climate change – Anne Clark Handmade

Trees are Amazing

Trees are amazing, we need them in so many ways. In Japan people are encouraged to spend time de-stressing amongst trees. Japanese doctors promote forest bathing as a relaxing break from hectic urban life. If you’ve been in a forest, listened to the birds and watched the sunshine filtering through the leaves, you’ve already participated in one of the best things you can do for your physical and mental well-being.

Trees help us breathe, they take in CO2 and give out the oxygen we need to live. They keep us cool by absorbing water and releasing it as water vapour and give us shade and shelter. It’s estimated that trees can reduce the temperature in a city by up to 7°C. They also improve air quality and remove pollutants that could otherwise contribute to health problems. I remember seeing a TV programme about a city school that planted trees around its boundaries, air quality improved, the temperature cooled, noise reduced and most importantly children’s health improved. It’s thought the UK’s ancient woodlands absorb 1.7 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year.

At St Peter’s Church in Belper we are lucky to have 96 trees, at times when branches and leaves have to be cleared it may not always feel like this. Trees are homes to organisms which range from bacteria to fungi, lichens, free algae, mosses, vascular plants, invertebrate animals, birds and mammals. They are also fun, in the National Trust’s list of 50 things to do before you are 11 3/4 the first is, ‘Get to know a tree.’ When I was younger I loved climbing trees and I had a favourite tree in all the woods local to where I lived.

Scientist now believe trees communicate with each other by a common mycorrhizal network. This is an underground network found in forests and other plant communities, created by the hyphae of mycorrhizal fungi joining with plant roots. Harvard University has done some experiments which confirm that trees are indeed communicating and sharing nutrients through their roots, forming a complex system sometimes referred to as the “wood wide web.”

My favourite tree is the English Oak. Oak trees provide a rich habitat and support more life forms than any other native trees.” A single oak tree hosts 532 species of caterpillars. A single oak tree also shelters 147 species of birds, 120 species of mammals, and 60 species of reptiles and amphibians. Dead trees and logs also provide shelter and habitats for fungi, wood-boring insects, woodlice, beetle grubs, wood wasps, spiders, frogs, toads, hedgehogs and birds. A simple pile of logs can very quickly become a flourishing wildlife community, including, ants, beetles, snails and squirrels. Its is possible to provide a small log pile in the smallest garden and a delight to watch birds such as the wren looking for food in this habitat.

I have noticed King Alfred’s Cake fungi on the trunk of the odd shaped tree on the south side of St Peter’s church Belper. The fungus gets its name from the traditional tale of King Alfred who lived in the 9th century when parts of Britain had been over run by Vikings. The story says that the king was taking refuge from the Vikings in a peasant’s home in 878 AD. He forgot to watch some cakes baking on the hearth and was scolded by the women when they burnt. Looking at the fruiting bodies, it’s not a stretch to see their resemblance to burnt buns. This species is also known as a tinder bracket. It has been used for thousands of years as portable fire lighting material. Once a spark is created by hitting flints together or creating friction between pieces of wood this fungi can easily catch fire. It is said to have been used to carry fire from place to place as it burns very slowly. It may look as though it has gone out but once blown on, flames appear. It is also known as ‘carbon balls’ or ‘coal fungus’.

Dandelions are Important

Like so many familiar wild plants, the dandelion has a rich traditional history. They are thought to have evolved about 30 million years ago, long before humans inhabited the earth. Dandelions used to be woven into spring wedding bouquets to bring good luck, and to dream of dandelions promised a happy relationship. I am writing this blog as earlier this week I dreamt of dandelions and I then discovered April 30th is now officially dedicated to the flower as International Day of the Dandelion.

Children love to blow the seeds of the dandelion clock and it was also used as an indicator of love by those still unmarried. The favourite was ‘he loves me, he loves me not’, a process that also applied to plucking daisy petals, dandelions are in the daisy family. Seeds floating away were thought to carry feelings of affection to the loved one.

The common name dandelion comes from the French dent de lion, meaning lion’s tooth and refers to the dentate leaf edges. The dandelion has many names among them bitterwort, blow-ball, telltime, cankerworth, witch’s gowan, milk witch, Irish daisy, monk’s head, priest’s crown, swine’s snout and white endive. The French themselves have adopted the plant’s traditional reputation as a herbal diuretic, calling it pissenlit – literally, wet-the-bed.

