Wildlife Wellbeing Walks CIC

Winter walk – Fairfield Nature Reserve

rosjones1979 — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 11:25:40 +0000

A different perspective

January can be a tough month, and I found the last couple of weeks particularly hard (and with a stinking cold to cap it all off in the final days!). So it was lovely to get out on Saturday 24th with the group on this cold but sunny January morning. The stiff breeze felt like a welcome (if chilly!) way of blowing away some of the cobwebs.

We began the walk along the canal – the reverse of the way we usually go – to get a new perspective. This was very much the theme for the walk: seeing the same things from different viewpoints (more on that later).

As we walked along the canal, we appreciated the colours of the weeping willow, one of the first trees to show real spring colour, and most of the group were lucky enough to get a fleeting view of a kingfisher as it darted, low to the water around the corner at Aldcliffe.

Welcoming different perspectives

On entering Pony Wood we spent some time looking closely at hazel. It was interesting to discuss the different things we noticed, as well as the similarities. It can be so easy to get wrapped up in our own world view, so seeing things from someone else’s perspective increases our connection, and widens our horizons.

We then heard some noise in the trees and I realised this was a sound I knew from the South East; ring-necked parakeets! These gregarious and brightly coloured birds have been spreading north from releases in the home counties since the 1960s and have been very successful. My initial reaction was one of concern as these are considered an alien invasive species and can compete for food and resources with our native birds. But it’s not their fault.

Side note: Ring-necked or rose-ringed parakeets originate from tropical north Africa and the Indian sub-continent, with established populations across much of north-western Europe and elsewhere in the world. This is the UK’s only naturalised parrot species. There is evidence of competition for nesting sites (and fatal attacks) on the great noctule bat in Europe. It is also widely accepted that they aggressively compete for nesting sites with other birds, e.g. starlings, woodpeckers, owls and nuthatches. Whatever the effect of this bird, it’s here to stay, and on a cold and drab winter’s day, they certainly brought colour, noise and interest.

As we walked down through to the bottom of the wood we had wonderful views of a treecreeper (see Poetry Corner, below) and a close encounter with a jay (see image, right, by Chris Armstrong) which was noisily announcing its presence.

Image of a Jay (Garrulus glandarius) © by Chris Armstrong.

The jay is our most colourful member of the corvid (crow) family, and is associated with oak woodlands – they can be seen with a heavily filled crop (expandable pouch) in a mast (unusually large number of seeds) year!

Winter birds and the beauty of a mossy world

Moss (Grimmia sp.) on a wall at Fairfield Nature Reserve. Photo © by Ros Jones.

Mosses are remarkably well adapated to their environment. This species forms dense cushions which help to retain moisture and the long, white, hair-like tips to its leaves help to increase surface area for capturing moisture both from rainfall and dew/mist. The leaves will also curl inwards as it dries, preserving the last bits of moisture.

Grimmia are a common family of mosses, found on walls. Species can be tricky to identify from each other (some requiring microscopic examination of cell structure!).

We stopped for quite a while at the bottom of Pony Wood to look at the feeding tables, noticing that a section of the hedgerow has recently been laid. The cut scrub has been left in piles adjacent to the hedgerow, providing cover for the wintering birds coming to feed in the field.

The low tables that are regularly refilled with food (and the cage for smaller birds to exclude, e.g. pigeons and corvids) attracted a range of species, including chaffinches, blue tits, great tits, blackbirds, reed bunting and robins.

We stood for a couple of minutes, facing the warmth of the sun: in this spot we were quite sheltered from the cold wind, so it was a lovely moment. When we close our eyes, our sense of hearing comes more into focus, and it was lovely to listen to the blue tits in the trees above us, calling to each other.

As we moved on from the wood, we stopped and took a close look at some moss on the wall, marvelling at this miniature world and the tenacity of moss to survive some seriously harsh conditions.

