BEST YORKSHIRE LIFE
Events, openings and happenings across Yorkshire
FOOD LOVE
FoodCycle Bradford is looking for food waste warriors, kitchen wizards and volunteers. FoodCycle offers a weekly community meal and the charity strives to make food poverty, loneliness and food waste a thing of the past. ‘FoodCycle magic’ is in transforming surplus food into delicious vegetarian dishes and offering a friendly chat to anyone in the community.
FARMING HEROES
The Nicholson family from Cannon Hall are winners of this year’s Farmers Guardian’s Farming Hero: Flying the Flag for British Agriculture. More than 1 million people visit the farm and the family was praised for educating consumers about where their food comes from, and the role of British farmers, with their daily, live broadcasts about looking after animals and connecting people with nature.
Festive fresh air
National Trust Longshaw, near Sheffield, fills people with festive cheer in December. Longshaw Christmas trees have been decorating people’s homes for the festive season for almost 50 years. Rangers and volunteers expertly grow a small selection of trees on site throughout the year, from the traditional Norway spruce to the Fraser fir, which is famous for producing the rich aromas of a traditional Christmas.
It’s a year-round affair, of course, says NT ranger Mark Bull. ‘We like to say a tree bought is a tree planted, as money raised through selling Christmas trees supports the conservation we do. Over the last year we’ve been restoring wood pasture at Longshaw, enabling us to plant more native trees such as rowan, oak, holly and hawthorn to provide a better habitat for wildlife and protecting the woodland against climate change. We’ll also be planting individual trees across the estate that will grow as features in the landscape for many years to come.’
As part of a decade long Woodland Pasture Restoration Project, funded by Natural England, rangers are managing a programme of woodland work at Longshaw; opening up some glades and planting native species to help create better habitats for insects and birds. Similar work carried out around Sheffield Plantation is already seeing the benefit for wildlife, with birds such as kestrels and redstarts being spotted.
Trees are on sale throughout December as well as a range of festive events at the estate, including: Breakfast with Santa at The Café at Longshaw on December 2, 3, 9, 10, 16, 17.
Wreath-making events at Moorland Discovery Centre at Longshaw, under expert guidance with locally sourced natural materials, are on December 2, 3, 9, 10 or 11. Children can also get in the festive spirit and cre
