The Grapevine Magazine

Lewknor Church of England Primary School, in partnership with Natural England, has got into the spirit of giving this year by adopting a sheep from the Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve in Oxfordshire. The after-school nature club, organised by the Lewknor Gateway Project gained a new member in late November, when they met the sheep for the first time. Pupils came up with the name Charlie for their new Speckle-faced Beulah and fed him his favourite sheep nut snacks.

Site Managers from Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve illustrated what a year in the life of their woolly friend is like. They were also given a map of the reserve to take back to school with them so they can track Charlie's movements around the reserve by pinning his picture to the map. They will continue to visit Charlie throughout the seasons, coming back to watch his feet being trimmed in the spring and they will see him being sheared in the summer. Jenny Crook, Community Liaison Officer for Natural England, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, said: "This is a great opportunity for the children to learn about the lives of the sheep on their local reserve, and their role as an essential conservation tool." "There is no substitute for real 'hands-on' learning like this: as well as the obvious learning about ecology, conservation and caring for living things, the children also gain tremendously from the experience of working outside in the natural environment." Charlie is being kept on the nature reserve along with over 300 other sheep to help manage the beautiful chalk grassland by keeping the grass short and controlling shrubs. As well as being monitored by the children he is checked over daily by site staff and volunteers. If you would like to know more about the reserve, educational visits or volunteering please contact Jenny Crook on 01844 351833

Last Summer we were delighted to be awarded the Eco-Schools bronze award. The award recognises our commitment to becoming more sustainable and the progress we have made so far. Work with the Lewknor Chiltern Gateway Project has inspired this change in our thinking and the project's work in school continues to take a lead in all things environmental.

A weekly nature club, monthly 'eco-assemblies' and work in class all provide opportunities for pupils to learn about caring for the environment. Here some of the pupils have listed their Top Ten Tips for Being Green' and Laura has written a personification poem on the subject. The photographs are taken from our Eco-calendar photographic competition at the end of last year.

Top Tips

1. Take your old toys, clothes and books to charity. Make sure they are in good condition.
2. Try to use local food suppliers, like greengrocers and butchers.
3. Make as much use of each piece of paper as you can.
4. Walk and cycle whenever you can.
5. Don't leave things on standby.
6. Exercise as much as you can.
7. Don't leave taps running.
8. Turn off the light when you leave a room.
9. Always compost your fruit and vegetables peel.
10. Always recycle tins, cardboard and paper.

The Sea's Story

Laura

at Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve - A Success Despite the Weather!

You may have seen the advert for the Eco Trail by Lantern Light in the December issue of Grapevine. The idea proved popular and around 150 people booked to attend the joint event between Natural England, the Lewknor Gateway Project and the Chilterns Conservation Board. The weather was poor all weekend but cleared slightly for the walk, around 60 people turned up for the event on the 9th December, wrapped up warm and clutching torches and lanterns. The visitors met in Lewknor after the well attended Christingle service at the church and embarked on a short walk up to the nature reserve.

On arrival people were greeted by staff from Natural England, given an "Eco Passport" and led to their first "Checkpoint" on their Eco Trail, which asked a simple quiz question to fill in on their passport and gave directions to the next checkpoint. The Eco Trail was a self led trail so people could follow the directions and go round the walk at their own pace, there were 11 checkpoints in all, lit up by beautiful lanterns. Some were quiz questions on a variety of features of the site, ranging from fungi to deer skulls, whilst others had a little more going on. Children and adults alike learnt about bird songs and bats and enjoyed singing along to the music of the mysterious Green Man!

Afterwards, the walkers headed back to St Margaret's Church in Lewknor where they received a warm welcome from the Lewknor Gateway Project team, with homemade soup, bread and cakes. The church is home to a mini visitor centre for the local area, with displays about the village and the surrounding countryside.

One visitor commented "We use the nature reserve more than most, but today we increased our knowledge of the place by about 500%! The Lantern Trail was well organised, educational and fun!"

Look out for more events like this on Aston Rowant Nature Reserve in 2008, they will be hosting a series of free events to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the reserve.

