Taking Delivery of Our Recently Donated Tables

Our new tables, generously donated by Margaret Burrow at Barrow and District Disability Association. Thank you Margaret, it was very much appreciated.

Thank you also to Central and Hindpool Neighbourhood Wardens for collecting and delivering the tables.

Junior Wardens - Growing Well Training

Central and Hindpool Junior Wardens receiving basic gardening training from Growing Well education coordinator Pauline Sprott.

The training session, funded by a grant we received from Our Green Space, forms part of the Junior Wardens John Muir Award activities. Inspiring.

Among the various vegetables and herbs planted included; runner beans, lettuce, rocket and chives.

It is hoped that the first training event may lead to additinal training sessions for the Junior Wardens and/or volunteers on the Green Heart Den. We have also been invited to visit Growing Well. 

Additional pictures from the session can be viewed here.

Thank you to all who attended and contributed to what was a most enjoyable event.

Family Session Fun

The initial "family session", organised by Community Development Officers at the Community Unit, and hosted by the Green Heart Den proves to be successful. The sessions form part of the Aiming high for disabled children in Furness, Transforming Short Breaks agenda.

Additional family sessions have now been booked for each Thursday afternoon throughout the school summer holidays.

One vistor who enjoyed the event commented: "We had a nice afternoon and are looking forward to next week. Our cuttings are now in the garden"

Karen Y Hull, Furness Inclusion Worker - Short Breaks, Cumbria Children's Services said of the initial session:

"The event reflects the true spirit of community, partnership working and promotes the innovative opportunities being made available through the Aiming High - Transforming short breaks agenda".

A brief report provided by Karen can be viewed and downloaded here.

 

Fanastic......this is what it is all about.

Building Community

Building Community is an online showcase featuring real-time practice from partnerships comprising councils and communities that are in the process of transferring land or buildings into community asset ownership. The Building Community films are made in conjunction with the Asset Transfer Unit which is led and manageged by the Development Trust Association.

Building Community is a source of expert advice and information on how to transform land and buildings into community spaces; they are offering support to various organisations throughout the country who are undertaking asset transfer by providing an opportunity for them to showcase their organisation and the process over a 12 month period.
As part of the process for our introduction as a new DTA member we are to be filmed over the following 12 months by way of documenting both our progress as a new member of the Trust and our work to develop the north plot and the potential development of the vacant, adjacent railway arches.

Early days yet, but we have recently been given a new project page on the Building Community website here.

For additional information, please visit the Building Community website here.

Junior Wardens - John Muir Award Activities

The Green Heart Den is looking forward to again assisting Central and Hindpool Junior Wardens in their efforts to achieve a second John Muir Award. Various activities that contribute to the award will be conducted on the Green Heart Den and North plot during the school summer holidays. Among the various activities include; a bug hunt, a John Muir quiz, and basic horticulture training facilitated by educational staff from Growing Well.

DARE DANCE Press Release

DARE DANCE are trying to attract girls from Central and Hindpool to their summer activities. They have joined forces with the Forum and Inspiring Communities to offer a summer of dancing for infants, juniors and youth. Please see poster below for details.

Alternatively, you can download a free pdf copy of the poster here.

Brisbane Park School Visit

The Green Heart Den is currently preparing for, and looking foward to, this mornings visit of pupils, staff and helpers fom Brisbane Park School. We would like to thank Central and Hindpool Neighbourhood Wardens for helping to organise and facilitate this opportunity.

North Plot Tomatoes

Our tomatoes, planted earlier in the year, with the help of Central and Hindpool Junior Wardens. This forms part of the Junior Wardens efforts in working towards achieving a second John Muir Award.

Hiccup....Sleep walking again

Summer in the Garden Event

Among the free attractions provided for visitors included;  food, refreshments, live music, childrens entertainer and face painting. A big thank you to all who helped organise what was a very enjoyable event.

Estimated attendance for the event: 200 - 225 people of various ages.

