Why are cheeky robins our favourite visitors?

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24 January 2022

On a chilly day, the arrival of an impudent wild friend interrupting an outdoors chat gives wildlife columnist Jane Adams pause for thought.

*Robins are adapted to life in poor light and are often active in half-light*
when few other birds are about. They tend to be among the earliest birds to start the dawn chorus and one of the last to stop in the evening. Street lights and floodlights can trigger singing in the middle of the night, and if roosting robins are disturbed, they can burst into song even in complete darkness. image: Jane Adams

The yearly gas boiler check is complete. Adam, the boiler engineer, is waiting in the driveway. Two metres away I’m leaning on the backdoor, and we’re both wearing facemasks – how quickly we’ve got used to these open-air, socially distanced chats.
Though it’s chilly today, the arrival of a wild friend, a robin, lessens our discomfort.

A shamelessly nosy visitor

As I quiz Adam on the cost of heat pumps, the robin hops between his feet. After perching on his boots and pecking at his laces, it darts off to balance on the rim of a terracotta pot but soon returns, flapping, dipping, and bobbing.

Finally, it pauses on the garden table, where it tilts its head and stares at us.

You, madam, are a boar.

Robins see us as modern day wild boar. Boar disturbed insects as they foraged through ancient woodlands. We fork over compacted earth, throw dead stalks onto the compost heap, and rake fallen leaves – all supplying a similar smorgasbord of insects for our avian neighbours.

But this bird isn’t feeding. In fact, there’s not an insect in sight and the ground lays undisturbed and stiff with ice. Surely it can’t be trying to chase the boilerman out of the garden. Can it?

*The robin is one of the few birds in the UK that sing all year round. This is due to the importance of holding winter territories.*

The gardener’s friend is a thug

Our culture is full of robin symbolism. We think of them as lucky; they are the gardener’s friend and make us smile. Yet within their own world, their life is violent and territorial. If your garden has plentiful food and perfect nesting sites, your resident red-breast will chase trespassing robins out of its patch. Fights lead to injury, sometimes death, so any new robin needs to watch its back. Today’s visitor is pecking at Adam’s boot again, but not aggressively.

It reminds me of a saying linking robins to deceased friends and family; “Robins appear when loved ones are near”.

Has Syd, my husband’s godfather and former owner of this house, returned in the body of this bird?
Is he scrutinising our choice in boiler engineer?
The next time you’re approached by a robin, it’s worth considering why it’s there.

Jane Adams – Naturalist. bTB Badger Vaccinator. Nature writer. Photographer. Bee Watcher.

The future of our food is… bugs (yes, really!) | Farm Tales

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Editorial team

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24 January 2022

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Shocking as it may sound, insects will prove the path to sustainable food stocks, argues Dorset farmer and writer Andrew Livingston.

*The concept of fried insects on a plate is a far off concept for a human diet, but they are already moving into our animal feed* / shutterstock

This new year means British agriculture takes one step closer towards the Nation Farmers’ Union (NFU) aim of all farms being carbon neutral by 2040. It’s clear that in its goal of achieving ‘net zero,’ farming practices that have been used for centuries need to be replaced with more sustainable methods of producing the nation’s food.

Over the next three months, I will explore how agriculture will start to look.

Farming for yields

There is a reason why some farming traditions haven’t been changed for centuries; it’s because they achieve the highest possible yield, from either crop or animal. Admittedly, some traditions already look archaic and have been replaced with new scientific methods; for example, ploughing has now become an obsolete practice.

Arrow straight and paralleled ploughed fields looked great, but were not only destructive to the habitat below the surface, but soil being broken and turned released huge amounts of carbon into the Earth’s atmosphere.

Today, technological advancements are used such as seed drills and minimum tillage cultivators.

A new delicacy

Changing the way we farm is fine, but we still need to produce the same amount of food. The world’s population is expected to reach over 9.7 billion by 2050, so how can you feed everyone while protecting your environment? One answer, entomophagy, has been consumed all across the globe, and particularly in densely populated countries. Entomophagy is basically why I don’t ride bikes without a face mask – it’s the process of eating bugs!
For thousands of years in Asian, African and South American countries, the consumption of insects is considered a delicacy. I have never dabbled, but the critters are renowned for being full of protein while being more efficient than conventional livestock, as they can better utilise energy from plants and add weight more easily.