While dandelions are around for much of the year, late spring and early summer is when they are most visible. This year they seem exceptional and I have seen people post strange photos on social media where several have joined together, (both the heads and stems) to create giant flowers. The dandelion you see most often is Taraxacum officinale, the common dandelion, however there are more than 230 species of dandelion in the UK and the differences between them are small and very complex.

Dandelions are an early, easily available source of food for pollinators. Bumblebees, solitary bees and honeybees all visit dandelions, along with hoverflies, beetles, and butterflies such as the peacock and holly blue. Goldfinches and house sparrows eat the seeds.

Dandelions are good and useful for us as well. The leaves can be used to flavour salads, sandwiches and teas. The roots are used in some coffee substitutes, the flowers to make wines, dandelion jelly and honey. In the past, dandelion roots and leaves were used to treat liver problems. If you have allergies, you still need to check with your health care provider before consuming any dandelion product.

This year the Wildlife Trusts have called on people to make it a year of the dandelion spring, and I think the flowers themselves must have heard the news as the world seems to have turned yellow. They are so important for pollinators and wildlife. It is worth remembering we cannot survive without insects but if we were wiped out they would be fine, we need these beautiful wild flowers for our survival on earth.

Canaries in the Churchyard

In August canaries appeared in St Peter’s churchyard decorating the railings. The canaries and yellow bunting have been handmade by people to share their concern about climate change. Inspiration has been taken from yellow canaries because they are small, sensitive little birds that were used in the past to warn miners of dangerous pollution such as carbon monoxide.

In the same way the Craftivists hope that their little canaries and images of them sitting quietly in small ‘flocks’ will gently warn and remind us and those in power about the urgent dangers of global warming. Belper is a wonderful community and together we can try to have an impact on our town and the wider world. This is our way of saying we want to live in a world where we take care of nature, wildlife, people and protect our environment from global warming. The ‘Canary Craftivists’ campaign is part of a nationwide initiative run by the Craftivist Collective, who use handicrafts as a form of quiet, kind and attractive activism that they call ‘gentle protest’.

This year the UK has a particularly important role to play to address climate change as it’s hosting the COP26 UN climate summit in November. This meeting, hosted and overseen by Boris Johnson and the UK Government, will be a key moment where world leaders negotiate how they will reduce emissions to protect the environment and stabilise the climate.

As the first country in the world to industrialise, the UK has pioneered and shaped the world as well as contributing to the creation of climate change. The UK Government has an important role in bringing world leaders together to agree a way forward that will help, not harm, the world.

In another initiative this year the Young Christian Climate Network has organised a relay route where young activists will each complete a stage. Instead of a physical baton, each relay group will carry the same message of crucial action needed to reverse climate change. The relay will move from Truro Cathedral, near to where the G7 met, to Glasgow where COP26 will be begin on October 31.

BLUE Campaign

Blue hearts have been used as a symbol for a number of different campaigns. People were asked by some to put blue hearts in their windows to show support for the NHS. One of the campaigns I am most interested in, is the Blue Campaign for wildlife. https://bluecampaignhub.com/ This campaign encourages people to bring their local area to life by gardening for wildlife. We believe that each individual can change their surroundings and help restore UK biodiversity, either in their own garden or by working with councils or schools. Once one blue heart appears, others often follow.

If you would like a healthy garden full of colour and life, re-wilding is for you. It takes less effort than conventional gardening, and all of the plants are already in place, waiting for a chance to grow. You do not need to use wildflower mixes however it can be fun to see what extra plants these might bring.

Sowing wildflower seeds St Peter’s churchyard, Belper

There are a number of specialist websites that I have used. meadowmania.co.uk They have over 30 years’ experience of producing and supplying the highest quality seeds and plants, and they are passionate about British native wildflowers and seed. Rewilding part of your garden is also one very easy step to help restore UK biodiversity with habitats including long grass, hedges and ponds. Another company I have used is Naturescape www.naturescape.co.uk who are based in Langar Nottinghamshire. They have fields of wildflowers that you can walk around and a tearoom worth visiting.

Naturescape, Langar Nottinghamshire

You can start by leaving an area of your lawn without mowing it, when you do this, the native plants in your lawn will start to flourish, providing food and shelter for a wide range of invertebrates, birds, mammals and amphibians. You can do one mow in September once all the plants have seeded, but a completely undisturbed section will lead to a more developed habitat. The idea of the blue hearts on a stick is that if you place them in the area it tells everyone that this is being done to make a difference for wildlife and not because you cannot be bothered.