A Six Spot Burnet Pays a Visit

If you would like more information about UK butterflies and moths please visit the Butterfly Conservation website here.

Cinnabar caterpillar enjoying some of our ragwort

Summer in the Garden 03/07/10

The Marsh Street Arches and Garden CIC would like to invite you to join us at both:

The "Summer in the Garden" event on the Green Heart Den and our AGM at Greengate Junior School. For details please see the poster below.

Alternatively a pdf copy of the invitation can  be downloaded here.

Our arbour is nearing completion.

Climbing plants such as; honeysuckle, jasmine, clematis and grape vine will shortly be planted in the large planting boxes.

View pictures detailing the progress of the arbour here.

FREE Plant Pots and Seed Trays

Following an exceptionally generous and anonymous donation earlier today, we now have thousands of new plastic plant pots and seed trays. 

Once they have been sorted we would like to offer them to say; local  schools, community groups and residents. If you, or anyone you may know are interested in the FREE (not for resale) plant pots and seed trays and would like to arrange to collect some -  please contact Project Coordinator, Graham Bromley on: 07919 991 989.

Our Bramleys Seedling

These are one of  the most popular cooking apple of all time. Bramley's Seedling - nowadays just know as the Bramley Apple tree - produces great big, flat bottomed apples with plenty of colour, usually boasting an orange-russet flush over their greenish yellow skin, with wide strokes of red completing the picture. The white flesh has a sharp flavour and juices very well - mixed with sweeter apple varieties, it makes excellent apple juice - go for about 70% bramley's, 30% other sweet varieties and can also be added to cider. The sharp flavour mellows with storage, so they become interesting dessert apples by the spring - a Bramley's apple contains about 2.5 times more vitamin C than an average apple, which is another good reason to save some to eat raw. Despite the fact that these fruit are pretty versatile, they are just so good at one thing that you will be excused for not bothering to experiment. Few other cookers bake so easily into the deliciously light, fluffy, syrup infused puree that is the ideal cooked apple - the flavour is mouth wateringly tangy and fruity and the texture is simply perfect.

North Plot Banking - Splash of Colour

Wildflower seeds -  scattered last year with the help of Central and Hindpool Junior wardens as part of their John Muir Award activities -  are beginning to add colour to the north plot banking wildlife haven

.............................Inspiring !

Our Egremont Russet

Our Egremont Russet appears to be flourishing and is now beginning to produce apples.

Recently Update Flickr Photo Sets

We have recently updated several of our Flickr photo gallery sets. If you would like to view them please click on the links below.

• Green Heart Den 2010
• Flora and Fauna
• Natural Wildlife Haven
• Arbour Installation Process

Green Heart Den - View from railway arch D

New Community Wildlife Funding Programme

A brand new grant scheme from The Big Lottery Fund awards National Lottery money to nature projects that bring local people together. The Community Wildlife programme will fund between £300 and £10,000 for projects that:

i) Improve rural or urban environments for people to enjoy, for example by:

• protecting wildlife habitats
• creating a nature trail, woodland walk or wildlife garden for people to enjoy
• improving natural community spaces, such as rivers, ponds and woodlands 

ii) Get people more active and healthier, for example by:

• exploring parks, rivers and the countryside to look for rare or endangered species  
• encouraging people to take up gardening or go on nature walks  
• providing opportunities for children to learn about nature through play

If you would like further details, please visit the Big Lottery website here.

Soroptimist Group Visit and Donation

Thank you to Margaret Burrow and members of the local Soroptimist group who visited the Green Heart Den in celebration of World Environmental Day and generously donated various plants including buddleja and heathers.

Special thanks to Margaret for arranging the visit and donating a large variety of seeds including -  poppies, marigolds, honesty -  and vegetable plants donated friends that included tomatoes, lettuce and courgettes. Fantastic

Our Raised Planters

Among the herbs in our raised planters include; rosemary, lavender, mint, chives and sage.