Side note – I’ve been reading up quite a lot on mosses in Robin Wall Kimmerer‘s excellent book, Gathering Moss. Having studied botany 20-odd years ago and used moss test species in my PhD, it is lovely to come back to these remarkable organisms. They are so well adapted to drying out (see the New Year’s Day walk report for more information), but physics also plays a role in them retaining moisture as their stature means they sit beneath the boundary layer where the air is more still, warm and humid.

The last stretch of our walk, took us along the lane back towards either Willow Lane or the Orchard. This high-sided, sheltered stretch showed signs of the warm winter and early spring with cow parsley, cleavers, red campion and other species already well advanced.

Poetry Corner - Treecreeper

Treecreeper, treecreeper: it’s exactly what you do,
Creeping up trees, searching for food.
Little white bellies and cryptic brown backs,
Your feet & curved beaks help you find snacks.
You creep, like a mouse, ’til you reach the tree’s top,
Then with a ‘tseep’ to the base of the next one you drop.
Treecreeper, treecreeper, it’s exactly what you do.
It’s always a joy to catch sight of you.

Poem © by Ros Jones (05-02-2026).

Image of treecreeper, (right) © by Chris Armstrong

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New Year’s Day Sunrise Walk

rosjones1979 — Sat, 10 Jan 2026 10:32:18 +0000

A calm and mindful way to welcome 2026

This is always one of my favourite walks in the calendar: starting off by seeing the sun rise is a beautiful way to greet the year (I’m also not one for fireworks or late nights, so this definitely suits me better).

Having checked in with each other first, I invited the group to take notice of all the different scales with a poem I wrote (see Poetry Corner, below), an invitation to mindfully connect with the world around us.

This year dawned cold, crisp and bright as we gently wandered up from New Quay along Long Marsh Lane. We stopped to observe some black-headed gulls (it’s more of a chocolate brown) who are not yet in full breeding plumage so their heads appear patchy right now. They have red beaks and legs, are smaller than other gull species, and tend to be together in larger numbers. They also have a white leading (front) edge to their wings, which is quite distinctive in flight. After a few minutes observing, I noticed they were watching us too, so we moved on to leave them in peace.

A golden morning of beautiful birds

As we turned onto the cycle path at Quay Meadows we soon noticed a few birds and bird songs, and there was quite a lot of activity. On such a cold morning (and after an unseasonably warm start to winter), the birds were in need of food to help sustain them.

As we paused below the Priory to talk about the cemetery (it extends all the way down to the cycle path, although with fewer headstones on the steep hill), we heard a commotion above us and saw a sparrowhawk (like the female here, by Chris Armstrong, a local wildlife photographer). It landed briefly in a tree, before being chased off again, and we gained a glimpse of a second bird. I wonder if they are starting to pair up ahead of the spring?

Side note – In many bird of prey species, the female is significantly larger than the male. Why? As apex predators, they are reliant on availability of their prey, and, if they are competing with each other they are less likely to be successful. So, with different sizes, they occupy slightly different niches (in terms of prey size). The sparrowhawk shows one of the largest differences (dimorphism) in size between the sexes, with females u to 25% larger, and picking prey items up to 2.5 times larger. A study from 2021 (summarised in The Scotsman) indicated that females had a preference for wood pigeon, whilst the smaller (and therefore more agile) males took mostly sparrows (as their name suggests!) and starlings.

Shortly after this, as we continued on along the cycle path, I heard the call of a goldcrest, which suddenly appeared before us, low down in a shrub. For any keen birdwatchers out there, you’ll know that this is a pretty rare occurrence. Normally, these busily-active little birds are found high up in evergreen trees. So this was a particularly magical encounter.

Side note – not sure if this is apocryphal, but a quick internet search suggests that goldcrests were considered to be symbols of luck, fortune and even spiritual guides. True or not, I rather like the thought that this is how our year started!

After watching the goldcrest for a couple of minutes (close enough that we could see its crest without the aid of binoculars) we carried on along our walk, stopping to take a look at the river Lune near Millennium Bridge before continuing on up the path towards the Priory.