Steak v beetle stew

Right now it may seem ludicrous to replace your fillet steak with a cricket curry, but farming insects has many positives. For starters, insect farms don’t look like your everyday farm; there is an insect farm in the centre of London. Bugs and insects don’t need fields or natural sunlight: they are grown in tanks that can be stacked on top of each other to most greatly utilise space. If you can’t envisage yourself chowing down on bugs, then fear not. The insect’s role in farming in the future is expected to be as additives for feed for livestock. Local protein from insects has many benefits – currently, a fifth of the soya imported from Brazil is a result of deforestation.

It is also cheaper than soya, while allowing us to be more self-sufficient and rely less on imports and fluctuating global prices.

Morrisons has already begun utilising insects into the feed to hens, aiming towards carbon neutral egg production. However, it will be a few more years till bugs and flies are the norm for birds across the UK. We can all thank the humble chicken for consuming the bugs and flies that we really aren’t quite ready to eat ourselves.

by Andrew Livingston

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The cruellest month!

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Editorial team

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23 January 2022

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January is traditionally bleak but we’ve got a lot to celebrate and farmers are working hard for the good of us all, explains Louise Stratton.

*A wintry sunset near Sutton Waldron image: Laura Hitchcock*

The month of January does not often spark enthusiasm!
After the festivities and family time of December comes another month of winter. January is known as the chilliest month of the year.

For our farmers, work continues aplenty: cattle are often housed against the elements, getting
fed, watered, and bedded down; calving commences on many farms and even the early lambing systems start, bringing the delight of a new year and new life to farms.

Arable farms are busy loading grain lorries, seeing their produce off to millers, maltsters and feed mills across the country. January is also a time for conservation work, with hedging work and tree planting happening.
So, this month also symbolises new beginnings: the beginning of the new year, new life and it is also the time to make new year’s resolutions, however far-fetched. We’ll come back to those resolutions!

The conservation work on farm has always been embraced by farmers alongside the productivity element of a farm. Farmers naturally enhance the countryside by maintaining habitats to support our native plants and animals. This winter the South West NFU have teamed up with the Woodland Trust and Lloyds Bank to make a positive contribution to tackle the impact of ash dieback in our region; to work towards the NFU’s Net Zero by 2040 climate change ambition (see Andrew Livingston’s column next page) that we have discussed previously; and to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

Tackling ash dieback

Ash dieback is a tree disease caused by a fungus that originated in Asia and arrived in the UK via Europe It affects the common ash, young and old, across the whole of the UK. It is devastating as it has the potential to kill 80 – 90% of our ash in the UK, which could affect the landscape and threaten species that rely on ash.
(See the CPRE’s column in Sep 21 issue: ‘Ash Tree Crisis: A Disaster in the making‘)

The collaborative tree planting initiative helps counteract the loss and farmers planting a variety of native trees will help diversify our tree population, increasing its resilience to pest and diseases in the future.

Planting trees in the right places will help lock up even more carbon on farms and it allows our members to join us in celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee by being part of the Queen’s Green Canopy, which is an initiative inviting people in the UK to ‘Plant a Tree for the Jubilee’.

With more than 15,000 trees having been snapped up by Dorset farmers, look out this new year for hedges being in-filled with hawthorn and dogwood, little copses being created of English Oak, wild cherry and silver birch, and wet areas switching to willow, alder and aspen wet woodlands.

This is not about creating vast new woodlands; we don’t want to take swathes of farmland out of production. Instead we aim to encourage small plantings on unproductive farmland and in- filling and bolstering our iconic hedgerows.

*Dorset’s winter farmland image: Laura Hitchcock*

Your resolutions!

Back to those resolutions: have you made yours?
I like to keep resolutions positive and with so much to be proud of in British farming, what better time is there than a brand new year to celebrate great British food?
We know that eating a healthy, balanced diet is an important part of maintaining good health and wellbeing; food is not produced in the same way across the globe but we know that the food produced by UK farmers is high-quality and meets or surpasses world-class standards. As part of a healthy, varied diet, red meat such as beef, pork and lamb, provides a rich source of protein and a range of vitamins and minerals including iron, zinc and vitamin B12. A 200ml glass of semi-skimmed milk provides 35% of calcium, 44% of iodine and over 100% of vitamin B12 of an adults recommended daily intake.
Therefore if you have not found a resolution yet, why not try eating with our seasons? Choosing British fruit and veg means that you know your food has travelled fewer miles to reach your plate. We have seen incredible levels of public support for domestic food in 2021 and we remain extremely grateful to everyone who has backed British farming and British food. We look forward to working with you and producing ingredients for you to enjoy in 2022. We hope British produce will be your number one supplier of choice this coming year, however long the other resolutions last!