Ladybird Larvae

First sighting of an actual ladybird larvae.

You can download a ladybird ID chart here.

You can also download a ladybird larvae ID chart here.

Our Corn Cockle

One Of The Many Inhabitants Of The North Plot Banking - "Wildlife Haven"

Our Arbour Is Taking Shape

Female Common Blue Damselfly

Again,  although not certain but I understand that this is a female Common Blue Damselfly as pictured on the North Plot Banking - natural wildlife haven.

Arbour Progress

Gilmour Fabrications Ltd have begun the installation of our large arbour feature. Funding for this work has been provided as part of the grant we received from Our Green Space.

North Plot Wildlife Haven - Damselfly ?

Although not certain I understand that this is a male Common Blue Damselfly pictured on the North Plot Banking - natural wildlife haven.

Blue Tit Nesting Boxes

Our blue tits are proving to be doting parents!

Wild about Plants - Bee Scene

Bee Scene is part of the national project Wild about Plants, delivered by Plantlife, the organisation working to protect and conserve wild plants in the UK.

Community groups, schools and families are invited to take part in a new survey to spot bee-friendly wildflowers in parks and green spaces. By looking out for 15 types of wildflower that bumblebees thrive on, Plantlife and the Bumblebee Conservation Trust hope to be able to see if bumblebees have enough pollen for them to flourish.
 
For more information please visit Wild About Plants here.

World Environmental Day - 5th June 2010

Organised by United Nations Environmental Programme, World Environmental Day is global day for positive, environmental action, raising awareness of the environment and encouraging political attention and action.

If you would like more information please visit their website here.

Reaching Communities Programme Reopens

 The Big Lottery Reaching Communities programme funds projects that help people and communities who are most in need, and can really make a difference. Projects can be new or existing activities, or be the core work of your organisation.

It funds projects that respond to needs identified by communities, and those that fund projects that help those most in need, including those people or groups who are hard to reach.
They want to encourage the following changes to communities as a result of our funding:

• People having better chances in life, including being able to get better access to training and development to improve their life skills.
• Strong communities, with more active citizens, working together to tackle their problems.
• Improved rural and urban environments, which communities are better able to access and enjoy
• Healthier and more active people and communities.

The Reaching Communities budget will be at least £100 million each year until 2013.
 
For more details please visit the Reaching Communities website here.

Designated Public Place

The Green Heart Den is now officially a Designated Public Place, covered by an Alcohol Designation Order.

Details of the order can be viewed and/or downloaded here.

Thank you to all who helped us to obtain this designation.

Wildflower Seed Success

The wildflower seeds - purchased from wildflower conservation charity Landlife, and scattered by Central and Hindpool Junior Wardens as part of their John Muir Award activities - are beginning to flower on the north plot banking and attract a variety of wildlife.

For additional pictures of our natural wildlife haven please visit our Flickr photo set here.

Our Green Space - FREE training for communities

Thanks to those local communities who have already been in touch to offer their sites for training sessions for management plans, Our Green Space now have a range of interesting sites and situations and have set the first part of the programme as follows. For advice on which may be most relevant to your needs, to book a free place or if you are interested in hosting an event, please get in touch.

From Management Objectives to Actions on the Ground:
Developing a set of volunteer actions from Management Plan objectives.
Millom Ironworks Local Nature Reserve - Saturday 12 June at 10.00 a.m.

Managing for Wildlife:
How to improve rough grassland to create habitats and encourage wildlife.
Braithwaite Common (near Keswick) - Tuesday 15 June at 7.00 p.m.

Managing Common Problems:
Writing a management plan for village greens including practical discussion on parking and access.
Dufton Village – Tuesday 29 June at 7.00 p.m.

Preparing a Management Plan – starting from scratch.
Issues to consider when creating a new plan for an open space
Bolton near Appleby – Monday 5 July 7.30 p.m.

