Countryman Diary - September 2011
Good news from Otterburn
There’s better news from the Forestry Commission regarding the eastern side of the country in Northumberland where one of the biggest habitat creation schemes of its kind in England is set to take root.
FC has linked-up with Natural England, Defence Estates, Northumberland National Park and farmers Matt and Judith Ridley to back a major project which will see 500 acres (200 ha) of new native woodland take root on possibly England’s remotest farm at Blindburn, near Otterburn.
Wildlife will get a huge boost, say experts, including insects, small mammals and birds like the endangered black grouse. FC have pledged grants of £900,000 over the next thirty years to plant more than 200,000 trees and shrubs, and help erect 51⁄2 miles (9 km) of wooden fencing to protect saplings from grazing livestock.
The project is one of the biggest supported under the English Woodland Grant Scheme in recent years.
Richard Pow, from FC’s North East region, says:
“Less than one per cent of the Northumberland National Park is native woodland, so there’s major work to be done in expanding this incredibly valuable habitat. This scheme will lock up carbon as trees grow, and provide a rich mosaic of habitats, including moorland and wet woodland.
“It’s extremely unusual to be able to get such a large scheme off the ground. But this investment will help create a greener and more sustainable future for our children.”
End-of-summer resolution
Forgive me if you’ve read or heard this David Attenborough quote elsewhere, but it’s worth repeating:
“If you are not very careful, the natural world is something you do on your holidays — you visit a nature reserve in the summer here or overseas and that is the end of it.
“But it is not like that. The natural world is around us all the time in our houses and gardens.
“And it is not just a question of standing back and looking at it in a passive way, it is about getting involved in an active way — and that transforms your attitude.”
As the summer holidays draw to a close, it’s worth reminding ourselves and our children that we can do a great deal all year round to help Nature and the countryside. Make an end-of-summer resolution now: get in touch with a local wildlife trust or other organisation and continue the momentum you may have started over the last few weeks.
Overheard
In the village street the talk was between two five-year-old girls.
“Have you got that chewing gum that I lent you?”
“No, I’ve lost it.”
“Well, you’ll have to find it, ’cos it’s our Robert’s”
Paul Jackson
Editor
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