We concluded our walk taking time to notice what we could see on the wall at the bottom of the Priory steps. Spotting ferns, like this one (a species of polypody), mosses, lichens and ivy-leaved toadflax.

On New Year’s Eve I had been reading Gathering Moss by Robin Wall Kimmerer, and she described how mosses are unable to regulate their levels of water which is known as poikilohydry (unlike most ‘higher’ plants which are homoiohydric, i.e. able to regulate through means such as closing leaf pores to reduce water loss).

Side note – you may have heard the term poikilothermic in secondary school biology. It refers to animals that cannot regulate their temperature, such as reptiles. This is why snakes bask in the sun, to gather energy for the day ahead. Mammals and birds, however are homeothermic, able to regulate body temperature through e.g. panting and sweating or shivering.

For most plants, drying out completely would mean death, but for these little miracles of nature, it just means they go into suspended animation. They are unable to grow as they cannot photosynthesise, but can be revived with water decades after they have dried out.

This felt like a wonderful metaphor for going with the flow, and a lovely way to end our walk: I look forward to going more with the flow of nature and the seasons this year.

Happy New Year everyone.

Poetry corner - The Scales of Nature

The Scales of Nature are more varied than we know,
Think magnitude, song, physiology, metaphor.
Take notice enough to experience what’s there,
Outside of our heads in the wondrous world.
From atoms and cells, microbes and viruses,
Right up to the redwoods and whales.
Life inhabits niches, landscapes, and biomes,
What scales of size will you notice today?
There’s noise all around us in the natural world,
Singing, humming, buzzing, and rustling.
A wild orchestration that never ends,
What musical scales will you hear today?

In the overlapping structures that nurture and protect,
Leaves that are budding, fishes, snakes, seeds and more.
Life repeats patterns across kingdoms and species,
What anatomical scales could you see today?
The awesome, intricate, complex webs of life,
How tough, and yet delicate, how much can they take?
Can we, this one species, let them fall from our eyes,
These scales: before we tip their balance too far?

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The January Blues – real or imagined?

rosjones1979 — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 15:57:22 +0000

Is it really a thing?

The January blues are, indeed, a real thing with extensive writing and media coverage including a blog post by Circle Psychology Partners and an active discussion on The Jeremy Vine Show on Monday 5th January 2026.

Differing slightly from Seasonal Affective Disorder (or SAD) which may be classed as a form of clinical depression, and require treatment, the January blues are shorter in duration and may affect more people. This is especially true in times of financial hardship, the return to work after the festive season, and especially if you leave for work and return again in the dark.

It’s something that I have struggled with on and off for many years, especially when I have been working full time, and haven’t managed to get out on regular nature walks.

So, what can I do?

Whilst the ideal solution would be for us to do less over the winter months, and for some of us lucky enough to do so, this is hugely beneficial, it isn’t always practical. With the focus of this post being about January, here are some tips for the month ahead as to how you might combat the blues (adapted from other websites, see below for references):

Connect with other people – meet for a brew or a walk, and give yourself something to look forward to. It doesn’t have to be expensive, if this is a concern for you right now.
Keep active – this doesn’t have to mean setting unrealistic resolutions, it could be as simple as a 30 minute walk 3 times a week, getting off the bus a stop early, or going on foot instead of by car (where practical, of course).
Get some daylight – if you are able to get out for a walk, particularly if the day is sunny, this can help your body clock to adjust and produce more of the hormone melatonin, which helps us to sleep. Even getting out into natural light on a cloudy is beneficial. If possible, avoid bright lights before bedtime.
Allow downtime – we’re still in midwinter, which, if you observe nature, is still a time for less activity and preparing for the year ahead. For me, I’ve found that I need to pace myself and that it’s OK to say no to others. Quiet time with a book, journaling or practicing gratitude are all particularly nourishing activities at this time of year.
Set realistic goals – if you are wanting to make some changes (I’m not going to use the ‘R’ word!), the advice seems to be to set small, manageable goals and not to try and do too much at once. I know from my own experience that this just leads to overwhelm, procrastination and, ultimately, ditching them before I’ve really got started!