If you would like to find out more about events on the site or would like to enquire about volunteering to help with events or practical conservation, please contact Jenny Crook, Community Liaison Officer on 01844 351833.

Garden Magic:

How do plants get their names? Sometimes it's obvious. The plant takes its name from the discoverer, the first person to bring it to the attention of (western) science. Or its name evolves as a descriptor used by people for whom it had a value or meaning. And sometimes the stories that surround the naming of a plant become overlain with others and the actual origins become misty with time.

So it is with witch hazel (Hamamelis). Some say that witch hazel was named as such by early settlers in North America who recognised healing qualities in the plant. They may also have used it for divining water. Both activities that have in the past been associated with the 'black arts'. Another view is that 'witch' may come from the middle English 'wiche', meaning pliable, but who really knows? What matters is that you can achieve a little of your own magic and trick the eye of the neighbours and the rest of the family into thinking that spring has come, in your garden at least. Flower-filled branches and wonderful, heady scents will draw footsteps into the garden that would otherwise stay firmly indoors.

Getting back to plant names, it's easy to see where breeders are coming from when they give new varieties names. Take Hamamelis x intermedia 'Sunburst'. This variety produces large, pale yellow flowers in mid-late winter, just when they're most welcome. Hamamelis x intermedia 'Pallida' produces flowers in clusters at the same time, as does 'Vesna'. Generally, yellow flowers are most fragrant in witch hazel, but Hamamelis x intermedia 'Diane' is unlikely to disappoint on this or any other point. 'Diane', as well as producing intense red blooms which contrast fabulously with the bare branches of the plant, also delivers stunning autumn colour as the hazel-like leaves turn orange and purple. Witch hazel is as versatile as it is beautiful. Put it at the back of a wide border to add height, as well as winter and autumn colour from flowers and foliage. It's great as a specimen plant, or planted in groups. They're fully hardy and tolerate a range of typically encountered garden soils. They're happy over chalk if the soil is deep. Full sun or partial shade is fine, provided there is some protection from winds. Maintenance is minimal; just a tidy up with the pruners in late winter to keep the shape you want. Newington Nurseries, Nr Stadhampton, Oxon, OX10 7AW Tel 01865 400533www.newington-nurseries.co.uk

Choral Your local choral society are hard at work for their nest production in Dorchester Abbey on Saturday 15th March at 7.30 pm. J S Bach drew on material he had written over the previous 20 years to assemble his great B minor Mass in 1748-9. A towering masterpiece, it has so many great moments from the plaintive opening 'Kyrie' to the bell-like tolling of the triumphant 'Sanctus' that every choir gets excited at the prospect of singing it! It has been described as 'the greatest work of music of all ages and all peoples'. We have assembled a distinguished group of soloists who have all sung with us before, most recently Nicholas Warden, who as 'Elijah' was described in the Oxford Times as giving 'an authoritative and heartfelt account of the title role, singing with tremendous power, conviction and assurance'. Local mezzo Elinor Carter has delighted us on many occasions, notably in Elgar's 'Dream of Gerontius'. Jane Sheriff and John Bowley complete this fine quartet. The Elgar Orchestra will, with the choir and soloists, be following the assured baton of Christopher Walker.

You can reserve the best seats for £12 per ticket — they will go fast so call Stephanie Martin on 01865 407395. Unreserved tickets for £10 are also available.

An exhibition about an architect who changed the face of Oxford is on display at Oxfordshire County Council's Oxfordshire Studies service in the Westgate Library. The display runs until 25 March 2008 and reveals the history behind the work of prolific Oxford-born architect Gilbert Gardner. Gardner, who lived from 1880 to 1955, designed schools, churches, houses, offices, pubs, factories and warehouses all over Oxford city and further a field.

Educated at St Ebbe's School and then at Oxford Technical School, an ancestor of Oxford Brookes University, Gardner became very well known between the Wars for the sheer variety of his work. Many of his buildings are still in daily use. He also had a mischievous sense of humour evident in his Adam and Eve bookplate, and in his cartoon vision of central Oxford in the 1960s with elevated walkways for pedestrians. This fascinating display of photographs, plans and memorabilia illustrates the richness of the County Council's Oxfordshire Studies collections which are available to all.

