A Litter pick along the Emm Brook is undertaken on the first Saturday of every month of the year.
The next litter pick will be on Saturday 7th February 2026 at 10.00 . Meet at Dragonfly Bridge to the rear of Morrisons Supermarket, Woosehill RG41 3SN at 10:00.
Please wear suitable clothing, footwear and gloves.Litter pickers and bags provided. Parking is available at Morrisons.
WOOSEHILL MEADOWS & EMM BROOK WORK PARTY CALENDAR– 2026
2026
JANUARY
Sat 3rd FOTEB Litter Pick
Fri 09th - Survey, Walk & Talk
Sat 24th - Work Party
FEBRUARY
7th - FOTEB Litter Pick
Sat 14th - Work Party
Fri 20th - Survey, Walk & Talk
MARCH
Sat 7th - FOTEB Litter Pick
Sat 14th - Work Party
Fri 20th - Survey, Walk & Talk
AGM 2026
This years AGM will be held on TBA at the Woosehill Community Centre, Emmview Cl, Wokingham RG41 3DA .
BIG GARDEN BIRDWATCH 2026
For more information on this years Big Garden Birdwatch
Click here
BALSAM BASHING 2026
The annual Balsam Bashing will be undertaken on the Emm Brook later in the year. Once the Balsam has come into flower.
The Three Amigos will walk the Emm Brook from Area 2 to Area 8 removing Himalayan Balsam as they go in the summer, a total distance of approximately 3.53 km or for those of us of a certain age 2.19 Miles.
MONTHLY BIRD WALKS AROUND DINTON PASTURES 2026
RSPB
The RSPB group runs “A Date With Nature” walk at Dinton Pastures
Country Park on the first Saturday morning of every month of
the year. These start at 9:00 am in the main car park (postcode
RG10 0TH), and finish by 12:30 pm. A donation of £2 per adult
(children free) is requested.
Car park charges at weekends are currently £2.30/hr
up to a maximum of £9.20 (for 4 hours or over).
This
Month on the Emmbrook
What to look for if you are out and about in
FEBRUARY
General
The month can be as harsh as any with snow and freezing winds.
However it is possible to spot hints of better things to come. Although spring is still several weeks away the first signs are there to see.
Birds
Flocks of small birds moving through the trees including Great and Blue Tits accompanied by Finches, Nuthatches and Treecreepers
are more easily visible in winter due to the lack of leaves on the trees. Their feeding has a real urgency .
A few snatches of birdsong on a cold day remind us that winter is not for ever. By February, the birds will have begun to sing in earnest and we can think about looking forward to spring.
Winter songsters are among those species that hold territories through the winter. Robins are one of the most vocal; they are unusual because both male and female hold their own territories in winter and both sing in their defence.
Female song thrushes sometimes hold winter territories, but they do not sing. Wrens can be relied on for some powerful outbursts. Great tit, Nuthatch and Starling songs, while not tuneful, seem to me to be particularly cheerful.
Out in the fields around the Toutley Bridge area, fine days also yield bursts of song from the Skylarks. And the mournful hoot of a Tawny Owl, heard as we lie warmly in bed, shows that the night is not dead.
You may also be lucky enough to hear and see a Great- spotted Woodpecker drumming against a tree trunk in Riverside Walk.Great spotted Woodpeckers will start drumming in January as they establish their territories and attract a mate! Pairs will be monogamous during the breeding season but will change their partner each year!
Other Wildlife
Frogs are still emerging from their wintering hiding places and move towards their chosen breeding ponds.
Plants
& Trees
Hedgerows along side the Emm show little sign of life other than the Hazel catkins. Its yellow dangling catkins which are the male flower spikes (or inflorescences)
. Instead of using insects, lured by bright colours, scent or nectar, to do their pollinating these flowers instead use the power of the wind to blow pollen from the catkins
to the inconspicuous female flowers, which resemble a tiny shock of red hairs protuding from the tip of the bud.
In woodlands the most obvious leaves to emerge are those of the Cuckoo Pint (or Lord and Ladies).
Their leaves push up through the leaf litter furled up but then open out once above ground.
Lesser Celandine (Ranunculus ficaria) is one of the first flowering plants to appear at the end of the winter (February to May). The plant itself is small (5-30cm tall) with dark, heart-shaped leaves
The flowers, which appear on a short stalk, form a carpet of yellow stars in woodland, under hedgerows, in ditches and along streams.
Lesser Celandine is an important early nectar source but, in wet and windy weather, the petals close.