A great way to combine some of these is to get out on a walk with a friend or local group, but if that’s not possible, you can still connect with nature from the warmth of your home, even just observing the changing light throughout the day is a mindful exercise you can return to every couple of hours.

My favourite winter walks

I can be a bit fair-weather with my walking, especially when I am feeling tired and stressed (the times when I probably need it the most), yet I always find the benefit of getting out there, even if it’s just for half an hour.

Here are a few of my local favourites in the area:

Leighton Moss RSPB Reserve, Silverdale – I love that I can get the train there (and a discount in the cafe by showing I’ve come by public transport!). With a good mixture of hides and excellent facilities, this is a great place to observe the seasons.
Fairfield Nature Reserve, Lancaster – a local, regular walk for me and popular with families and dog-walkers. It has a great mixture of plants and some lovely bird species throughout the seasons. Quieter in winter, there are still many highlights, if you know where to look!
Freeman’s Wood, Lancaster – this one is a bit less well-known. Having been saved from development and purchased in trust for the community, this town green is a beautiful oasis next to an industrial estate! Near to the River Lune, you get all sorts of species in the woodland and, by walking just a bit further on, can also experience spectacles such as winter-feeding geese. There are accessible paths from the Quay into the meadow area.
Williamson Park, Lancaster – ever popular with families, this has wide, accessible paths, and facilities including toilets and hot drinks. A good place to see many of our resident bird species, the beautiful Fenham Carr Nature Reserve (near to the Ashton Memorial) has bird-feeders allowing excellent views of small birds. If it all gets a bit too cold, there is always the butterfly house for a quick warm-up!
Promenade, Morecambe – when the wind blows head-on, it can feel positively Arctic in temperature, but the sky-scapes, views to Cumbria and ever-changing Morecambe Bay estuary make it worth the chill-factor. It’s a great way to blow away the cobwebs at this time of year.

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Everything is Connected

rosjones1979 — Mon, 26 May 2025 09:18:53 +0000

It has been a while since I added a blog post onto the website, mostly because I have been fully focused on Wild Roots Nature Fest, so with the festival getting ever closer, it seemed like a good time to add a new post to explain a bit more about the festival and why it has taken so much of my time!

Outreach and community

I have been to Escape2Make, Quernmore Primary School, Lancaster 13th Scouts (Beavers group) and Carnforth Scouts (Beavers group) where children have had some creative fun colouring in images of a whole host of animals to create content for the Trail of Nature competition that will be in town from 9th to 30th June. I’ve learned a huge amount about plants and animals in our local patch, and more widely in the UK (did you know that we have over 350 species of cranefly in the UK, or 270 species of bees and 60 species of dung beetle? I certainly didn’t!).

Most of all, it has been wonderful to see children’s imaginations fired by creativity and curiosity. With questions like ‘do worms have brains?’ (yes, but simple ones) and ‘if swifts don’t land for 2-3 years once they fledge, how do they drink?’ (they drink when it’s raining or by swooping low over water and dipping with their beaks open).

Why 'Everything is Connected'?

This is a phrase that has kept popping up and the more I heard it, the more it resonated. The reason is that no single species lives in complete isolation (if you know of one, please let me know, I’d be fascinated to find out how that’s possible!), because we all have connections with other species. And yes, that includes us as humans. We eat plants, animals and fish; we breathe oxygen that has been released from plants; we drink water that has hosted countless species; our bodies host millions of microscopic organisms (from gut flora to things you’d rather not know about!); our actions impact on the natural world. We are a part of nature, even if we have lost our physical and/or emotional connection to it. And that’s why Wild Roots Nature Fest is happening. It’s a chance for us to reconnect (or deepen the connections we already have), whether directly through appreciation and understanding of individual species, or indirectly through exercise or arts.

