440 new Homes per Village Required

As you might have read recently, the government is going to try and build an unprecedented 2 million homes to cope with the out of control population boom, mostly due to mass immigration and subsequent extra births. Just this weekend the newspapers were reporting they want to build a new town in the already overcrowded Midlands of 100,000 people.

So, I was wondering what if instead of building large towns on greenbelts they instead allowed a few extra houses to be built in every village in the UK, would this solve the problem and how many houses would each village have to build to make up the 2 million new homes.

After a bit of digging around there is according to the Rural Communities department, 4,520 villages of fewer than 20,000 residents in the UK. Before knowing the number I thought perhaps 10 houses per village might be enough. However, this is not the case. To build 2 million new homes by just adding the houses to villages rather than towns and cities would require every village in the UK to build 440 new homes!

I don't think many villagers would be happy at all to see this number of houses built. It would mean many would double in size and 440 homes takes up quite a large area, not just an extra few homes at the top and bottom of a village entrance. Of course building solely onto villages will not happen, but it does give a very good indication of the scale of new housing that is about to take place. However, as I have wrote before and will no doubt write again, this is what the people of the UK have voted for. They voted over and over again for poltiical parties that allowed mass immigration on an unprecedented scale. Just last year net migration was 250,000 people, a city the size of Nottingham.

Having said that, the system whereby people only get to vote once every 5 years in a 'catch all' voting system so people are also thinking about the NHS, education, etc doesn't mean that they were voting in favour of huge immigration. In fact all polls for decades have showed a majority against allowing mass immigration (the politicians were well aware of this but ignored the will of the people). If a referendum had of taken place in the 1970s on the issue this country would now have a steady population of about 55 million, not 62 million heading fast towards and past 70 million.

Horse Chestnut Leaves Unfurling

I love seeing leaves and shoots on the trees at this time of year beginning to emerge. Here is a Horse Chestnut tree coming to life, no doubt in a weeks time the tree will be a blaze of fresh green.

Spring Bedding Plants

Primulas and Pansies are both great bedding plant options for early spring colour. Ideal for pots and containers. These varied coloured Primulas look great in a container.

Daffodil Pics

Spring is springing and one sure fire way of knowing it's here is seeing Daffodils all over the place. So here is some of the evidence taken from a walk this afternoon. As you can see there is a variety of colours and sizes and if you're thinking of planting some bulbs later this year you will find there is loads to choose from.













A variety of Daffodil bulbs can be ordered via Thompson & Morgan
Click here

Cucumber 'Green Fingers' F1 Hybrid

These nifty little numbers are new from Thomson & Morgan. They do well growing outdoors with support. Keep picking them when they are snack ready size for a bountiful crop throughout the summer. 4 Seeds £3.99 (that's not a typo, yes just four seeds. Perhaps as it is new variety there isn't many seeds about. Just make sure you don't sneeze and blow them down a crack in the decking.)

CLICK HERE to order

Onion ‘Doux des Cevennes’

New from Thomson & Morgan. Onion ‘Doux des Cevennes’ is a popular variety in France (If the French like these onions who are we to argue?!). A heritage variety that has a mild, delicate flavour. 200 seeds just £1.99


CLICK HERE to order.

Water - Greece v UK

I didn't catch the person's name being interviewed, or what organisation he was representing, today on BBC Radio 5 Live, but it sounded like he was from either the govt, or a charity. The fact that he quoted, which I thought was very astounding, was that per head of population hot and dusty Greece has more fresh water available than the UK!

So although their climate is a lot drier, the Greek population is one that is sustainable when compared with the amount of water they have available... whereas of course ours is not.

It was no surprise that this spokesman was saying the usual about using a thimble full of water to solve the problem and stayed well clear from the massive elephant in the front room guzzling up the water with its trunk.

I have not had a single answer to my questions to the organised monopoly currently making hundreds of millions of £££ from our water. Well, I'll give them a few days but don't hold your breath. I don't think they know the answers and if they do, they don't want to tell the public as it certainly won't look good.

Since I sent the questions I have also mused over the possibility that our water has been made into an increasingly expensive commodity. High population and demand with everyone on meters is surely a much more lucrative proposition for big multi national corporations than owning a plentiful supply and just getting a low subscription from customers every year.

Green - Death of a Forest

Green: Death of the Forests is a new film by filmmaker Patrick Rouxel. It explores the impact of deforestation and the exploitation of natural resources in Indonesia from the point of view of a dying orangutan. It's tragic what we are doing to the planet.



Watch the full film online here;

http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/witness/2012/03/20123131323627439.html

You can also buy a DVD on Patrick Rouxel's website and he is happy for it to be shown at public screenings. So perhaps it would be ideal for a showing at your local gardening club, church, WI etc.

http://www.greenthefilm.com/?cat=7

Soil Moisture Levels - UK & Europe

This fascinating map (click for larger image)from an EU department give a snapshot of soil moisture levels throughout the UK and Europe. The orange indicates where soild is drier than average for the time of year and the darker the green the more above average soil moisure is in an area. It seems the South East of England was in the green, except for parts around London. However as you can see North East England and East Scotland are in the orange, indicating the ground is much drier than usual. As I'm from the North East I can say it's a bit of a myth about the north always being wet. The East is in a rain shadow and doesn't get that much rain. However, as I went to university in Manchester, the west is a different matter! ;0)

Spain looks like it is in big trouble with almost the whole country showing their soil is drier than average for this time of year.

See 5 Planets in one Night

Tonight and the next couple of nights it's possible to see 5 planets in the sky with the naked eye. Even better if you have a pair of binoculars or telescope.

Here is a vid from the BBC with instructions about what to look out for.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17324826

Dolphin Rescue in Brazil

Well done to these Brazilians who came to the rescue of a pod of beached dolphins.

Amaryllis

You might have seen Amaryllis bulbs, in the shops, in the run up to Christmas. They have become a popular Christmas gift. They originate from South Africa and are bulbous plants that have long flower spikes.

When you buy them as a gift, they typically come with an attractive plant pot. However, as they are just bulbs when you buy them it is not quite as instant as a bouquet of flowers or a Poinsettia with its deep red or white leaves.

You might be visiting the person for Christmas and not see them for a few months or longer, so it's possible you never get to see what the Amaryllis turns out like, other than an illustration on the box. So here one is, two months after Christmas Day....

50ft Sperm Whale Washes Up Onto Beach

Heres a video of a report on a Sperm Whale 50 ft / 15 metres in length and weighing approximately 30 tonnes that has sadly washed up dead onto a beach in Skegness, Lincolnshire on the east coast of England. The report says it had a large gash on it's side. I wonder what happened to it?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lincolnshire-17260850

Mike de Gruy - Wildlife Cameraman 1951 - 2012

A BAFTA winning BBC wildlife cameraman has died whilst filming for National Geographic in Australia. He was in a helicopter that crashed in New South Wales.

He had filmed underwater footage for BBC Natural History blockbusters; Life in the Freezer, The Trials of Life and Blue Planet. In the 70's he was nearly killed in the Pacific after being attacked by sharks and he got into freezing waters with sea lions so he could better film them being attacked by a pod of orca whales.

The film he captured of a shark leaping from the sea to grab a low-flying albatross is seen as one of the most amazing pieces of wildlife footage ever filmed.

Here is his personal website with more info about him and his work.

http://mikedegruy.com