Developing a Management Plan – building on success.
Creating a plan for a site where improvements have been made and more are planned.
Ravenstonedale – Tuesday 13 July at 2.00 p.m.

How to Write a Management Plan:
Taking account of heritage, biodiversity, access, recreation and interpretation.
Threlkeld – Saturday 24 July 10.30 a.m.

Each session lasts between 1.5 and 2 hours. Delegates will receive a comprehensive course pack and a copy of Open Green Spaces - A Guide to Common Management Issues.

For more information and to book your free places, please contact Shirley Muir: Email: shirleymuir7@btinternet.com

Tel: 016973 20803 Mob: 077755 28786

*Our Green Space project is funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and managed by Friends of the Lake District in partnership with Action with Communities in Cumbria (ACT) www.ourgreenspace.org.uk

Furness College Seat Design Presentation

Project Coordinator Graham Bromley (right) presenting Furness College Andrew Peter Wilkes with a graphics tablet for his work in producing the final, chosen seat design . The art and design department were also presented with several graphics tablets for their work in the seat design process.

Funding for the graphics tablets was provided from the grant we received from Our Green Space.

Currently we are exploring options for having the seat fabricated locally. Potentially this could include the involvement of the joinery department at Furness College.

For additional pictures detailing the design process please visit our Flickr photo gallery here.

Thank you to Rosie Hillman for the pictures.

One Of Our Cinnabar.........

Resembling no other British species, except perhaps the burnets (Zygaenidae), this is a fairly common moth in much of Britain. It is generally nocturnal, but is quite often disturbed during the day from long grass, low herbage etc. At night, it comes to light. The distinctive larvae, with their yellow and black hoops, generally feed gregariously on ragwort (Senecio jacobaea) and other related plants. The flight period is May through July.

If you would like further information about UK butterflies and moths please visit the Butterfly Conservation website here

North Plot Wildlife Haven - Daisy

Some Of Our Allium

Our Bumble Bees

One of our bumble bees taking a mid day snack from our birds foot trefoil.

A Touch Of Colour For Our Raised Planters

Some of the flowers planted by Central and Hindpool Junior Wardens in our north plot raised planters.

Volunteer Opportunities

1. Marsh Street Arches & Garden CIC - Garden Caretaker

Description - Marsh Street Arches & Garden require a caretaker for the local garden. Duties will include securing the garden, general caretaking duties including the opening and closing of the community garden.

Skills/Qualifications:
No specific skills or qualifications required.

For further information about the above post or if you have any requirements could you please contact Lisa Millard on 01229 823144 or Email: lisam@cumbriacvs.org.uk

2. Marsh Street Arches & Garden CIC - Gardener

Description - A volunteer gardener required 2 hours a week, tasks include weeding, grass cutting, mulching, general tidying, litter picking and basic garden maintenance.

Skills/Qualifications:
No formal skills or qualifications required.

For further information about the above post or if you have any requirements could you please contact Lisa Millard on 01229 823144 or Email: lisam@cumbriacvs.org.uk

3. Marsh Street Arches & Gardens CIC/HR/Admin Support

Description - A varied and challenging role which includes assisting with volunteer recruitment, implementation of Marsh Street Arches & Gardens CIC's Policies and procedures and assisting the existing admin persons where necessary.

Skills/Qualifications:
A previous background in Human Resources, would suit an individual who has retired or is unable to work and wants to make use of their time and knowledge.

For further information about the above post or if you have any requirements could you please contact Lisa Millard on 01229 823144 or Email: lisam@cumbriacvs.org.uk

Our Natural Pest Control

We offer free room and board - as much as you can eat. All we ask in return is a little help with pest control.

Childrens Society Interactive Garden

To celebrate their fourth year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, the Childrens Society - who run a network of community projects that provides support to children who can, with help, guidance and a little inspiration, go on to fulfil their potential - have created a digital garden that you can watch bloom between 18-26 May.

