Banbury mayor joins volunteer group in planting cherry tree on historic path

Mayor Fiaz Ahmed joined the volunteers from the Salt Way Activity Group (SWAG) last Wednesday (May 17) to commemorate the group's five years of maintaining the path.

SWAG works alongside the county council in maintaining the two-mile stretch of path that was previously used to transport salt from the West Midlands to the south.

The group of about 12 volunteers have planted around 600 trees along the path and maintain the hedges and verges with the traditional scythe to keep in tradition with the historic path, which dates back to medieval times.

The cherry tree was purchased by the group from a local company, Heritage Fruit Company, and should provide fruit for people to pick and eat in years to come.

Chairperson of SWAG David Russell said: "We prefer to use scythes over strimmers as they are much more friendly and less noisy, and people are more likely to stop and have a chat with us. We get a lot of support from the local people when we are working on the path.

"Our aims are to keep the Salt Way open and as natural a feature as possible, as well as to improve it as a habitat and make it more attractive to users. We are creating wildflower meadows, coppicing, laying hedges, cutting verges, and removing fallen and dangerous trees.

For more information on the Salt Way Activity Group, visit their website at https://www.saltwayactivitygroup.org.uk/