This garden is part of Belper Open Gardens and the blue heart shows the area being left for wildflowers.

It does not matter what your blue heart is made from but whatever you use may encourage others to do the same. In 2019 St Peter’s Church Belper gave away about thirty blue hearts and packets of wildflower seeds.

The larch

I remember the Monty Python sketch, ‘Number 1 The Larch’, about identifying trees from a distance. However the larch is not a tree I am very familiar with. The European larch is native to the mountains of Central Europe and was introduced into the UK in the early 17th century for timber plantations. It is a unique tree as it is the only deciduous conifer.

I have not taken much notice of the larch, (apart from the Monty Python sketch) but a new interest in making natural teas alerted me to the fact that you can use larch flowers and the needles for tea making. I hadn’t realised that the tree had such pretty pink/red flowers which eventually turn into the small larch cones. It is spring so I went on a hunt to find a larch tree with flowers.

The sad news is that many larch trees are dying from Sudden Larch Death. This disease causes the rapid decline and death of larch trees of all ages. Stem cankers, needle lesions and canopy dieback are all symptoms of Sudden Larch Death in the UK.

Today I searched in a local wood, hoping that if I found a larch, it would be well and healthy. I found a lot of trees but they did not look well to my untrained eyes. The tops of the trees had green leaves coming out but the lower branches had no green or flowers. Many had already been felled and this made me wonder if there is a problem. The colour of the wood was beautiful and I wondered what it is used to make.

Information found on the internet www.timberblogger.com/larch-wood/ says Larch wood is known to have tough, waterproof, and durable qualities. It is mostly used for boats, gazebos, floors, fencing, etc.

Having discovered the beauty and usefulness of the larch, I do hope it survives in the local woods and one day I can find enough flowers to try making tea. Larch trees like to grow in any wet, peat-rich soil. The right soil acidity —neutral to acidic—is also key. Larch trees do not grow well in soils with high pH. The area I discovered was wet with a lovely stream and I was glad that I wore my welly boots. I am now considering what I can look for next to make some natural tea.

Show the Love & Beyond.

St Peter’s churchyard was decorated with green Show the Love, handmade hearts in February 2021. Trees along the paths and the railings were decorated by local people and groups. This was a community effort to join in with the Climate Coalitions call to #Showthelove for our world.

2021 is a very important year for the future of our planet with the UN Climate Summit COP 26 taking place in Glasgow in November. We need the UK to ensure that the Climate Summit is successful and sets us on the path to a safe climate for all. Underpinning all of this is the imperative that global economic recovery is sustainable and doesn’t prevent us from limiting warming to no more than 1.5C.

Because of this the Climate Coalition are encouraging communities to have a Great Big Green Week in September as a call for action on climate change. Here are some of their ideas, ‘From local park clean ups and planting sessions, to concerts and community group stalls, you can plan events to suit your community. For guidance on how you can organise an event or green week, visit greatbiggreenweek.com‘

Already plans are being discussed in Belper and ideas being thought of. The date of the week is from September 18th – September 26th. Still hopefully plenty of time to plan.

I have recently read Rob Hopkins book, From What Is to What If (Unleashing the power of imagination to create the future we want). It is full of inspiring stories of communities working together to improve their lives, the places where they live and helping to look after the planet. Rob emphasises how important it is to start by imagining the future you would like and then work out ways of helping that future happen.

We can all do something however small and lots of small things do make a difference. We can also join in collective movements to make sure our Government and local authorities know that we think the issue of Climate Change and the Climate Crisis must be taken seriously.

In the last two years I have changed my gardening habits and have tried to think of ways to garden to help wildlife. In the garden we can make a difference and some of what we need to do actually saves time and money. Last year we only mowed our lawn twice and in between allowed the grass to grow along with the daisies, dandelions and clover. One of the things that really bothers me is how many front gardens are paved over for cars. This could be mitigated with a few pots of suitable bushes and flowers to make a difference for bees and insects .

Another easy thing households can do is to stop using any sort of pesticide as this is harmful to all insects and other creatures who eat the insects. Last year I made my first wildlife pond in an old washing up bowl and then enjoyed seeing it regularly used by birds and frogs. A small effort can give a lot of enjoyment. This year I have gone a little larger by digging a bigger hole and using a liner. On one afternoon I watched starlings, blackbirds and sparrows taking turns to bath. One really important thing we can all do is to be untidy. When we do any pruning I now leave piles of branches under bushes and have seen wrens hopping about looking for bugs to eat.