Louise Stratton NFU Dorset County Adviser

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Four legs bad, spring crops good | Voice of a Farmer

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23 January 2022

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We had a terrible Christmas with the animals, but the spring crops are looking good, hopes James Cossins

*James Cossins, a fifth generation farmer in the Tarrant Valley.*

I think we will be pleased to see the back of 2021.
The last 10 days of December provided us with rain everyday which made looking after our cattle during the festive season less pleasant than it could have been.

One young yearling animal decided to get stuck in a feeder on Christmas Day which took a bit of extracting. Fortunately she was still alive, although a little dazed, and with some pain-relief treatment she is making a good recovery.

The week before Christmas we had our 60 day TB cattle test which ended up finding six reactors in milking cattle. These animals will now have to go to the abattoir for a post mortem examination.

We thought we were making progress in clearing this disease from the farm. We may have to blood test our animals which involves a more sensitive test and can lead to animals without the disease being found positive. For many years there has been talk of a vaccine against TB in cattle but we are always told it is five years away.
I believe there are currently trials taking place to test the effectiveness of the vaccine, so let’s hope progress can be made.

A new year

As we look forward to 2022 it seems that Covid will still be playing a part in our lives. I think we are fortunate to be able to work outside and generally in small groups so our chance of having to isolate is, hopefully, reduced.

Some of our deliveries and collections have been affected by delays, although up to now our milk collections have thankfully not been disrupted.

Spring looking good

Our autumn-sown crops generally look in good condition, so we have gone into the new year in a positive mood. We have the majority of our fertiliser now in stock and spring barley seed is soon to be delivered, so we can look forward to longer days and spring will soon appear.

Divided loyalties

As a season ticket holder for AFC Bournemouth, I managed to watch them play against Cardiff which they won 3 – 0, to go the top of their league.

As I write I am sure that there will be some divided loyalties in the Blackmore Vale area – Bournemouth have been drawn against Yeovil in the FA Cup, and are playing today…

(Bournemouth won 3-1, are through to the fourth round, and play Boreham Wood on the 5th Feb)

by James Cossins, a fifth generation farmer in the Tarrant Valley.

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We need to build a fair society

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Editorial team

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23 January 2022

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We are fighting the growing problem of ‘south east prices but south west prices, says Mike Chapman, north Dorset chair of the Liberal Democrats

In a rousing speech, Vikki Slade, three-time parliamentary candidate, told the AGM that a strong Liberal Democrat showing in Dorset Council and national elections was important. Core Liberal Democrat values are vital in the fight against the increasingly immoderate trend in politics today. She urged people to stand as candidates at local, unitary and parliamentary levels.

Aid for low income families

Mike Chapman, newly-elected north Dorset chair, outlined the activities of the past year. NDLD has run projects such as the Community Fridge in Sturminster Newton, bought by Lib Dems and managed and stocked twice a week in a campaign to reduce food waste. There has been a focus on climate change practicalities through a workshop and tree planting. The team manned a stand at the Gillingham and Shaftesbury Show, reminding people of the strength and capability of the Lib Dem presence. The local party has a growing social media presence (ndorsetlibdems) and campaigning on the streets has started again. Much valuable experience has also been gained by supporting campaigns in surrounding counties.
Mike thanked the executive team and the hundreds of members across the constituency for their efforts through the year, thanking everyone who has turned out, delivered leaflets, planted trees, got food for the Fridge or said a kind word on Facebook.

’Do better, or depart’

In 2022 we have a number of key themes: the UK’s graceless response to the migration crisis; the levelling up agenda that needs to acknowledge the real and growing problem in Dorset of ‘south-east prices but south-west wages’; providing a positive future perspective for farming, nurturing small businesses as the lifeblood of rural communities; ensuring Local Plans truly reflect local needs and are not a top-down, remote, bureaucratic imposition. Liberal Democrats’ positive approach and local initiatives on these issues is the way to challenge those presently in power to do better or depart.

Mike Chapman, north Dorset chair of the Liberal Democrats

Not much COP

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Editorial team

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23 January 2022

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Ken Huggins, local councillor and member of the Green Party, examines Dorset Council’s Climate Action Plan in the wake of COP26

The COP26 conference brought some modest advances, including formal recognition that human activities have caused around 1.1oC of global warming to date – but we are still very far from doing what is now needed. Even with such an apparently small increase in average global temperature, the serious far-reaching consequences are ever more apparent. Deadly heatwaves, fires, droughts and floods etc are a staple of the news. Even in Dorset we’ve had increasing floods recently, and the UK has just experienced the warmest New Year’s Day on record. Extreme weather events are nothing new, but it is the increasing severity and regularity of such events that tells us unwelcome change is happening. The alarm bell is ringing. It is still not too late to slow down and eventually reverse this over-heating, but it requires bold and rapid action by governments, business, local councils and, whenever possible, the public.