Taking the oak tree as an example, it provides habitats for many species, including some of the other species that feature in the Trail of Nature: lichens grow on its trunk, branches and twigs; birds such as goldfinches and swifts may find suitable nesting sites; it will have associations with fungi that provide it valuable nutrients and when it dies, the fungi will break it down to release those nutrients back into the soil for other trees and organisms; worms will consume the dead leaves each year, taking nutrients for themselves, but also cycling them back to the tree and other organisms and improving the quality of the soil; hedgehogs and lapwings will eat those worms. So just from one species, we can see so many connections. And in some ways, we are connected to all of them, and they to each other, because all of these species live in Lancaster.

I hope that you will join us for Wild Roots and spend some time connecting with nature. The evidence of many scientific studies has shown the benefits, from the calming effect of the patterns in nature, to phytoncides that elicit a positive reaction in our brain chemistry & immunity, and the electrical grounding of walking barefoot on grass. By combining this with other activities such as exercise, singing, creative writing or making items from wood, our aim is to provide a range of complementary wellbeing activities so that everyone can find their connection.

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Hazel – December’s species of the month

rosjones1979 — Sun, 15 Dec 2024 10:59:00 +0000

Hazel – Corylus avellana

Think that there is nothing to see in winter out in nature? Think again! The trees around you might appear to be taking a long nap (or even looking a bit dead), but they are just taking a breather, preparing for new life in the Spring.

Hazel is a great species to be looking out for at this time of the year, with its yellow-green catkins hanging, waiting to emerge. In fact, last year I saw the first open Hazel catkins on Christmas Day! This is quite early (due to the mild conditions) as the normal flowering time is from late January, so this is evidence of our changing climate. The female flowers are much smaller, a crown of red hair-like structures (the styles or pollen tubes). See the image below so you know what to look for.

Each tree has separate male and female flowers (known as monoecious) but cannot self-pollinate. The hazelnuts are a great favourite of many animals, including dormice, and the nuts were also prized by people (and continue to be so), with trees being managed specifically – there are varieties known as ‘cobnuts’ grown specially on the green sand ridge in Kent, which typically have longer nuts.

Hazel has a long association with us humans, being coppiced and used for all sorts of purposes including furniture. The long poles it produces are great for pea sticks in the garden! Typically a hazel tree has a relatively short life (about 80 years), but when coppiced can lives for hundreds of years. Coppiced woodland is wonderful for nature (if managed well), creating a mosaic of different habitats for wild flowers, insects and other animals.

So, next time you are out on a winter walk, have a look for some coppiced hazel and see if you can spot the male and female flowers. Happy winter walking!

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Beech – November’s species of the month

rosjones1979 — Sun, 17 Nov 2024 14:57:56 +0000

Beech – Fagus sylvatica

I love beech trees… I shouldn’t have favourites, but this is definitely in my top 5! From the elegant, sweeping limbs to the perfection of its canopy in spring, summer and autumn. From the beautiful catkins to its knobbly beech mast and long, delicate leaf buds. Not to mention that its trunk looks like an elephant’s foot (and who doesn’t love an elephant) this is a species that has me captivated year-round.

Did you know that copper beech is something which happens spontaneously, and can either be on one or two branches, or the whole tree. The genes are there in all beeches and sometimes just get switched on. It’s not something we breed in, it just happens naturally.

A year in which the tree produces vast quantities of seeds is known as a mast year. Weirdly, this can be seen to be coordinated across ‘all of northern and western Europe’ (including the UK) and no-one really knows how this happens (read more on the Woodland Trust’s page: ‘What is a mast year? How and why it happens’). I just love that there are still some natural mysteries, it makes nature seem even more magical!

There are many connections between people and Beech trees – the mast has been used for pannage for domesticated livestock (particularly pigs) and the seeds can be ground and used to make an alternative to coffee. The wood is used in a range of different ways from furniture to wooden spoons.

One of my favourite facts is that this is a species which (especially in hedges) may hang onto its dead leaves in winter. This phenomenon, known as marcescence, occurs in a few of our native species such as hornbeam and oak. Again, this is not fully understood, but there are a number of theories that have been put forward, as summarised on the Wikipedia page on marcescence.

