Eco Friendly Welsh B&B

The Old Vicarage, Dolfor, Newtown, Powys

At the Old Vicarage you can enjoy log fires, a cosy sitting room and a restaurant perfect for a leisurely organic breakfast and candlelit dinners.The views surrounding this Newtown bed and breakfast accommodation are magnificent and stretch for miles over the Montgomeryshire countryside.

There is a licensed restaurant where you can enjoy a relaxing dinner prepared and served by the owners, Tim and Helen Withers. Their pedigree is impeccable; they worked with Joyce Molyneux, whose Carved Angel at Dartmouth was one of the country's best restaurants in the 1970's and 1980's. Simon Hopkinson once wrote of Tim's ethereal cheese soufflé baked with parmesan and cream, describing it as possibly the finest example outside of the kitchens of Le Gavroche.

Wines are organic and menus use the best of local organic produce. The kitchen garden, polytunnel and free-range hens all contribute to a truly warm, relaxing and memorable stay in Wales.

Find out more about this eco friendly holiday on the Wild & Green Escapes website.

Snowdrop Walks

With February just around the corner and signs of spring appearing in gardens and parks already, the snowdrops have been putting on a show in some areas a week or so earlier than expected.

As January draws to a close we begin to enter the more 'traditional' snowdrop season and these pretty little flowers are a great excuse to grab family & friends and head off to the woods to enjoy some wintery sunshine.

Wild & Green has listed below some great spots to visit to see snowdrops in all their glory...

 ·         Painswick Rococo Garden in the Cotswolds
·         Hartland Abbey & Gardens, Devon
·         Mere House, Kent

• Rode Hall & Gardens, Cheshire

• Hodsock Priory, Nottinghamshire

To search for other snowdrop woods near you try these websites:

* Great British Gardens

* National Trust

Forests Given Space To Breathe

Breathing Space for Pembrey and Penybedd  

Forestry Commission Wales is beginning work to give two Carmarthenshire forests more breathing space and make them more attractive places to visit.

The Commission is thinning selected areas of Pembrey and Penybedd forests by removing trees from some areas, providing more space and light for wildlife and allowing native trees to regenerate.

As well as helping the remaining trees to grow, the work will also improve the health of the forests by combating the disease known as red band needle blight, which has infected some of the trees.

Forestry Commission Wales Community Ranger Jonathan Price said, “This important work is part of our ongoing management of these forests for the benefit of all users and to improve the forest environment for the future.
This is part of the first year of a programme that will run over the next five to 10 years at Pembrey and Penybedd, which are home to many migrant songbirds as well as birds of prey, including the sparrowhawk and goshawk.”

Pembrey and Penybedd, which cover 1,200 hectares, make up some of Britain's sand dune forests, which are unusual and have become of great interest to naturalists. Pembrey also forms part of a Special Site of Scientific Interest.

Jonathan added, “We apologise for any inconvenience, but we will keep locals informed while the work is going on through signs in those small areas where access will be temporarily restricted.”

Stay On A Working Scottish Croft

Bluebell Croft, Strontian, Ardnamurchan, Scottish Highlands

Bluebell Croft offers luxury 5 star self catering in Scotland with Honeysuckle House sleeping up to 8, Rose Cottage sleeping 2-4, or as the whole house sleeping 12 in great comfort. It is separated by a huge conservatory, normally used by Honeysuckle, which leads out to the giant hot tub,  described by the Sunday Times as 'the best sited hot tub in Europe', a marvellous place to relax with a wonderful mountain view or under the stars. They also said 'the cottage and food are heavenly', and 'stunningly lovely fare'.

Bill and Sukie are keen to share their life on a working croft with you and are almost self sufficient including milking a Jersey cow, keeping two pigs and lots of chooks, ducks and geese for meat and eggs. The veggie garden and poly-tunnel provide masses of fruit and vegetables in season which you can buy to produce fabulous meals with no food miles.

If you feel like a night off Sukie can leave a casserole in the Aga or supper/dinner of up to 4 courses using all the wonderful ingredients from the croft and smokehouse. She is a former Rural Chef of the Year.

Both houses share a spectacular, elevated West Coast location on Ardnamurchan, with stunning views of mountains across the Strontian glen in the West Highlands of Scotland. Well behaved dogs are welcome with care.

Perfect for wildlife enthusiasts and outdoor experiences being on the doorstep of the Ariundle Oakwoods a National Nature reserve. A wind turbine provides electricity and a wood burning boiler and solar array for hot water and heat.

Sukie and Bill have recently been runners up in the Highlands and Islands Tourism Awards in the Green Category, come and find out why!

Find out more on the eco & wildlife friendly holidays website Wild & Green Escapes

60,000 Trees Planted

Replanting Crowthorne Forest Begins  

The first of 60,000 new trees were planted at Crowthorne Forest recently to replace those destroyed by forest fires in May last year.  Some 300 local volunteers came forward to help the Forestry Commission plant the trees following the worst forest fires in Berkshire's history.

The Forestry Commission drafted in foresters from as far a field as the New Forest to help plant the thousands of young saplings and support the army of volunteers. Local residents, members of the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service, the Crown Estate, scouts and local businesses were among those digging in to replant Crowthorne Forest.

The task to plant all 60,000 trees is expected to take several months with professional tree planters and help from local volunteers. The young trees require many years of care with weeding, protecting trees from deer, rabbits, pests and diseases.  Any tree that dies within the first few years is removed and replaced, a task known in forestry as ‘beating up’.

Emily Weller, project manager for Crowthorne volunteers, said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone that has offered to help as we have had an overwhelming number of phone calls and emails.  We hope that it is great event for everyone, an opportunity for local people to get together, enjoy time out in the great outdoors and help the forest get on the road to recovery.”

The volunteer tree-planting event in Crowthorne Forest is marking the launch of the Forestry Commission’s new nationwide volunteering programme and partnership with Volunteering England. 

Thousands of unique and exciting volunteering opportunities are available in more than 40 forests. From tree planting to mountain bike trail building and pond clearance to creating new habitat for rare butterflies, birds or leading forest walks, there’s something for everyone. For more information visit www.forestry.gov.uk/england-volunteering or contact the local forest office.

How Do Age A Hedgerow?

We thought this was a fascinating little 'snippet' on how to age a hedgerow...

Apparently you can work out a rough age of an established country hedgerow by applying the following 'formula':

Work out the length of approx 30 metres of the hedgerow and then count the number of different trees and shrubs in that length. When you've worked out the number of plants multiply this by 100 and that gives you an approximate age for the hedgerow as, reportedly, a new species establishes itself roughly every 100 years!

You can find out more about hedgerows and their value to the wildlife and the UK countryside on the BBC Nature website, including a great little (2 minute) video of Bill Oddie explaining the 'age a hedge' principal in action!  There's some lovely wild flowers in the video too...

Enjoy!

RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2012

The RSPB are running the Big Garden Birdwatch weekend again this year and absolutely anyone can take part, according to their website all you need is:

• A pen and paper to record what birds you see
• A garden or local park where you can watch and note the birds you see
• One hour of your time on the weekend of January 28th / 29th 2012!
• If you're a beginner then a handbook to help you identify the birds would be good as well

Head to the Big Garden Birdwatch website for details on how to get involved, what to record and where to send your findings to.