8 minute read
Local People
so much better, also with glass I love the fact you can manipulate it to have texture, it’s contoured, not fl at.’ She particularly likes to take on commissions, and said this type of work was good for ‘thinking outside the box’. Since the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic she has also tried to use art in a positive way. ’Because of my health problems I can’t go back to nursing but I wanted to do something, so I made lots of little glass hearts and sent them to Derriford ICU,’ said Lou. ‘It was just a very small thing but I felt I wanted to do something - give them a thank you, a little keepsake. The NHS is suff ering but a lot of the charities are too. ‘Last year I made a lot of glass elephants, sold them and ‘Last year I made a lot of glass elephants, sold them and gave the money to St Luke’s. It wasn’t a lot, I am only a little one man band, but I’d like to do something again this year for them.’ Lou works maybe ten hours a week on her glasswork, which is available to buy at several South West galleries - she’s also a regular at Tavistock Arts Market. ‘When I’m not doing it I am still thinking about it, because it’s a passion, it’s hard not to do it,’ said nature and dog lover Lou. ‘I won’t take any credit for doing the garden but I love to enjoy it when I can,’ she said. ‘We get deer in the woods, we have badgers, we have foxes - it feels very rural. And probably because I’m surrounded by them, I am fascinated by trees - each season off ers a new perspective, each is so beautiful.’ n
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Tree planting survey launched
People in the parish of Shaugh Prior are being urged to join thousands around the UK and plant a tree in 2021. The community is hoping to kick start a local tree planting initiative with a new online survey aimed at identifying areas suitable for tree planting and individuals interested in getting involved. Nick Wassell, chairman, Shaugh Prior Parish Council, said: ‘Planting a tree is an extremely positive move to fi ght climate change, improve biodiversity and soil quality and enhance the beauty of the countryside. In 2021, we’re looking to work with the local community to plant more trees for the benefi t of our area and our planet. ‘The survey is a starting point, allowing us to determine which areas of land in the parish might be suitable for tree planting, whether that’s someone’s garden, fi eld or a public space. ‘Once we have this information, we’ll be looking to identify funding and partner organisations to help us increase the number of trees in the locality.’ Tree planting was one of the key initiatives identifi ed by the Shaugh Prior Climate Emergency Group, which was formed in early 2020 to plan local activities to help address the climate emergency. Anyone wishing to get involved with tree planting in Shaugh Prior parish is asked to complete the survey at bit.ly/ShaughPriorTreePlantingSurvey or using the QR Code to the left. For those without internet access, please call ✆ 01752 698305.
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Female beaver released into Forder Valley
The fi rst beaver in Plymouth for more than 400 years fi nally has a companion. The female Eurasian beaver arrived in Plymouth in mid-January and was immediately released in a specially designed re-wilding enclosure near Poole Farm. Remarkable footage shows her meeting with her companion, who was released into the enclosure last November, for the very fi rst time. Having left her cage, she explored the pond for several minutes, before the male emerged from his lodge and the couple swam together. Like her male friend, the new arrival weighs around 20kg and comes from the Tay Catchment in Scotland. The pair will be monitored in the hope their actions will reduce fl ooding further downstream and create habitats for wildlife in the Bircham Valley. It is hoped they will breed - although around 20% of beavers are solitary, most are sociable and prefer to live in family groups where they build dams, ponds and live in lodges together. The introduction of the new arrival continues the work of the Green Minds project, which is creating more spaces for wildlife and nature in diff erent pockets around Plymouth and encouraging more people to connect with nature. As well as being charismatic, beavers are fascinating creatures as they engineer their surroundings by felling trees, damming sections of river and creating a network of canals. They also create wetland habitats which are great for birds, fi sh and invertebrates and they also ‘slow the fl ow’ of water during and after rainfall that can help reduce fl ooding downstream. The Green Minds Project will monitor two very similar rivers – Bircham and Seaton - to see how the beavers are able to make positive impacts. They can be compared with the Seaton stream which has similar characteristics. Beavers’ work can also lead to improved water quality and quantity and store carbon in a really effi cient way to help combat the climate emergency. The Green Minds Project has been working with partners including leading beaver experts at Devon Wildlife Trust, re-wilding specialist Dereck Gow and Roisin Campbell–Palmer, the UK’s top beaver ecologist, to ensure the welfare of the beavers. Although the construction of the Forder Valley link road is close to the re-wilding enclosure, experts believe beavers are ‘pretty resilient’ to disturbance and also nocturnal. Their lodges are well insulated to sound and the enclosure is large enough for them to move away from noise. To fi nd out more go to www.greenmindsplymouth. com or www.facebook.com/natureplymouth and www. twitter.com/NaturePlymouth
Promoting the ‘farm to fork’ ethos
Paul and Sandy McEvoy have come up with a simple yet very eff ective concept, helping to demystify the secrets of raising hens and enable people to enjoy their own freshly laid eggs. Watching a newborn enter the world is one of the most amazing feats of nature you can witness. The ethos of The Hen House Farm has grown out of a desire to share such experiences with others and help them take time out of busy schedules to reconnect with the wonders of the outdoors. Paul and Sandy have put together a range of hire packages for incubators, coops and hens, allowing complete novices to fi nd out whether this taste of The Good Life is for them. If it isn’t they just hand everything back, but if the experiment goes well and they decide to invest in their own coop, then the farm off ers a discount on a starter kit, including a bespoke coop along with
Citizens Advice launches video booth service
Citizens Advice South Hams is extending its reach into the local community with a new remote service. Concerned that those most in need of their services were missing out, the local charity has placed fi ve video booths everything else needed to get going. They also sell a large range of beautiful, vaccinated hens in large and bantam varieties all year round. As a teacher Paul understood the value of bringing the ‘outside’ into the classroom and off ers classroom incubation hire to local schools, helping to educate children on the ‘farm to fork’ concept through hands-on activities. The Hen House Farm incubation hire-package has also popular with families and even care homes, arousing huge interest as residents gathered round to share stories from their youth about keeping hens.
within community centres. These video booths will enable those who have diffi culties accessing the internet to use a laptop and be connected directly to a trained Citizens Advice adviser. The video booths are in partnership with local food banks and community organisations and will provide access to free, confi dential, and impartial advice while there remain restrictions on face-to-face appointments. There are currently fi ve video booths up and running. Please call or email to make an appointment. The closest one to readers of Plym Links is at the Ivybridge Trussell Trust Food Bank, Wednesdays 10am – noon, call ✆ 01803 659 734 or email reception@southhamscab.org.uk The other video booths are at Kingsbridge, Totnes, South Brent and Dartmouth.
‘CLUCK’ & COLLECT
HENS FOR SALE
PRE PAID ‘CLUCK’ & COLLECT SERVICE AVAILABLE TO KEEP YOU COVID SAFE AND AVOID QUEUES
• HENS 4 SALE • HEN & COOP HIRE • KEEPING HENS STARTER KITS • RAISE YOUR OWN CHICKS (INCUBATOR HIRE)
POULTRY PRODUCTS FOR FAMILIES • SCHOOLS CAMP SITES • CARE HOMES
