"At the end of the day your hands and feet should be dirty, your hair messy and your eyes sparkling." (Shanti)

SWAMPERS in action on a cool evening in July

It's been a while ... the long, hot summer has meant, despite our careful monitoring from a distance due to the extreme heat (as well as the flying, stinging, biting things) the team from S.W.A.M.P. haven't physically tackled the invasive Crassula in Morston Pond.

Morston Pond - mid July 2026

With thankfully cooler weather on Monday evening, the team set about getting back to the task, removing exposed Crassula by hand (and/or hand tool), literally on hands and knees. One benefit of the lower water level meant that otherwise impossible to reach parts of the pond were accessible, thus making the task somewhat easier (if not, less fragrant!)

Heat is the natural enemy of Crassula, so we should be somewhat thankful for the period of sunshine for keeping the invasive plant in check (to a degree). One noticeable absence from the pond is the Parrot's Feather - another invasive plant we had plenty of until removed in one huge heap in the Autumn of 2024.

The SWAMP team hard at work

There's still enough water for our family of Mallards

Crassula removed ... (and the work to do)

The above image shows the southern side of the pond, and how Crassula needs to be removed while it's slightly damp to make life easier, and hasn't rooted in solid, dry earth or chalk.

Crassula removed ... (and the work to do)

The above image shows our work at the very centre of the pond ... a area in 'normal' times difficult to reach (as well as being slightly hazardous with both depth of water and softness of the Morston mud. This was an ideal opportunity for us to reach and remove the Crassula by hand with the easier access.

The results of our work ...

The team were all charged with the activity of the evening, declaring our efforts as a success! (Off to the pub, then!!!)

Don't forget to keep checking our website for all up-dates to our Biodiversity, Videos and Gallery pages, to follow our progress as we're well into our 5-year plan to eradicate invasive species and improve the environment for all.