A plan for action

Dorset Council (DC) recently published its Climate Action Plan, available on the DC website here. Sadly, the Plan is too tentative in its timetable and too weak in many areas. The four Green Party councillors on DC will seek every opportunity to win over other Party’s councillors to the necessity of upgrading its ambition.
There is opposition to wind and solar farms, but these are an essential part of achieving the decarbonisation required of our present unsustainable way of life. Since the Government scrapped the zero carbon building regs in 2015 over a million new homes have been built that should have had solar panels in their roof. That’s a lot of roof space that could now be generating renewable energy.

Global heating is a global issue, and what happens here in the UK has consequences for the poorest people in countries most vulnerable to drought, floods and rising sea levels. The countries least responsible for climate change are the ones experiencing the worst effects. So far.

Ken Huggins, Parish Councillor Hazelbury Bryan

We all have difficult decisions – what will yours be?

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Editorial team

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23 January 2022

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More people choosing between public health advice or putting food on the table and a few quid on the key, says Labour’s Pat Osborne

Like many others, the Covid crisis currently dominates my thoughts. Having contracted the virus at work, I was one of the many people celebrating a different kind of Christmas. Double- jabbed and boosted, symptoms where thankfully very mild in my case, but we’re currently seeing infection numbers ballooning and bracing ourselves for impacts of this on the NHS.

In North Dorset, the planned temporary closure of Minor Injury Units in Blandford and Sherborne from January promises to protect the NHS.

But as the recent problems with access to GP services in Blandford demonstrated, people living in isolated rural areas are considerably more vulnerable when part of our NHS infrastructure is removed, even temporarily.
Although undoubtedly intensified by the current public health crisis, a social media post from five years ago popped up in my timeline last week to remind me that a ‘winter crisis’ in the NHS was not a new phenomenon. It has been happening with increasing intensity since the Government introduced its programme of austerity in 2010.

Tory hypocrisy

Nevertheless, we are where we are, and despite Westminster’s ‘do as I say, not as I do,’ hypocrisy (which does untold damage) it’s important that we continue to look out for each other. For the foreseeable future, this means wearing masks, washing hands, taking tests, and getting jabs.
But we must also be patient with one another. Government support for small businesses and those on Universal Credit has ‘dried up,’ despite the exorbitant cost of gas and electric and the rising cost of living. We can therefore expect more and more working people to be faced with a difficult decision between following the public health advice to the letter or putting food on the table and a few quid on the key.

Cllr Pat Osborne Labour’s former Parliamentary Candidate for North Dorset

Taking tough decisions for a better future is what politicians must do | Simon Hoare

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Editorial team

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22 January 2022

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There are few simple solutions to the problems that face our communites, which is why we must not rush into simplistic ‘populist’ policies, argues Simon Hoare MP

May I begin by wishing you a belated, but sincere, Happy New Year. Let us hope that it will be a calmer year for all of us.

The Opinion Polls are moving and perhaps, one could argue, that the normal rules of politics are returning?

Governments, certainly those nearly 12 years in office, rarely win by-elections and they certainly do not lead in the polls. I can remember Labour being 20-25% ahead in the polls in the 1990s and the then SDP scoring around 50% in the early 1980s. But while interesting, they make no difference to the job in hand, i.e., for the government of the day to get on with governing and delivering.

Balancing issues is key

I have been reflecting on the events that have dominated my close to seven years as your MP: the 2016 the EU referendum; 2017, my second general election; 2019, my third general election.

In between we have had confidence votes in Theresa May, the Corbyn years and two leadership elections. I am now serving under my third Prime Minister. It is indeed a curse to live in interesting times.
Most of us, I believe, crave calm seas where we can take stock, set a course and make headway. to focus on what we used to call the ‘bread-and-butter’ issues of politics.

The delivery of Brexit was always going to command a significant proportion of governance bandwidth. When we overlay the high and continuing demands of a global public health pandemic with the cross-government needs it has created, I would urge a degree of sober reflection on the performance of the Government in those bread-and-butter areas of public policy.
The impact of both events mentioned above on the public finances have yet to be fully assessed but they will be there, and they will shape how we move forward.
Our public services and infrastructure require investment and I support that. Of course, the drive for efficiencies will continue but those are not infinite seams to mine. We will need to continue to invest in order to secure a prosperity dividend of sustainable economic growth.

We’ll hold our nerve!

While we are all worried about inflationary impacts on living costs, we do our own and future generations no good if we are side-lined away from a net zero goal. Fuel costs stabilise when we can, at scale, generate sustainable power at home, rather than importing price-fluctuating foreign power sources.

