Bamboozled . . . .

. . . . . by accident! A bunch of Dunollie volunteers went back this morning to cut the rest of the bamboo along the footpath known as The Witches. It was a very windy day, with light showers, so no picnic! As before, Neil from Edinburgh Zoo came over to take a van-load of bamboo back for the pandas. A huge amount was cut and heaved over the wall to be loaded into the van, but Neil found that so much of it was brown at the edges that he didn't want to take it, selecting only the greenest pieces. So the rest of it had to be heaved back over the wall where it will be chopped into small pieces with a hedge trimmer and left to rot down.

Apparently the pandas weren't as keen on it as first thought, and only ate it if it was mixed with other species. Fortunately it was discovered that the rhinos enjoyed it - they eat just about anything - so our efforts weren't wasted. They weren't wasted anyway, as the main purpose was to get rid of the bamboo, which we have! When it regrows later in the spring it will be carefully sprayed out as it's almost impossible to get rid of it otherwise.

After lunch, Ross, who manages Dunollie Woods on behalf of the Woodland Trust, came round to my house to dig up some spare hazels, which will go to Dunollie, as well as a load of ferns dug from my garden.

To complete the day Ross will be talking to our local Scottish Wildlife group on 'A Rainforest on your Doorstep'.