If you would like to see their garden grow please visit: http://www.chelsea2010.org.uk/

North Plot Banking - A Wildlife Haven

The north plot banking, created last year,  has become a wildlife haven attracting various species of bugs, bees and butterlies. We are planning to scatter additional, native wildflowers seeds on the banking this year with the help of Central and Hindpool Junor Wardens. This work will form part of their John Muir Award activites

Seat Design Winner

Pictured below at Furness College are Tutor Mike Walsh, art and design student Andrew Peter Wilkes who produced the final design, our Project Coordinator Graham Bromley and Julia Geere from Childrens Services.

This follows our work in partnership with Mike, the art and design students from Furness College and Julia in which we had provided the students with a brief to develop design options for seating. Ultimately the final winning design is to be manufactured locally and sited on the Green Heart Den. This design worked formed part of the students work on the "Involving schools and colleges in Barrows Regeneration" project.

Funding for the fabrication of the final seating design is to be provided from a grant we received from Our Green Spaces.

Additional pictures of the seat design process can be viewed on our Flickr photo gallery here.

One of our Common Blue Butterflies

The Common Blue is small, widespread butterfly. The male has blue wings with black-brown border and thin white fringe. The female is brown, similar to Brown Argus, but with blue dusting near body. Unlike Adonis and Chalkhill Blues, the dark veins do not extend into white fringes of wing margins.

Foodplants:

Common Bird's-foot-trefoil  is the main foodplant. Other plants used include: Greater Bird's-foot-trefoil , Black Medick , Common Restharrow, White Clover, and Lesser Trefoil.

Habitat:

It occurs in a range of grassy places where its foodplants grow in sunny, sheltered situations on downland, coastal dunes and undercliffs, road verges, acid grassland, and woodland clearings. It is also found in waste ground, disused pits and quarries, golf courses, and urban habitats such as cemeteries.

If you would like more information about UK butterflies, please visit the Butterfly Conservation website here.

Junior Wardens grow their own......

Central and Hindpool Junior wardens planting their own tomatoes in our large planing boxes.

Our Bat Boxes.....

Some of our hand made bat boxes, constructed from recycled, rough sawn, untreated timer. Central and Hindpool Junior Wardens will be making additinal boxes for us over the next few weeks.

Junior Wardens John Muir Activity

Central and Hindpool Junior Wardens begin their efforts to achieve a second John Muir Award. Among the tasks included; litter picking, composting, preparing to make bat boxes, deadheading and tying back our daffodils and planting tomatoes in the raised planters

For more pictures from the event please visit our Flick photo gallery here.

Bat Boxes......

The Green Heart Den is planning to make several bat boxes with assistance from Central and Hindpool Junior Wardens. This work will form part of their efforts to achieve a second John Muir Award.

The UK's bat populations have suffered severe declines, largely due to loss of habitat. Human activities have increasingly and continue to change the environment we live in resulting in substantial declines in biodiversity.

However, bats are fascinating animals and make a substantial contribution to the UK's biodiversity, comprising around one third of all our mammal species. They are a vital part of our native wildlife and are indicators of a green and healthy environment, so their future is directly linked to our quality of life and the quality of our environment.

We are hoping to help a little by providing bat boxes and appropriate plants that may help to enourage other bats.

 

If you would like more information about helping bats please visit the Bat Conservation Trust here.

If you can’t measure it.......

If you can’t measure it.............you can’t manage it !

If you don’t measure it........….don’t do it !

Think Big Fund From 02

Think Big encourages young people, aged 13 to 25, tackle the issues that most affect them, their friends, their neighbours or their community. So if you are between these ages or know someone who is – if you want to make a change for the better – take a look at www.o2.co.uk/thinkbig
They can offer funding and training and a whole load of support – to get projects going and make things happen.
The application is easy, and it won’t take very long. If your project is shortlisted they’ll call you up to have a chat, and let you know within 6 weeks of applying whether or not your application has been successful.

If you have any questions please give them a call on their free phone helpline: 0800 902 0250.