Introducing our new correspondent…
I live in rural Shropshire with my husband Martin. We have about four acres of land and keep horses, a donkey, two ancient tups and half a dozen hens. Alongside these we have two dogs, and a rescue cat called Nellie. Nellie has been the inspiration for our business - Nellie's Patch – where we grow our own herbs and flowers that we use in our palm oil free soaps, and for wedding work.
Julie Lyons, 2011
Julie writes:
As May peeps around the corner, there has been a mix of nice things happening and a worrying turn of events for us here in Shropshire, and the very close mid-Wales area.
The most cheering has seen the return of the swallows and house martins, though the numbers of swallows is so far down.
I love to see those birds ducking and diving in and out of the horses' stables. I am hoping we will have some more on their way. The martins have taken up residence in their old nests. We have a small terrace alongside our bedroom window, and go to sleep hearing their gentle musings, and awake to their morning chirps. I think I heard the cuckoo earlier in the week; last year I didn’t hear it at all.
Martin my husband, has been talking for ages about buying some bee hives, and now he has acquired his first. I love the idea, but must admit I am a little nervous of the bees; I will enjoy the honey. We are hoping they will take nectar from the herbs and roses that we grow for our soap making business. Lavender honey, should be yummy. The bees are due to arrive in June.
Daisy our cocker spaniel has had her first coat strip. I was so pleased when the dog groomer told me she had been good. I had visions of our playful little dog rolling over and chewing her hands and not allowing it to happen. I hardly recognised this pretty, clean, dog after the grubby, untidy one I had left! She smelt gorgeous too, that didn’t last long, Daisy loves coming in the stables!
So along with all the pleasures of our rural existence, comes a giant fly in the ointment – electricity pylons. Up until just over a month ago we had no notion of the possibility of our wonderful countryside being blighted by them.
A document and a road show announced that a proposed wind farm in mid-Wales needed to link to the national grid, and that we, along with many others are in a corridor for the largest type of pylon construction. I am not against renewable energy, at all, but from what I have gleaned recently, this type is not efficient. It takes many years to cover the cost of construction and by which time the turbines are defunct and in so doing destroys some of the most unspoilt countryside in Britain.
Apparently the Welsh Assembly has not given their final go ahead, we hope they can be persuaded against it. We also hope people power can prevail.
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