On this issue the Government must hold its nerve and it’s why I’ve signed up to my colleague Chris Skidmore’s group on this. (in a tweet last week, Chris Skidmore, the Tory MP for Kingswood near Bristol, said that he had “decided to set up the Net Zero Support Group to demonstrate and maintain Conservative support for net zero carbon emissions and policies needed to deliver this” – Ed).

As I said in a recent Tweet, ‘I love my children and home planet more than anything and will do all I can for them’.

So, as we saunter through 2022 we need to keep cool heads and clear visions. Common sense, and serious and sober Tory pragmatism must command the centre ground of British politics. The tantalising siren voices of easy solutions to complex problems, the chorus of the populist stating all is black or white with the didactic certainty of a Jesuit Inquisitor, are not the answers. They never have been. They never will be.

by Simon Hoare MP

Meet your local: ‘Ye Olde Two Brewers Inn’, Shaftesbury

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Editorial team

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22 January 2022

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This month we’ve been chatting to Chris and John Henson-Ball, the new landlords of the Ye Olde Two Brewers almost at the bottom of Gold Hill in Shaftesbury. It’s a pub with a view.

*Ye Olde Two Brewers, St James Street, Shaftesbury – all images Rachael Rowe*

How did you end up at Ye Olde Two Brewers?

We have been here since September 2020. We had been talking to the landlord earlier, but illness got in the way. Once we got it, we planned to stay.

How big is your team?

There are ten staff members at present. We do employ up to 16 in the summer as it is busier. One lady came across to us from the previous landlord, but we have built the team up.

What’s your favourite local place to visit on an afternoon off?

Well, if you’re talking pubs, we like The Mitre. We’d also recommend a walk on Castle Hill with its wildlife and views. And we can’t forget Gold Hill of course.

What’s been your biggest challenge since taking over?

Our recent license review was a significant challenge. It was quite a complex issue around outdoor music which ran on for some time. We are happy with a fair outcome for everyone, and we now have outside entertainment every other weekend.

Another challenge has been the cost of staff to meet catering requirements for events. There is a lot more table service now.

*Diner-style seating in the Skittle Alley which can booked for private functions (skittles can be covered and set up for seating!)* *all images Rachael Rowe*

Do you have a pub pet?

We have five!
We’re very dog friendly (no kidding with five dogs!). There’s Charlie, Jazz, Hollie the Collie, Bentley, and Teddy.
We have always been pet-friendly and have rescued several dogs.

What are you most proud of so far?

Since we arrived, we have worked so hard. We’ve been right through the pub decorating, and have re-done the gardens.
We’re now working on the skittle alley and its dining area, which looks like an American diner. We’re also getting busier. Our Sunday lunches are making themselves known – last week we had 20 bookings, but did 81 covers.
We’re slowly changing the pub – putting our own stamp on it, we’re keen to make it more appealing to families, with good food and of course always the live music.

What part of the building is your absolute favourite?

Without a doubt, the snug. It has lower level seating and tables near the fire. It’s the best place to chill out.

And then there’s the view from the garden in summer.

*The traditionally cosy Snug* – *all images Rachael Rowe*

Which meal is your most popular? What do people drive from afar to come specifically to you for?

Our Sunday lunch! It’s very popular, and we serve loads of fresh vegetables.
Obviously our pizzas, steaks, and burgers are also good, though… We’re trying to develop our steak menu at the moment. Another area we think we are good is special dietary requirements such as vegan menus.

*The bright airy restaurant can seat 30* – *all images Rachael Rowe*

What’s next?

There are lots of plans in the broadest sense – we’ve already made quite a big impact in the garden, which will obviously come into its own as the weather improves!

The skittle alley is being used, but we have more work to do there. And we have a small annexe that we’re just trying to decide what to do with.

For the pub itself, we’re tryinng to build our appeal to families. We’ve had the lawns relaid and extended the garden. People can now get to the hedge and look at that amazing view.

But in the short term, a lot is happening!
In January, we have a Burns Night theme on the 29th, and Project 17 a Pop Rock Covers Band from Gillingham are coming. On Valentine’s Day we’re creating a special menu, and there will be live music. We’re also planning a special event for Mother’s Day.

*The amazoing view from Ye Olde Two Brewers’ beer garden* – *all images Rachael Rowe*

Ye Olde Two Brewers are open Tuesday – Saturday 12-10pm and Sunday 12-6pm. Food is served 12-2pm and 6-8pm, and 12-3 on Sundays. https://www.2brewers.co.uk/

By: Rachael Rowe