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Robin red-breast – October’s species of the month

rosjones1979 — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 10:57:02 +0000

Robin – Erithacus rubecula

With migration firmly in my mind for this month, I thought I would share some information about a much-loved and familiar bird species that mostly stays close to home.

The robin (aka Robin red-breast) usually doesn’t move more than 5km from its territory at any time of the year, although some females will migrate to warmer areas of southern Europe ahead of the winter. Those which remain during the winter season are fiercely territorial and both sexes sing during this time of the year. The singing is intended to prevent physical disputes, but they have been known to fight to the death over territory!

In mainland Europe the robin can be quite a shy, forest-dwelling species. So why is it different in the UK? Much of our island has been deforested and converted to farmland. The robin is well-known as an insectivorous species, and in the colder months of the year may rely on other species to help it get at it’s food. Traditionally, it would have followed wild boar around as they turn over earth in search of food. This is particularly important in winter months when the ground is frozen. Back to the UK, where wild boar had been hunted to extinction… but humans were ploughing the land. The canny robin followed this instead, and this is one of the reasons they will follow gardeners as they turn the soil. We’ve replaced the wild boar and the robin has become less afraid of people because they associate them with food.

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Mute swan – September’s species of the month

rosjones1979 — Sun, 25 Aug 2024 09:54:03 +0000

Mute swan
Cygnus olor

Whilst my background is as a botanist, I also love birds and one constant in my time in Lancaster has been the remarkable mute swans that nest on the canal. These birds have consistently reared 6-9 cygnets a year (and as far as I can tell it has been the same pair) for 14 years. As a species which doesn’t start breeding until age 4, an average survival age of 10 years, and typically 4-7 eggs, these are remarkable birds indeed. If anyone knows whether these are the same birds, or a succession of different pairs, I would love to know!

These are resident birds, so don’t migrate very far, and in the summer you can often see ‘gangs’ (in the nicest possible way!) hanging around on the Lune. These are the non-breeding young adults who are working out who to pair up with. Find out more about the bird- (and plant-) life in Lancaster on one of my regular events.

As many of you will know, unmarked swans in the UK have traditionally been claimed by the monarchy, although King Charles III has changed this slightly to cover only certain areas of the Thames. They appear in folklore (such as Hans Christian Anderson’s ‘The Ugly Duckling’), and of course there is the usual warning not to get too close because ‘they can break your arm’. Rest assured that this is most unlikely (according to this article from Country Life), but you should still give them plenty of space, particularly when they are nesting or with their young. The males can (quite rightly!) become aggressive when defending their young. The same applies to dogs – please keep them on a lead, well away from any birds.

These magnificent birds are a common site in our waterways, but have recently come under some threat from avian flu. Devastatingly, the Lancaster canal pair lost all of their cygnets (which were almost fully grown) in autumn 2022 to the outbreak, but survived themselves. This resistance in the adults gives us some hope for the future, and it appears that population numbers are increasing. A few tips to stay safe (for both you and the birds):

If feeding birds, avoid doing so on hard surfaces (it can promote the spread of bird flu, and can damage the birds’ beaks). Instead, throw into the water.
Do not feed bread. This is like junk-food for the birds, and can cause dangerous algal blooms especially in stagnant water like the canal. Seeds are a good alternative, as are peas (although best to defrost them first!).
Avian flu is highly contagious, so be careful about any close contact. As with any wildlife, it’s probably best to observe from a distance so you don’t disturb them. If you do find any dead/dying birds, don’t touch them, and keep your dog away. If you do have any contact, don’t touch your face or eat anything, and wash your hands thoroughly as soon as possible. For all of the latest information, please visit the RSPB page on avian flu.

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Nature-based nurturing: A day retreat

rosjones1979 — Thu, 22 Feb 2024 10:07:58 +0000

A relaxing day of pampering

On Thursday 15th February we held our first Day Retreat in conjunction with Amy Gunawan Willow Weaving and Leah Dalby, independent Tropic Ambassador.

