Shared Earth is a new series from the Â鶹ԼÅÄ Natural History Unit which celebrates the natural world and explores what we can all do to help conserve wildlife and habitats and reduce our footprint on the planet
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FridayÌý17 November 2006
Dylan Winter getting up close and personalÌý with some cow dung
Leaf-Peeping
Dylan visited Westonbirt Arboretum near Tetbury in Gloucestershire which offers one of Britain’s finest displays of Autumn colours. The Forestry Commission provides suggestions on the best times and places to witness the changing colours. Call them on 0845 3673787 or visit their website which also provides a scientific explanation of the process.
Victorian Housing
The Buildings Research Establishment in Watford conducts numerous on-site projects to find the most eco-friendly homes and building materials. Their latest project is to convert a rather dilapidated Victorian stable block into a fully-insulated, minimal emission paragon of environmental virtue. The idea is to prove that we don’t need to demolish our Victorian and Edwardian homes in order to slash emissions of greenhouse gases. There are dozens of ways you can improve the energy efficiency of an older home, many of them costing very little and saving huge amounts from your heating bills. The Energy Savings Trust can offer free advice :
Ìý Pine Marten
Britain’s second rarest mammal (after the wildcat) is notoriously difficult to spot, even more difficult to count. We know there are populations in the Highlands, southern Scotland and remoter corners of Wales but their presence in northern England remains unproven. In Cumbria they’re convinced that they still have their own pine martens but proving it can be tricky. in conjunction with the Forestry Commission is fitting nesting boxes in the Grizedale Forest in the hope of gathering evidence of their existence.
Sheila Tilmouth
Sheila has spent the last year as artist-in-residence at Low Luckens Farm near Longtown in Cumbria. After a muddy few months Sheila came to realise the importance of the soil to the whole food production process. She contacted Karl Ritz at the National Soil Resources Institute at Cranfield University who gave her the scientific knowledge which fed into an astonishingly fresh body of work.
Sheila will be exhibiting the work she has created at the farm on November 18th.