Oxfordshire County Council's Malcolm Graham is head of Oxfordshire Studies. He said: "Gilbert Gardner did much to shape the Oxford we know today and many of us, without necessarily being aware of it, are living, working, learning, praying or drinking in buildings he designed. He was described in 1943 as being short in stature but long on achievement and he deserves to be much better known."

Emma Midgley Communications Officer Corporate Core Oxfordshire County Council County Hall New Road Oxford OX1 1ND Tel: 01865 810190 Mobile: 0782 5521526 Fax: 01865 247805 Email: emma.midgley@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Terry Pratchett's 'Good Omens" was our book for December. It certainly proved a new experience for most of us but we were lucky that one member was an aficionado of his work and was able to provide a great deal of background information which helped to enlighten us about the author and the book.

For those unfamiliar with Pratchett's work it is mainly fantasy but is cleverly interwoven with satirical comment on contemporary themes so that, while superficially it can be read as a fast and furious adventure story, attending more closely to the dialogue and the development of characters pays dividends in appreciating the dark humour which is his trademark.

Shortly after we discussed the book, it was publicly announced that he was suffering from an early and rare form of Alzheimer's Disease. Typically, Pratchett on revealing this news said that he only wanted fans who were experts in brain chemistry to contact him about this.

Our next book is " The Spell of Winter" by Helen Dunmore, a very suitable title for late January. This will be followed by Anne Enright 's " The Gathering" which won the Mann Booker prize in October and then for the first time we have a book of short stories " Runaway" by Alice Munro for March

ECO SCHOOLS SILVER AWARD: ACTION PLAN & ASSEMBLIES

We have our first Staff Action Group meeting at the school on 7th February. We will be discussing the goals we want to work towards for 2008, building up to applying for our Silver Award in Summer 2008. Report on progress in next month's Grapevine; this will also be published on the school website at http://www.lewknor.oxon.sch.ukleco schools.htm

Nature Club: Spring Term:

We have a great programme arranged for Nature Club this term. We started on 14th January with a session about Climate Change and our hope in the growing awareness of solutions to environmental damage. This term we will be making hazel hurdle fencing in the churchyard, learning about bats, moths, marine life, badgers and winter wildlife, amongst other activities! The club is open to children from Years 3-6 and runs on a Monday, 3.30-5pm. If your child would like to join, please contact the school office for the appropriate letter.

PAST EVENTS: Lightbulb Library

We had a fun evening on Tuesday 27th November, in the run up to Christmas which now seems so long ago.We launched our Lightbulb Library, which is now available for all in Lewknor to make use of. What is the Lightbulb/ibrary? The Lightbulb Library is basically a big box, full of the latest energy saving lightbulbs in all sorts of shapes and sizes, to suit nearly every fitting. We sourced the Iightbulbs from Eco-St., an 'Eco shop' at Chinnor Garden Centre, with the help of Climate-X-Change, a great community based project on climate change based at Oxford University. To use the library, you simply sign it out for a few days, and take it home to try out the bulbs in your own fittings and decide which if any are best for you. You can then go along to Eco-St. to buy your bulbs, and get a 10% discount.

If you would like to borrow the Lightbulb Library, please do get in touch, by calling Jane on 01844 281 827 or emailing me at lane.pendlenton(a~googlemail.com.

CUBAN EVENING:

UPCOMING EVENTS:

HEDGE LAYING IN THE CHURCHYARD:

FRIENDS OF ASTON ROWANT NATURE RESERVE,

KNITTING PROJECT

• For those who know how to knit, and would like to contribute a square, please make them 30 stitches by 30 rows, garter stitch, using 3.25mm (No. 10) needles and double knitting wool. There will be a box in St. Margaret's in which to put your square, or please contact the project on 01844 281 827/ 01844 281 267. We plan to have a session later in the year to stitch the blanket together.
• For those who do not know how to knit, there may be a session with music, tea and coffee, and free instruction, in March, subject to interest. Further details in the March Grapevine!