Repairing items instead of replacing them is good for the planet, good for your wallet and good fun! There are many ways to give your broken belongings a new lease of life but repair cafés and clubs where volunteers share their skills are becoming increasingly popular. Some specialise in items such as clothes or electricals, and others are more general. Here are some repair events in our local area: · Mend It! Textile repair club, The Hearth, Horsley, 4th Tues of eac

Most garden centres now sell peat-free compost. However, some obtain plants that are already potted up from elsewhere, in places like Holland. The RHS publish a list of nurseries that are 'peat-free'. They are: Northern Ark Nursery, Morpeth (online only) Polonium Planters, Trimdon, Co Durham The Backyard Larder, Yorkshire (online only, specialising in perennial vegetables) The Little Green Plant Factory, Woodmansley, Yorkshire Click here to visit our ever-growing list of

Moth facts : - there are about 2,500 species in the UK - most of the caterpillars we find in the garden are probably going to become moths - moths are important in the food chain, a baby blue tit for example might eat 100 caterpillars a day - did you know the moth called “silver Y” is only 4cm across (wing span) but it travels 1,000 miles to get here in summer - moths are efficient pollinators, probably more efficient than bees - the more we can do for moths, the more we are

Do you have mobile phones, tablets and other tech sitting unwanted in drawers? Recycling allows the precious metals and other materials to be safely retrieved and reused. A phone or tablet, for instance, contains rare earth elements such as europium in the display and gallium in the electronics. In fact, much of the periodic table is in there somewhere. Go to recycleyourelectricals.org.uk to find out where and how to recycle your devices.

A slow cooker uses much less electricity than a main oven - around 50 - 300 watts (depending on the setting). They help reduce energy bills and can be a great way to make several meals in one go. Using less electricity at peak times (evening) helps the national grid smooth out demand, meaning there is more likelihood the electricity you would cook with would come from a low carbon source. To save even more energy, avoid leaving them on longer than needed.

Nature’s drummers Now is the perfect time of year to listen out for one of the most distinctive sounds of spring - the drumming of woodpeckers. There are three UK species; the great spotted woodpecker is the most common and the one I regularly see in the woods of Heddon and in our garden. It’s also the best drummer. The green woodpecker is our largest species but drums rarely with a series of soft taps. It prefers to display with a loud laughing call known as a yaffle. It oft

Finished gloss work and no idea how to safely dispose of your white spirit? White spirit should never be put down drains. However, leave it in an open container in the sun and it will evaporate in time, leaving a solid in the base, which can be put in the household waste. This will eventually be incinerated. For further guidance on how to dispose of other hazardous waste, search for waste on: northumberland.gov.uk

A no pesticides sign We all love to see ladybirds and bumble bees, and they will be appearing soon in our gardens. So why do people poison their gardens with pesticides, which also kill these beautiful and helpful creatures? Bumblebees and other insects pollinate flowers, fruit and vegetables, and we cannot do without them. If allowed a few days, ladybirds will find the whitefly on your roses, and eat them. So what about slugs? There are many flowers which slugs do not ea

Click this link to find some Sustainable Heddon news articles that include such topics as how to safely dispose of paint, how to repair outdoor clothing and information regarding water meters. Click here: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/4/folders/1hIP_uZjq1ldUQ8v4dFeItDJ0_F6-pB5t A community garden thriving with various plants in Heddon.

Follow these links to bus service timetables: Go North East https://bustimes.org/services/684-hexham-newcastle-via-beaufront-corbridge-oving Stagecoach https://www.stagecoachbus.com/routes/cumbria-and-north-lancashire/685/newcastle-hexham/XNBO685.I One of the two Heddon bus stops

follow this link to the Northumberland County Council recycling pages: https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/bins-recycling-waste/recycling-and-reuse-advice Click on this document for FAQs: Click on this document for non-council recycling tips: A recycling bin