v SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL SPECIALISTS v 29th January 2026 • The HERALD • Page 57 Fred Hurst 023 8084 2191 or 07761 467217 • Grass Cutting • Garden Clearance • Hedge Cutting • Fallen Trees Cleared • Mini Digger Hire with Operator • Property Clearance • Small Demolition • Tractor Flail Cutting FULLY INSURED v FREE QUOTATIONS • All types of trees expertly felled, topped & pruned • Stump Grinding • Hedges pruned & trimmed • Lawns Laid • Fencing & garden work • Rubbish Clearance • Patios & drives jet-washed • Patios & Drives resurfaced or replaced Registerd Waste Carrier Licence CBDU374716 H Fully Insured H Evening: 01794 522092 Daytime Mobile: 07511 863693 Email: treefellers@gmx.com Smithwood Landscaping Professional Gardening & Landscaping • Seasonal Tidy Ups • Garden Redesign • Fencing • Trees & Shrubs Carefully Pruned • Astro Turf • Rockeries Designed • Ground Cover No Job Too Small as I am a Local Gardener Any advice over the phone is freely given Contact Gary (Master Landscaper) 07707 433194 DOWN THE GARDEN PATH National Nestbox Week takes place from February 14th – 21st February, it is a fantastic opportunity to give our garden birds a helping hand as they prepare for the breeding season. With Britain a nation of bird lovers, the week highlights how we can help our feathered friends who are becoming increasingly short of nesting holes in an urban environment. Engaging with nature and helping the birds in your garden live healthy lives is an important aspect of our living environment. Introducing a nest box to your garden can signi cantly improve a bird’s quality of life and is just as essential as a feeder or bird bath in your outdoor space. With the loss of trees, natural borders, and traditional nesting sites, it’s more important than ever to support our feathered visitors. How to choose your nestbox Nestboxes generally fall into two categories: those with an entrance hole, which provides a degree of protection from predators, and open-fronted boxes. Look for nestboxes with holes if you want to attract smaller birds to your garden, such as the tit family, nuthatches, redstarts, tree and house sparrows. It’s important to choose a box with the appropriate hole size for the birds you want to attract. A 25-28mm hole is ideal for tits and tree sparrows, while a larger 45mm hole is better suited for larger birds like starlings, doves, jackdaws and blackbirds to make their home in. Open-fronted boxes, on the other hand, are favoured by birds that prefer nesting in the undergrowth, such as robins, wrens, wagtails and song thrushes. We recommend looking for a nestbox that is made from insulating material like wood to combat the recommend hanging your nestbox, so it faces either north or east, o ering natural protection from the elements. It’s also important to space out multiple bird boxes, as clustering them together can lead to territorial disputes, particularly during the nesting season and you don’t want unhappy avian visitors! When to clean your nestbox Cleaning bird boxes at the end of each nesting season is crucial for preventing the spread of any diseases and maintaining the health of your local garden birds. October or November, a er the nesting season has nished is the ideal time to give your nestbox a good clean and refresh for the winter months. When choosing your nestbox, look for ones with an accessible roof or side hatch so you can easily access and remove the old nesting material from the birds and clean thoroughly. Always wear rubber gloves, use boiling water for cleaning and dispose of your cleaning brush immediately a erwards. Old nesting materials can be composted. Inspect your bird boxes for any damage and make necessary repairs or replace them if needed. unpredictable UK climate and one with walls at least 15mm thick. An internal oor of a minimum of 130 square centimetres (or 20 square inches) provides ample space for nesting and raising baby birds. Choose a bird box that has drainage holes in the bottom and a sloped roof which help keep the box dry. Where to place and hang your nestbox Bird boxes should be mounted high up in your garden or outdoor space, away from predators like cats, ideally on walls, tree trunks, fences and pergola posts. Boxes with holes are best placed around 3 metres high in trees, ideally camou aged by foliage, while open-fronted boxes can be positioned closer to head height on walls or fences. Avoid placing bird boxes in direct sunlight, as the excessive heat can be detrimental to the birds and their young. We HOW TO HELP BIRDS THRIVE FOR NATIONAL NESTBOX WEEK Advice from British Garden Centres Holbury Manor WI Holbury Manor WI is a friendly group that meets on the fourth Monday of the month at Fawley Rugby Football Club (RFC), Newlands Road, Fawley SO45 1GA at 7.30pm. eir next meeting is on Monday 23rd February for a talk by British Red Cross (supporting the 2026 WI resolution of ‘bystanders can be lifesavers’). Visitors are always welcome to go along to see (and hear) what they do and what being in the WI is all about! Please contact: holburysec@hampshirewi.org. uk for more details, or do go along to a meeting. Pirates The Origins And Truth Fawley and Holbury u3a’s next meeting is 24th February with speaker Richard Hutley, who returns with a talk titled ‘Pirates the origins and truth.’ Richard is a retired Dorset Police Inspector. Fawley and Holbury u3a are a friendly group of retired or semiretired people who meet on the 4th Tuesday of each month, when they have an interesting speaker on a great variety of topics. Various sub groups are run by members including book clubs, play reading, handicra s, a quiz a ernoon and photography. Meetings take place at Black eld British Legion Club, Exbury Road Black eld at 2pm. Go along to a meeting, phone: 023 8084 5883, or visit: fawleyholbury.u3asite.uk for more information. ey look forward to seeing you! SPRING QUIZ Join Lepe Country Park in the Lookout for a spring themed quiz on Friday 27th March from 6pm. Gather your friends and family into teams of up to 6 people and celebrate the beauty of spring with a fun and engaging quiz. To make the event even more enjoyable, they’ll be serving food and drink from the café so why not make a night of it. Prize will be a breakfast in the Lookout for each team member. is is a bookable event, £2.50 per person please visit: www.hants.gov.uk/thingstodo/countryparks/ lepe/whats-on or call: 023 8089 9108 Usual parking charges apply. MARCHWOOD VETERANS BREAKFAST CLUB Are you a Service member of the Armed Forces, a Veteran or family member of someone Serving? If so, 17 Port & Maritime Regiment RLC would like to welcome you to their monthly Breakfast Club which is open to all current and ex-Military Services, all Ranks, all ages and families. e aim is to come together as an Armed Forces Family, catch up with friends, help social interaction and mental health, talk about current and past experiences, support towards housing (SFA’s and Social), Resettlement support for Civilian life, job networking and general wellbeing advice. Go along and enjoy a full English Breakfast at a very small cost of £7 with unlimited free brews at St Georges’ Restaurant, 17 Port & Maritime Regiment RLC, McMullen Barracks, Cracknore Hard Lane, Marchwood, SO40 4ZG, on the fourth Saturday of the Month between 10am and 12noon, the next Breakfast Club is on Saturday 28th February. All persons attending will need to book into the Guard Room on arrival and will require photographic ID. You will then be directed to St Georges.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTIyNzI=