It was a sad day last Thursday when one of the girls passed away just five short weeks after release from the battery pens. She was one of the weaker birds and enjoyed her time of freedom before succumbing to a fermenting crop. She was a little unwell the day before so I moved her to a quiet shed in the warm with fresh water and food. I spoke to fellow chicken keepers and had had much advice given. In the morning, she seemed to perk up and I thought she would be around for a long time. Sadly, by 12 noon she had rolled onto her side. I went to see how she was I am sure she winked at me, as if to say thank you, before drawing her last breath. At 12.02, kebab, as the youngsters named her, was in chicken land, wherever that is.

The rest of the girls knew something was wrong, suddenly appearing outside the shed. They made no noise, just peered in, fluffed up their feathers before walking off. Kebab is buried under a tree she took such a fancy too when I first let them all out to explore the garden.

What is great is the way the girls have really filled out, are laying four eggs a day and will now feed from visitors hands. If you have space and time to devote to taking ex battery hens, get them into your garden or back yard for a better life for both of you. Just one word of warning – watch your garden plants.

January
Buy local organic produce, perhaps one type at a time over the year.   This will reduce food miles and help the local economy as well as reducing the amount of chemicals consumed through non-organic spraying.  Soft fruits are the most likely to contain a high level of chemicals if not organic.  It will also get you to buy fruit and vegetables that are in season thus reducing air miles that out of season produce travel from all corners of the world.

February
Get rid if the plastic shower curtain as they contain a chemical, Phthalates that is an endocrine disrupter linked to male hormone problems in the reproductive system.  If possible plastic bottles of grooming products should be avoided too so look for those in glass bottles if possible.  Replace the curtains with ones made of bamboo, hemp or unbleached cotton for a warm touch in the winter and easy to wash and dry thus helping to keep the bacteria down.

March
After the cold of the winter, it is time to get the windows open for at least thirty minutes a day to get rid of bad air.  Recent test found that there is up to 60% more pollution inside the home than out.  Every night have at least one small window open to allow air to flow through the house.  By using natural air conditioning like this, the home will feel fresh and those inside will have fewer sniffs and colds, as the bugs are blown away.

April
Chemicals appear in the fabric of containers used every day for holding grooming and make up products across many ranges.   They are in day-to-day beauty products such as antiperspirants that use aluminium salts to block pores and linked to Alzheimer’s.  Have a look at organic alternatives from companies such as www.soorganic.com and www.naturallyfabulous.co.uk.  Some use rock crystal whilst others use natural ingredients that eat the sweat enzymes and deodorises with sweet smelling Cedar and Sandalwood.  They can be as effective as aluminium based products.

May
Don’t be tempted to resort to the chemical store to help in the home or garden and use old tried and tested methods such as soot around apple trees to stop bugs getting into the fruits,  sharp sand to keep slugs at bay or urine to keep mice and foxes away.  There is also Diatomaceous earth, which is a natural enemy of many bugs and pests.

June
Have you ever looked quickly at the bottle of cleaning products? Many of the chemicals used are either environmentally unfriendly or carcinogenic so why not use the natural products our grandparents used.  Vinegar, lemon and baking soda to name just a few are all natural, easy on the pocket and kind to the environment.  In lime scale areas vinegar helps to remove the build up of lime on the elements.  Pour in white vinegar to the top of the element and leave over night.  Write a note on the kettle so that your early morning cuppa is not a shock!
Pour the vinegar down the sink to help keep things fresh and wash out the kettle twice with fresh water.  This water can be used to clean windows or even put into the car washer bottle.

July
Buy organic tea and coffee as this will reduce the amount of pesticides ingested as coffee has the highest level of pesticide use than any other crop.  By going organic, you will also be supporting some of the smaller farms and their workers. Organic milk would be another small way forward as it contains more vitamin E, Omega-3 and antioxidants that do not occur in  other milks and do not have the antibiotics found in the milk of intensive farmed animals.

August
Did you know  that taking your shoes off at the door and putting on slippers will slow down the build up of chemicals entering your home.  With all the residue falling and washing on to the footpaths and gardens, they attach to shoes and then get trodden into the home carpets.  It may not sound a problem but if there are small children in the home they often crawl and pick up objects from the floor.  These become the host for the chemicals or eggs of animal worms that are ingested from the toys.  A simple mat either side of the front door and slippers for you all will help and guest will soon understand and remove their shoes too.

September
Just by turning down the thermostat by a few degrees, you will save money and keep your home a healthier place and wearing a jumper inside could become a fashion again.  In our double-glazed, draft free homes, we suffer more colds, upset stomachs and itches caused by the build up of heat loving bugs that
multiply at disturbing rates.  Opening the windows with the heating off will flush out these germs and make for a happy family.

October
Give up meat for one or two days a week. By doing this you will reduce the suffering of intensive bred animals and reduce your intake of chemicals and animal antibiotics.  There are many exciting recipes for vegetarian family meals so have a look at www.vegsoc.org or try reducing the waste food being thrown away.  On average each household buys three bags of food and throws away the equivalent of one bag.  This when over half the world is starving.  Have a look at the great site www.lovefoodhatewaste.com that looks at ways of reducing our purchases and food being thrown away.  Some of the recipes are those my Grandmother cooked up for us when young and based on the war effort push to reduce consumption and use up all scraps.

November
If you are able to leave the car at home and take a bus or train to work, do.  It will save up to £1,000 a year and if you get of a stop or two early you will become fitter.  Sharing a lift will also do your part as will taking the stairs instead of the lift.  A recent piece of research found that the air inside a car on a journey of an hour or more has nearly 10 times more carbon monoxide and high levels of formaldehyde from the interior fabrics.