More advice on gardening for wildlife can be found here, RSPB website and on the Wildlife Trusts website. Watching the birds, frogs, squirrels, bees and insects has given us so much pleasure during the last year of on and off lockdowns.

Trees of St Peter’s Belper

In the previous twelve months St Peter’s Church like other Belper churches has had to change the way it meets and serves the community. At times the building has had to remain completely closed. At the time of writing this, the church can open for two hours a day for private prayer and have a limited service on Sunday mornings. Most of the different church denominations in Belper have moved their services onto the internet with many now having their own Youtube channels. St Peter’s Parish Belper.

During this time St Peter’s has used its grounds and its trees as a way of bringing pleasure to many who walk through the churchyard on their journey around the town. This has included photographs showing the beauty of the natural world at Harvest Time starting in September 2020.

An Advent Calendar gradually appeared in December 2020, in the days leading up to Christmas. Trees were decorated by individuals and community groups with the organisation being coordinated by Belper Woollen Woods. As well as the items used to illustrate the Advent story, bible readings were also attached to the trees.

Trees were decorated in many different ways with people using wool to knit and crochet, copies of paintings by local artists, needle felted pieces, embroidered fabric, painted MDF and wood. A fantastic stable was constructed by Mark and Josh Gregory and this was gradually filled with the main characters from the Christmas story.

In the month of January 2021 the trees were decked out with jokes, useful information and inspirational quotes.

In February 2021 the trees were decorated by people from the Belper community with Green Hearts. This was as a response to the Climate Coalitions ‘Show the Love’ (#showthelove) campaign, which is about using our voices to celebrate all the things we don’t want to lose, as a result of climate change.

There were so many fantastic hearts made by people of all ages, I decided to make a film about it and even in this it has not been possible to show every heart.

The season of Lent began on February 17^th 2021 and prayer flags beautifully written by local school children were strung between some of the trees along the path.

There are plans ahead for an Easter display, and then from April 17^th a POET-TREE trail organised as part of Belper Fringe by local poet Carol Brewer. More information can be found on the fringe website.

May 15^th – 23^rd, will see the trees dressed as part of 2021 Woollen Woods, as this year the woods come to town with trees decorated in both the Memorial Gardens, St Peter’s Churchyard, houses along Long Row and some shop windows.

St Peter’s church is happy to receive ideas from Belper people, please contact the church office for more information. office@stpetersparishbelper.org.uk

#showthelove 2021

This year it feels more important than ever to take climate change seriously. The UK should have hosted the UN Climate Change Conference last November which had to be cancelled because of Coronavirus. It is now hoped that the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, (also known as COP26), will be held in Glasgow, Scotland, from 1 to 12 November 2021 under the presidency of the United Kingdom.

**Logo designed for last years event by India Day.**

In 2015 there was a very important meeting in Paris and an agreement was signed by 196 countries. It is often mentioned on the news as the Paris Agreement, its goal was to limit global warming to well below 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels. Even this level of warming will make significant changes to our world so it feels that it is really important to make changes ourselves but also to do what we can to persuade those in power to reconsider their actions.

A vigil was held in Belper in 2015 which also included some craft activism making hearts to wear. A report can be read at NAILED Belper’s Independent News. Anyone wishing to make their own heart this year can buy a kit with everything they need from the Craftivist Collective. A-Heart-For-Your-Sleeve-kit

During 2020 many people discovered how important the natural world was to their mental health. I have written a previous blog about how it interesting it was in the first lockdown, to almost be forced to walk the same fields each week and see the progression of flowers, insects and fruits in the fields and hedgerows. We do need to take action to protect the natural world. https://www.anneclarkhandmade.co.uk/wildflowers-during-lockdown/

**Herb Robert,** a beautiful tiny wildflower found nearly everywhere.

The Climate Coalition, the UK’s largest group of people dedicated to taking action on climate change, ask that green hearts are made in February each year . This is what they say, ‘Green hearts are powerful, When you make and share your green heart, you help send a powerful message to decision-makers: that people from every corner of the UK want to see urgent action to protect the people, places and life we love from the worst impacts of climate change.’

