The large oval pond at Ruskin Park, which was once an ornamental pond, is a key feature of the park, but in recent years it had become silted up and was in need of significant restoration. There were some over-hanging tree branches and there was a large amount of leaf litter in the pond. On the banks the sparse vegetation predominantly consisted of non-native species. In the centre of the pond the island supported large amounts of vegetation which was in need of clearance.
In October 2019 Froglife undertook the following works to oval pond:
- The vegetation surrounding the pond was cut back; willows and other shrubs pollarded/coppiced.
- The vegetation on the island was coppiced and the logs stacked into neat habitat piles.
- Overhanging tree branches were removed allowing significant amounts of light to reach the pond.
- Excess leaf litter was removed from the pond.
- Any excess vegetation was piled into habitat stacks.
Island vegetation has been coppiced and logs piled into wildlife habitats Pollarded trees and shrubs
See below for a testimonial of our work at Ruskin Park:
“We have always enjoyed a productive relationship with Froglife in terms of improving our parks and open spaces so they are better for biodiversity and people’s access to nature, and the London T.O.A.D. was no exception.
The activities undertaken in our sites as part of the project, including improvements to the ponds in Ruskin Park as well as new information trails in other locations, have had a visible impact upon protecting and enhancing habitats not just for common toads but other wildlife species too. The commitment and professional expertise of the Froglife staff and volunteers involved in the project has been exceptional.”
2021 Updates
Above are images of Oval Pond as of summer 2021!