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RURALLIFE ►G - ‘f t


“■ AVthe time.you read this~we .will vir " !ibe justa few days awayirom th a t is s^ -^ ^— » f^And although ittakes me a weeC /


1 longrawaiting moment whenjthe®^>^^^B^^^^pj; docks spring forward. Oh joyPh -\:M~ |j$>! 7 7 " ^v’4' ”


r.tojrecover.from losing an hour of my«*&jjjjSJ


.:.;► Sunday,'I can'tjvait;. light nights; 7-in the g'arden; Tunch on the t e i r a c e : :^ ^ ® * ™ *® * ^ ■ > OK, I'm getting earned away!'v..-5!r?vvr'^ - ■ Anyway, while we await that . seasonal turning point, we offer you•;.


: another.story-packed Rural L i fe ! - 7 . .. This month we've been out and; . about all over the county, talking to '


^diverse character dealing with birds, ; ; plants and. „ buildings Yes, we've gone


7 a little off piste by ventunng into the $ =urban’environment of Morecambe and e o’ne.of its iconic landmarks. But we're sure you'll agree the resulting feature, starting on page 16, is well worth it. e : 3*1 •At the opposite end of the spectrum,'


• our reporter Joyce.Bishop headed 7 •• for.the Bowland hills to find one of ; .-:■ .: the RSPB team behind the Skydancer..


■ ■ ■


-. project, which is helping promote the threatened hen hamer.This is our co ve r story:-see page 14-and it will give 1 you an insight into a bird that was once wiped out on mainland England;


- 7 We also take a look at a'rural business-


; that is celebrating its stiver anniversary ';? ' this year. Turn to page 9.to'meet ;r ' f 'J:?. Oaktrees Nurseries boss Phil Gook,V _ : ^


'who is also providing the prize in our w”! ; competition, see below. -


So, sit back and enjoy this month's ■


Rural Life - and if you would like to . suggest a feature idea please get in touch via our contact details below; - -•< ~~ -


NICOLA ADAM, Editor Contents


A night under the stars..................... 5 Vet’s View............... ;....... ..........................8 A growing success...............................9&10 Project Skydancer..................................14 Flower festival...........................................15 Morecambe Winter Gardens ....... 16-18 Gardening.............


Country Trails.........................................23 Property..............................


Cover - picture:


: Jud e Lane by Garth H am e r '


20 30


■ Z. ■


J £ i I


I &£§■%&¥ %Y*s.Y-V


I^RP enthusiasts wifll .need no introduction | the hen harrier


...Once a common! ?sight; these.ground-nestirig ■


I ^ raptors were wiped outonth IsliEnglishmainland by 1900, du | =i£j.to the rise in popularity of dri IT-grouse shooting.


; ; ; ; I


'Although they returned in ',1958,' they are still at nskand


T the RSPB's four-year Skydanc •‘ ;S Project, which runs until 2015, I rfvhopes to raise awareness to -<


I s>;help encourage and protect these birds. 7 .


;^ P n e of the areas at the cen


Ityibfthat project is Bowland, ty ‘I where, until the past two yea ..there has been a high success


| g f rate among breeding hen'- p harriers. -


-/fv^There beautiful birds put i i-Sron a spectacular courtship vf< -.. display known as a sky dancin 7C:.—hence the project name - " % which involves breath-taking' >; 5jr displays'as the male hen ham


;! dives, dropping like stone,- W twisting and turning, and then - Tises again in the sky. These'; .^acrobatics are performed dun


7. the.breeding season forthe ■: - benefit of the females, and ar just one reason why the RSPB .is so keen to see the bird's ■


fa : ^


■ .-^numbers'increase in England, T V Hen harriers also impress;;; .tiv once they have a family, with; -. the male delivering food to th V'female.in spectacular mid-air -


7-’ passes; He drops the offering as; with precise'timing, sheflr underneath him, flipping upsi ws down to receive it.


‘


EYES PEELED: RSPB Bowland Project Officer, Jude Lane, who monitors the populationof W ; hen harriers in the Langden Valley as part of the Skydancer Project


r . . y COMPETITION Your chance to win a rose for the summe.


- OAKTREES Nurseries in Bolton i by Bowland has kindly donated;


Editor, Nicola Adam- ’ nicola.adam@jpress.co.uk'


_ V ' - ..vw..


Reporter, Jo y c e Bishop: T e l: 077922 19671 (office hours only). '* Email: joyce.bishop@lep.co.uk


Adver tising, G arry Darton: T e l. 07803 506008.


' ; . V " ’ " '


, Email: garry.djrtdh@jpress.co.uk , ' . , ; S a fah T Tu rh enV' - . - * -Tel:'0786350'6161V ‘


■ a prize for this month's Rural.‘^-.: ; .'►Life competition - a stunning;;- V David AustinTose. ~V - ; , ,'-This English shrubrose - V ,7 Graham Thomas - has archinq r


I • flowers from "mid-summer: tolerate some partial shade! ;


I . y - through’to early autumn.-.lt can* I ...