**Large Green Heart made to tie around a tree.**

Last year we had a Show the Love event inside St Peter’s Church Belper, https://www.anneclarkhandmade.co.uk/showthelove/

This year the plan is to tie green hearts around the trees in the churchyard. When you make and display your green heart, you show others in your community that you care about climate change and are hopeful that we can protect what we love from its impacts by taking urgent action. Obviously because of the latest lockdown we cannot meet in groups to make these but we can still take action. As the Climate Coalition say, THE TIME IS NOW.

I have recently used an old cotton reel to make my own small banner.

Making Winter by Emma Mitchell

I love books particularly books about the natural world. In the last few years there have been so many fantastic new books published, I am constantly tempted to buy another. I thought I would write about some that I have read, learnt from and enjoyed. The first is Making Winter, (A Creative Guide for Surviving the Winter Months) written and illustrated by Emma Mitchell.

Emma is a naturalist, author and workshop leader. She often writes about how contact with the natural world can improve mental health. In 2020 this has been such an important message helping many of us cope while not being able to take part in our usual activities. Emma has appeared on BBC TV in Countryfile and Springwatch speaking about the healing effect of nature.

The book is full of beautiful photography, lovely illustrations and contains instructions for making many different projects. She includes different methods for making jewellery, how to use water colours, keep a nature diary, make comforting food and drink, many nature inspired crafts and several crochet patterns.

**A collection of things from a walk along the Cromford Canal**

I just love this book both for the overal look of it and for the clear instructions. I have tried many of Emma’s ideas and they have all turned out well. The first idea I tried was on page 15, Preserving Autumn Leaves. This Autumn the colour of the trees has been amazing and I was eager to see if I could preserve the leaves and their colours. Emma explains how this can be done using a mixture of water and glycerine and this worked really well for me.

**Preserving Autumn leaves as instructed by Emma**

I usually prefer knitting to crocheting but used a pattern from this book to make a Crochet Lace Necklace and was very pleased with the result. Emma has more crochet patterns and instructions on her website silverpebble.net

In 2015 Emma had a pattern published in Mollie Makes magazine for making a semicircle winter garland. I made this and was once again very pleased with the end result. I love the shape of flowers like Cow Parsley and Common Hogweed and I think my garland looks a little like these.

I have tried several of the recipes from the book including Blackberry and Almond Streusel Cake, Plum, Orange and Ginger Blondies and Apple and Caramel Chelsea Buns. I love using berries foraged from hedgerows and this year has been an amazing year for hawthorn, rose hips and blackberries.

I plan to make many more of the creations from Emma’s book and would recommend it as a beautiful present to give someone. This book was published in 2017 and since then she has published another book in 2019, The Wild Remedy, (How Nature Mends Us) written as a nature diary. Once again a most beautiful book in which Emma shares how taking walks in the countryside near her home has helped her with ongoing depression which is particularly difficult for her during the winter months.

Emma does however occasionally travel further from her home in Cambridgeshire and in the chapter for the month of June she visits Rose End Meadows in Cromford Derbyshire. The meadow is not the easiest place to find but well worth the effort. Here is what Derbyshire Wildlife Trust has to say about the area, “The meadows are a set of 16 small, hilly fields which can be accessed from Cromford Hill. Derbyshire Wildlife Trust purchased the land in 1987 and have been managing it ever since. The views across this part of the county are spectacular but the real gems are two-fold – the incredible mix of wild flowers from spring right through to summer, and the knowledge that you are strolling through a landscape that has predominantly remained unchanged for over a century; a genuine agricultural and wildlife time capsule. “

I feel so lucky to live in Derbyshire such a beautiful county however small patches of nature can be found and enjoyed even in most of our cities. It is good for our health, both physical and mental to spend time outdoors.

Nature during Lockdown

Lockdown because of the Coronavirus started in the UK in the middle of March 2020. This has been a very strange time for all of us and has affected people in so many different ways. At the start we were asked by the government to basically stay at home, if that was possible and only leave the house for one hour a day for some outside exercise. Obviously the possibility of this varied because of our different circumstances. I have been very lucky to have time to learn new skills, more time to garden and observe wildlife. I realise that for many life became more stressful and do hope that the natural world has helped them cope.

Some of the immediate effects were better air quality, less noise and those who went outside started to notice the wildlife and wild plants near to their homes. As someone who has always loved the natural world it has been most interesting to continuously walk the same fields and really notice the progression of flowering plants in the fields and hedgerows. I have written about this in a previous blog Wildflowers during Lockdown. I am more aware of all the small creatures we share the world with and now watch continuously for a slight movement that means I am not alone.

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