December
Instead of rushing out to buy endless retail driven, plastic and use for 10 minutes consumer goods why not make your own gifts.  For the cost of an old cotton shirt, you could make small lavender or herb bags.  Get the children to paint pictures on the back of cereal packets. Nip into the newspaper shop and buy a stick on calendar, as gifts to family and friends…love for a year for a few pence and little time.  For the more adventurous, why not make jam or pickle to hand out instead of the bath salts or pairs of one use socks (if they ever get out of the bag)

These are just a few of the things we can all do to cut down our own carbon footprint to help the planet and safe guard the future for the next generations.

Humane mouse trap

Ants 
Seeing a line of ants walking through any room in your home is disconcerting and although they do not carry diseases, are still seen as a threat.
Ants work on a secreted tracks to follow so by breaking that with Vaseline or a mild solution of vinegar and water moped along the track.  It will not kill the ants but will put them off entering the house.  Find out where they are entering the house and fill the holes with Vaseline.  If they do continue, the only other solution is to find the nest and pour boiling water over it that will kill the nest.

Bed bugs
Increasingly bed bugs are making their way into many more homes due to the continued warm weather that allows them to survive longer than if there were long spells of frost.  They cause much distress to those inflicted with them as well as the itchy bites.  As they often come into the home in luggage it is always best to disinfect any luggage every time it comes in to the home from trips. Use hot soapy water to remove the bugs and eggs from inside and out of the luggage before putting away.  If you are infested you will need to go through the infected room thoroughly from ceiling down.  Check all the light fittings, behind and around the bed, the skirting boards, any ripped wallpaper and doorframes and pictures.  Remove all the bedding and place in a plastic bag. Wash at the highest temperature you have with baking soda.  Use Diatomaceous earth (www.greengardener.co.uk) on carpets and rugs which you leave done for a week before vacuuming.  Avoid brand chemical products where possible.

Carpet beetles 
Although small carpet beetles can destroy large areas of carpet, rugs and even curtains that have high wool mix.  The larvae looks like a little woolly bear and are know as the woolly bear beetle.  The damage is not at first obvious until the spring clean starts.  The bald patches left are often under furniture or at the edge of the room.  Use a high suction vacuum to go over all areas and dispose of the bag or empty straight in to the bin outside the home.  Sprinkle Diatomaceous earth onto the carpet or rugs in the room, leaving for a week before vacuuming up. Dispose of as before.  Check any cloths, curtains or other fabrics in the room for signs of infection, remove, and washed at high temperature.

Cloths moths 
The moth is harmless but it is the larvae, which does the damage to clothing and any textile within reach.  They live in clothing which has not been disturbed thus the reason for regular movement of cloths such as a spring clean.
If you discover any sign of the moth, including dead ones, remove all the clothing and textiles then wash after shaking out.  Clean all areas of the drawers and cupboards with a vacuum before washing down with hot water and carbolic soap (www.carbolicsoap.com )  Mothballs are ok if you use the natural cedar wood balls and dried lavender, lemon balm or rosemary will help to keep cloths fresh smelling and moth free and are more environmentally friendly.

Flies 
Be they the small fruit flies to the larger houseflies and bluebottles.  Flies are a source of food poisoning as they vomit on the food before they eat it. Nice!
Simple things like removing ripe fruit and vegetables helps as will a swatter to use rather than chemical sprays.  Fly traps from South Africa which are eco friendly and safe to use is available from www.greeneyedfrog.co.uk or UV light fly killer from the same and other companies.

Fleas 
The most common flea is the cat flea followed by dog and rabbit fleas.  They spread tapeworm and cause irritating bites.  You will need to treat both the home and the pet.  Collars are a good way of treating the pet using a herbal flea repelling collar available from vets or direct from www.petplanet.co.uk where they have Johnson and Petlove herbal flea collars at £3 each. You may also give your pet a food supplement of vitamin B and garlic.  For the home vacuum the areas of concern and each room close by.  Treat with Agrothrin that is a natural product that breaks the breeding cycle available from many pet shops and online.  Often the infestation will appear when the warm weather starts and the eggs hatch.  Vacuuming, dusting with Agrothrin and treating the pets is the only way to cure the problem.  If all this fails, and sometimes it will, get in the professionals in a discreet van to steam clean and treat your home.

Mice and rats 

Rodents spread diseases, damage by gnawing through cables and smells.  They can make nests in the smallest of hollows in the home and garden.  There are many ultrasonic devices on the market and whilst the idea is good, there is little proof that it works.  Spring traps are quick but can be dangerous for young children and pets so one trap is the humane trap that catches the rat or mouse in a box, to free away from the home.  The use of poison and what are called sticky traps are not only cruel but also dangerous for the children and pets.  The sticky traps result in the rat or mouse sticking to the trap and to escape will try to gnaw their feet off.  Organic poison eradi-mouse or eradi-rat to be used if the population is reaching peaks.  This product is bio friendly and safe. (www.eradi-products.com)

Wasps 
Always able to seek out sweet drinks and sugar products on summer days the wasp is a nuisance although some do have beneficial uses in the garden as, unlike the yellow jacket or germane wasp they stick to eating aphid and small insects.  There are a number of products on the market to eliminate the wasp from the UV traps as mentioned before and an organic product called the waspbane from www.waspbane.com  Other ideas is to take a large jar or small plastic bottle and fill half with warm water and half with jam.  Placed away from the home and high enough with string to be away from children.  Change when there is a thick layer of wasp bodies.  Dispose complete in a bin or dig a hole in the garden and dispose of the contents, covering quickly.  Do not attempt to move a nest yourself and call in the specialists listed at www.bpca.org.uk

Both Diatomaceous earth and Agrothrin can be used for flies, fleas, wasps, carpet beetle and the woolly bear.