helping at home

wildlife gardening

The best way of helping wildlife directly in you garden is to make it more habitable for them. Think about their requirements, a home, food, water and safety. You can make nesting boxes for birds and bats, bird feeders, bird tables, ponds for frogs, newts, and insects, compost heaps for worms, plant flowers for bees, butterflies and other insects, shrubs and trees, you can create specific habitats for the wildlife you want to attract. Trees also help trap unwanted gasses that effect global warming like carbon dioxide.

Maybe try planting some vegetables and feed yourself!

Here are a few ideas for feeding the birds in your garden:

The best way we can help birds in winter is to provide regular food that is easy to find, safe and nutritious, plus water and ideally some shelter.

Feeding Guidelines

	Try to position bird tables and feeders out of reach from cats.
	Remove uneaten food from bird tables after a couple of days.
	Wash feeders and tables every couple of weeks with hot soap and water.
	Disinfect and rinse all feeding equipment every three months.
	Don't put out food that is mouldy.
	Once you start, feed daily so birds can rely on you.

High energy squidge

Melt or soften some lard or dripping, and then mix in seeds, cake crumbs, oats, grated cheese and other goodies to make a nutritious high-energy squidge for birds. How you can offer it will depend on the texture you make.

	Squish it between the opened scales of a fir come to which you have firmly attached a hanging wire or string. Hang the cone up outside.
	Plaster it onto the bark of a tree.

Push it into an empty plastic yoghurt tub after first attaching a hanging loop through the base. Hang it upside down

Tray table

A bird table can be made from a sturdy plastic seed tray screwed firmly to the top of a wooden post. It has ready made drainage holes.

Bottle fed!

For this you need a plastic bottle, two foil dishes at least 8cm wider than the bottle, a strong stick longer than the width of the bottle, a pencil, scissors, tow 50cm lengths of string and of course some dry seed-based bird food to fill it with.

	Cut the top and bottom off the bottle to leave a tube.
	Cut two semicircular notches from one end
	Tie the pieces of string to the stick at the same distances apart as the width of the tube.
	Use the pencil point to make two small holes in the smaller foil dish at the same width again, and thread one string through each hole, from the bottom to the top.
	Thread on the notched bottle, notches first.
	Add the second foil dish, upside down (use the pencil again to make holes).
	Tie the strings together at the top leaving enough of a loop to be able to slide the top dish up to fill the feeder tube.

Fill the feeder, hang it up and wait for your guests.

Carton Kiosk

If you have no room for a bird table, you can use this hanging feeder made from an empty milk carton to serve the same kind of food. The light design makes it very mobile - but good for tits.

For further information on wildlife gardening visit The Wildlife Trusts Wild About Gardens website click here

waste reduction and recycling

Most household rubbish is disposed of in landfill sites but we are quickly running out of space and the costs are increasing affecting our Council Tax.

There are many ways to help the matter here's a few ideas:

Reduce

	Print and photocopy on both sides of the paper wherever possible
	Prolong car tyres by making sure the pressure is correct.
	Avoid using disposable objects like plastic cups, paper plates, etc

Re-use

	Reuse plastic carrier bags. Take a bag with you when shopping.
	Reuse envelopes by crossing the address out.
	Give unwanted items away if no longer required, others maybe able to make use of it.

Repair

Repair worn or damaged items where possible don't just buy a new one.

Recycle

	Buy a compost bin to put all your potato skins and other food waste in to make a rich fertiliser for your garden.
	Use unbleached or recycled paper.

Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRC) across Lancashire received nearly 143,00 tones of waste last year, 71% of which was recycled or re-used. Get in on the act and use your local HWRC.

To find your local Lancashire Household Waste Centre click here.

To find your local Merseyside Household Waste Centre click here.

To find your local Manchester Household Waste Centre click here.

save energy

In order for power stations to provide us with electricity many burn fossil fuels which pollute the atmosphere with carbon dioxide. All these gases are contributing to climate change, which are expected to lead to violent storms, more flooding and hotter, dryer summers which increases the possibility of drought.

Things you can do to help include:

	Switching all electrical goods off at the power point and don't leave them on standby.
	Turn down your heating.
	Switch of light when not in use
	Use energy efficient light bulbs.
	Use companies which supply power via renewable energy sources like wind farms. Renewable energy can be gained through natural sources such as sun, water and wind, which produce less greenhouse gases.
	Dry your clothes on the washing line instead of using tumble dryers which use huge amounts of energy. Same with washing machines only use when you have a full load.

save water

Growing demands on water suppliers due to new housing developments and the ever increasing hotter summers the higher risk of drought there is. Therefore it is essential that people make every effort to cut down their water wastage. There are lots that can be done here are a few:

	Make sure there are no taps dripping as this can possibly lead to wasting 13 litres a day.
	Turn off the tap when your brushing your teeth of a morning.
	Use a shower when ever possible as they use less water than a bath. This can save upto 50 litres every time.
	Set up a container to collect rain water to water the garden or your potted plants.
	By putting a Hippo bag or a plastic bottle filled with water in your toilets cistern you can save substantial amounts of the six to nine litres which is used each time you flush your toilet.