Volunteer thank you and Wassail

Volunteer Appreciation and Wassailing!

On 22nd Jan, MHT staff, trustees and neighbours met to thank the volunteers for all their hard work transforming the orchard behind Millpond as part of their wider programme. As part of the event, traditional wassail activities took place to bless the orchard. 
The MHT team donned traditional costumes, and finding their wassailing voices, sang songs to bless the orchard and encourage a good harvest for the coming year. This old tradition, of visiting orchards to sing and dance has been kept alive in cider-producing counties such as Herefordshire, Dorset and Devon as well as others.
The event was brought to life in vibrant colour and music by the wonderful beacon Morris group, who accompanied the attendees with colour and energy in their dance routines. We're very grateful for their participation!
The volunteers who kindly give their time to help with habitat management throughout the Hills and Commons had been working to remove scrub and help the orchard come back to life, just one of many projects they have been helping on over the past year. Our wardens have a rolling calendar of tasks for volunteers and we always try to keep things varied and interesting! We will shortly be reviewing our volunteering opportunities and there may be space to get involved this year - keep an eye on our posts and website for more info.