the costs of caring for such a fascinating site.