I •; -and the flowers have a fresh tea rose fragrance.


--, •'•v'i'AII you need to do to be jn j - with'a chance of winning is


^tftVanswerthefollowing questions.- VtMv.You'will.find all the information


a t y has 1' ' ‘


3.The nursery stocks 40 - - -j varieties of one particular


A species of plant: which one? n-i You can either answer - ' ■ .'.through the Rural Life


- fFacebook page at www. ' ' facebookTcom/mralllfenw-


i-febranches and produces masses-;- -o r send your answers, oh a . r^of.fragrant goldenTyellow;


p^.yo&'need.in^niijfeature'on^?:? v _______________ _ rrrj l--, fe^ ^ a l^ tw s^ u re e n^ 'o n page9.^f/v'dedsion will be final. I m A " V Y e


postcard or the back of a seajed envelope, to Garry ’■ Darton,'Oaktrees Nurseries Competition, c/o Lancashire Evening Post, Oliver's Place, ■ Fulwood, Preston, PR2 9ZA >;The closing date for entries is Thursday, April 11,2014 ; Normal LEP competition rules apply. Entrants must be aged .18 or over and the judges' ; ;


Please notethatthe prize is


y^vV’Qaktrees Nurseries' been in : , : 'to be collected by the winner. v \ ' - V


S-Vvfather and son nowTunhing t T ! : competition, for tickets to the mirconoc?


- --<• -Palace Cinemajn Longridge.


' Claire Ireland, of Old Langho,' ‘ v .was the winner of last month's ’


-with made to measure replacement doors Senior Citizens Discount


t»'Free estimating, planning & desigaservice !> Fitted kitchens or.replacement doorswB§Rto): Huge.choice of doors, worktops; sinksj^aps & applianc^


DREAM DOORS NEW LIFE FOR OLD KITCHENS Phone Glenn for a free quote now on


. . . » » « « 0 1 2 5 3 8 0 4 5 7 9 f tW


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HOME DESIGN LTD. furniture for every room


Daval 0 Sherborne • Buoyant • Corndell Nathan ® Old Charm ® Morris


FEEL FREE TO BROWSE Beautiful dining, kitchens.and bedrooms


Chairs including 'Lift and Rise’ plus a fabulous range of sofas


Green Lane West. Garstang. PR3 I N.l (Qlrr^nfeTiriritV';■ Tel 01995 600840 | w w w .c a p s t ic k .co .u k


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• If you would like to learn V . ." more about the hen harrier in "Bowland, turn to our feature 0 ■ page 14.


I p 1M 1I


2.- ■}•? S ' 3Ci- V ^ tS sS r ~s -> * 2 l 9ir *


Wednesday,March26,2014 ;• —.......... ■


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v . :


toivKaUt' in


nature sites


POORLY regulated fracking could \ harm threatened species and


■, pollute our waterways, according to a report produced by leading wildlife.and countryside groups. ■ The report. Are We Fit'to Frack?, was released this month by the Angling Trust, the National Trust, RSPB, the Salmon and Trout


Association, The Wildlife Trusts and the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust. The report contains 10


recommendations for making fracking safer, including for all protected wildlife areas, nature reserves and national parks to be frack-free zones. Martin Spray, chief executive of WWT, said: "A single frack can use more water than 1,000 people use in a year, and if it goes wrong it


could contaminate (drinking water. That's a big burden on communities and it's a risk we want managed. The report sets out the safeguards that need to be in place before-this relatively new industry can operate with a degree of safety.".. In the North West, fracking companies are planning to work on


• sites in the Fylde, East Lancashire = and Sajford. This has raised concerns and protests in the Fylde and at Baiton Moss, near Ecdes.


ORE than a hundred 7 volunteers gave up' their free time to help . create homes for some


of the plants and wildlife around Morecambe Bay.


More than 100 people-half of


whom were local schoolchildren — attended the Warton Volunteering for Nature Day, where they took part in a range of activities at ,


Warton Crag and Hyning Scout Wood.


, . .. These nature lovers completed


vital habitat management across more than three acres, cutting • back shrubs, coppicing trees and pruning woodland bramble to make space forwildflowers and butterflies:..


.


They also repaired five metres of dry stone wall.


The volunteers we joined by


Seamus, an Insh Cob, who did his bit at VVarton Crag by pulling out. large tree trunks that were too large for people to handle. The volunteer day was run by the


RSPB, Amside and Silverdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Lancashire Wildlife Trust and ■ Butterfly Conservation, as part of ’ the Morecambe Bay Limestones


and Wetlands Nature Improvement Area (NIA) project. .


-


Tania Crockett, community engagement officerforthe Bay


7


said: "The volunteers did an excellent job. Morecambe Bay is a brilliant place for nature, and thanks to their efforts; the plants and animals that make this place ~ their home will have an even better chance to thrive this spring."


'a s a e i


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