Seasons Greetings

Activities for all over the Christmas holidays

Some ideas for nature-themed things to do in or near the villages or at home during the Christmas holidays from the Abbey Fields team.

  • Outdoors

Mistletoe Survey

We asked you to help us survey mistletoe last year - you can see the village-wide map below. The question that we are trying to resolve this year is whether there is mistletoe in other parts of the village which last year’s survey did not capture. In other words, is there mistletoe in the north and east that was not surveyed last year?

So we need your help to check these gaps because we want to find all the mistletoe plants growing in Histon and Impington! It is very easy to join in our survey - we have only four simple questions for you to answer! You can see the results of the survey here.

Mistletoe only grows on trees where a seed has been stuck to a branch by a bird. It forms large “balls” of green which are especially visible on bare branches in winter. To find out more about mistletoe and the strange lifestyle of this parasitic plant see our website.

It is Christmas and there are quite a few traditions associated with mistletoe, often featuring kissing. So you might enjoy going out to look for mistletoe.

Mistletoe is easy to spot once you have got your eye in. For example, this tree by the Peace Memorial has several plants high up on its branches.

Download our survey instructions (with pictures of what to look out for) and recording sheet here.

The mistletoe survey can be done over several outings, but we would like your results by 15th January 2024.

Photograph or scan your completed forms and email them, and any photographs that you want to share, to us at sitemanagers@abbeyfields.online

We will put the updated village-wide mistletoe map on our website once we have checked all the information that you send to us.

Remember we would like your results by 15th January 2024.

Try Moon gazing

There is a new moon on Tuesday 12th December. One lunar cycle lasts almost (but not quite) 30 days so over the Christmas and New Year holidays, if the nights are clear, you will have the chance to observe almost a full cycle.

Tuesday 19th December is a ‘quarter’ day starting the second quarter (or phase) of a lunar cycle – so 19th December is exactly half way between the new moon and the next full moon - which means that the moon is waxing or getting fatter for the next quarter.

The full moon will be on Wednesday 27th December. There are no Blue moons or other quirky names in this cycle. You can find out much more from this website.

Do a mini sculpture trail in our green spaces

Start at Homefield Park and spend an hour enjoying the green spaces as you follow this short walk where you can see the work of three artists on permanent display. Two of the artists were specially commissioned to prepare public art in keeping with the place where it is now displayed. The three works by Tony Hillier were all moved from his garden on the Cottenham Road and placed on public display.

Homefield Park entrance gates: artist Tim Ward of Circling the Square worked with the community and local schools on the design which has a nature theme.

Homefield Park: Tony Hillier’s ‘Man with dog’ is now displayed just behind the gate under magnificent plane trees.

Clay Close Pocket Park: Tony Hillier’s ‘Andy Capp’ is now the central feature of this small green space.

Merrington Place: The developer commissioned Matthew Lane Sanderson to provide art and street furniture linked to the historical use of the site as Unwin’s seed trial grounds. All the works relate to seeds such as the hollyhock seed at the junction with New Road are thus linked to Unwins.

The Green: Tony Hillier’s ‘Spider’ used to grace his chimney but now is clambering up one of the large horse chestnuts beside the bridge over the brook.

Make a bug hotel for your garden

This activity was designed by the RSPB and this link gives suggestions of what to do.

Why not take a picture or two of your finished bug hotel and post them on the Abbey Fields Preservation Facebook page so that we can all see how well you did!

Go to RSPB Fen Drayton Lakes

How about going to this fascinating nature reserve by public transport or bike (and save yourself a parking charge). The Cambridge Busway passes right through the centre of the reserve and there is a request bus stop. And of course, it is a traffic free route for cycling all the way.

Get all the details about the reserve and what you can expect to see here.

In summer this is a really good place to see dragonflies and damselflies.

In the winter months this is a top spot to watch ducks all in their breeding season plumage and already starting to pair up.

Visit the Cambridge University Botanic Garden

The Botanic Garden is a great place for families to spend time together and explore. Learn about the importance of plants and plant science, horticulture and the joy of gardening. The Botanic Garden is easily reached with public transport or a bike.

Check out their website for details of opening times, ticket prices, site map and events.

Pictures to colour

Download three pictures to colour in here.

Word search puzzles

Try our two word search puzzles. Download the PDF here.

Make a bat mask

An easy mask to make at home – be a more realistic BATMAN!

This activity was designed by the Bat Conservation Trust and provides templates and instructions for masks of three species of bat present in the UK: common pipistrelle, brown long eared bat, and Daubenton’s bat.

We have limited information on bats around the village and for Long Meadow and Croft Close Set-aside, but pipistrelles are definitely present.

To find out more about pipistrelle bats, their life style and habits and what each sounds like, check out our website.

Why not take a picture or two of your finished masks and post them on the Abbey Fields Preservation Facebook page so that we can all see how well you did!

Find these six trees

Can you correctly match the tree with its location? Download the PDF here.

All SIX trees are to be found in the village in one of the public open spaces – can you identify which tree goes where? Maybe you recognise all of them right away, but maybe you will need to go out to check that you have the right answers.

You can find the answers here.

Quiz Answers

Find this tree: A=6, B=5, C=4, D=2, E=1, F=3.