Friends of Big Wood Nature Reserve
Newsletter - June-July 2026
Thank you for being a
Volunteer of Friends of Big Wood.
This is a special thank you to the wonderful Big Wood volunteers who help manage and protect the wildflower glades in Big Wood, which are so important for biodiversity and plant succession management. During recent ongoing plant surveys, our botany volunteers were delighted to record new wildflower species emerging in the glades, including a number not previously recorded in Big Wood! Well done to all who volunteered and we look forward to seeing you at the practical conservation activity mornings later this year.
Please note that the date for the Tree & Spider Walk with Edward Milner of the London Natural History Society has had to be changed to Saturday 25th july, 10:30am.
If you want to join this walk, please either email friendsofbigwood1@gmail.com or Lotte Rasmussen directly on lotte@boyen.co.uk or text her on 07458-322-710. We ask for a £5 donation to help cover the costs - under 16s go free.
For further specific updates on volunteer events, feel free to
join Friends of Big Wood Volunteers WhatsApp group,
or contact 07712 704 164,
Please also take note of the volunteer handbook, link below.
Friends of Big Wood Membership Renewals
Please renew your Friends of Big Wood membership for 2026 if you haven't had a chance to do so yet. We need you! Our heartfelt thanks to most of you who have already renewed, including your kind donations.
Please also signpost your local friends and neighbours to visit our website and encourage them to become Friends of Big Wood, to help support our irreplaceable ancient woodland.
You can renew easily by following this link, or the one in your Membermojo reminder email.
Any questions, contact friendsofbigwood1@gmail.com
Thank you! We wouldn't be able to look after Big Wood without the support of our Friends!
Volunteer Handbook
The Barnet Greenspaces Volunteering Handbook includes straightforward health and safety guidance to ensure that all volunteers remain safe while working in the borough's green spaces. If you take part in the activity mornings, please click on this Volunteer Handbook link and take note of the guidelines. Get in touch if you have any questions.
LITTER IN THE WOOD
Litter remains a problem and some of us regularly pick up litter as we go round the wood. If any one else wants to help and would like a litter picker, please contact us. We have a number of Friends who are regularly are picking up litter but please can all the Friends help to keep the wood clear of litter.
MORE ABOUT DEAD WOOD
We reported on the importance of dead wood. The official UK standard for healthy woodland habitat requires 20m3 of deadwood per hectare and most woodlands in the UK, including Big Wood, is below this level. It is important therefore that all dead trunks and fallen branches are left where they fall or are left standing.
A reminder that ageing trees and dead wood are vital for a healthy woodland habitat. A huge swathe of the woodland ecosystem relies on tree wear and tear- hollows, dead branches and fallen trees.
TREES INFO
There is a marvellous short clip about the management of oak trees and the importance of not compacting the roots in Kew Gardens following the great storm of 1987. Anyone who is interested click on the following:-
WEB SITE
Remember that all details are here on our web site so do signpost your local friends and neighbours to visit the site and encourage them join the Association and to be Friends Of Big Wood.
DATA PROTECTION
The Friends of Big Wood Organisation is aware of the new General Data Protection Legislation. Organisations such as ours, which keep a register of names purely for recreational reasons, are exempt from the new regulations. We would advise you all that the data stored is purely to enable us to provide information about Big Wood and no information will be passed to any third party. If, nevertheless, you would like your details deleted from the list, please email us