The theme for the day was the botanicals that featured throughout, we learned information about each species (see below), and used them in our willow-woven heart. The aromatic species (rosemary, lavender and eucalyptus) are all used in the Tropic Skincare products for their naturally beneficial properties (and they smell amazing, too!) and have been used for hundreds (if not thousands) of years by people for this reason.

Rosemary, Lavender and Eucalyptus (c) L Dalby

A taster of the day (c) L Dalby

Ros demonstrating the essential oils (c) A Gunawan

Amy showing us how to make our willow hearts (c) L Dalby

Amy with our completed hearts (c) L Dalby

Ros looking forward to her pampering facial (c) R Jones

Leah telling us about Tropic Skincare (c) R Jones

Completed willow heart (c) A Gunawan

All of our completed hearts (c) A Gunawan

Here is some more information about each of our featured species:

Black Maul Willow (Salix triandra).
All willows contain salicylic acid, which forms the basis of aspirin. It has been used either by chewing or boiling the bark to make a natural painkiller. There are many native species in the UK, which frequently hybridise with each other, making them hard to identify!
White Dogwood (Cornus alba).
An introduced species of Cornus, this one is grown ornamentally in parks and gardens. Our native species, Cornus sanguinea, grows in hedgerows and its high levels of tanins made it a good substitute for quinine in the treatment of malaria.
Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus).
A member of the mint family, rosemary has recently been reclassified as a species of Salvia, closely related to sage and many plants grown in gardens. Native to the Mediterranean, it’s name means ‘sea mist’, and is adapted to hot, dry conditions and taking moisture from sea mists. Its many secondary compounds contribute to the aromatic smell that makes it a favourite in mediterranean cuisine, and it has excellent antioxidant properties when applied to the skin or taken internally.
Lavender (Lavandula sp.)
Also a member of the mint family, lavender has been used for thousands of years, and is best known for aiding sleep. Traces has been found in king Tutankhamun’s tomb in Egypt! In recent years it has been found to be useful in treating a number of neurological conditions including anxiety and Alzheimer’s although more robust studies are required to prove its efficacy.
Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus sp.)
Eucalypts are native to Australia, where there are hundreds of species. Properties of these trees include wood that is ideal for making pulp (for making paper) and chemical components that are used as anti-bacterial and anti-fungal. The trees have also been grown in areas of high malaria to reduce the water table (the trees transpire vast quantities of water) and as an insect repellent to mosquitoes. Due to its high water-uptake, the species is controversial when grown commercially in some countries.

References:

Black maul willow
– Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salix_triandra)
White dogwood
– Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornus_alba)
Rosemary
– Rosmarinus officinalis and Skin: Antioxidant Activity and Possible Therapeutical Role in Cutaneous Diseases. Pomi, FL, et al. (2023), Antioxidants (Basel), 12(3): 680. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10045493/)
Lavender
– Aromatherapy for the brain: Lavender’s healing effect on epilepsy, depression, anxiety and Alzheimer’s disease: A review article. Bavarsad, NH, et al. (2023), Heliyon 9, e18492 (https://www.cell.com/heliyon/pdf/S2405-8440(23)05700-6.pdf).
– Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavandula)
Eucaluptus
– Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eucalyptus)

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Marsh Community Centre project

rosjones1979 — Sun, 28 Jan 2024 09:29:42 +0000

In December we received our first grant funding from the Pots of Possibility fund (part of the National Lottery Community Fund). This is for a joint project with the Marsh Community Centre where we will be working with local people to:

Cook healthy (and more sustainable) meals that are good value, given the cost of living crisis.
Provide family activities to encourage participation.
Work with cross-generational groups to reduce loneliness and isolation.
Use waste- and locally sourced-materials for craft activities.
Utilise the existing allotment to grow fruit and vegetables, encouraging groups to get involved and learn more about where food comes from and how to grow your own.

We have received a grant of £7,000 to deliver activities related to this project during 2024, and will be starting soon. If you are interested in finding out more, please email admin@wildlifewalk.co.uk

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