Village Sustainability Newsleter, February 2026

Water!

For the twitchy among you – it’s ok, you can get your lawn mower out – it’s June and No-Mow May is over!  But if you really enjoyed having some extra free time, spending less money on expensive mower petrol in these globally fuel-uncertain times, and looking at the natural grass swaying in the breeze, alive with wildflowers and buzzing insects, you could stop the chop for good!  Or just mow the edges, or a path through the middle.  No Mow doesn’t need to mean total neglect.  But you’d be very much giving nature and biodiversity a helping hand.

On the same subject, we will be holding a “Churches Count on Nature” event in Chieveley church grounds on Sunday 7th June, 2-5 pm.  Drop in any time, and bring the whole family to visit the churchyard and help record the plant and wildlife species we encounter.  Recording will be on paper or via a phone app, and we hope to have some books and experts on hand to share our findings.  There will be light refreshments in church, and more information online and on posters around the village closer to the event.  Most importantly it’s a great opportunity to meet and chat about this gorgeous green space entrusted to us.

Staying with plant life, our changing climate is – we are told - giving us wetter winters and drier summers.  One minute the country – and the world – seems to be suffering from yet more seasonal heavy rainfall or flooding and the next our walks round the field are on dry-packed soil and the garden is looking thirsty.

This seems indeed to be becoming a pattern, and while I am no expert, there are plenty of knowledgeable people in our community who can advise on drought-loving plants.  Many of them hang out at Chieveley and District Gardening Club so keep an eye on their programme and seek out local information sources that can help.  And then ideally you won’t be spending yet more money on replacing plants that have died in unsuitable conditions.

On top of that, let’s all be aware of how much water we waste every day and how we can mitigate that. 

  • If you use harmless, non-toxic/biodegradable cleaning and washing up products you can use your “grey” waste water to water the garden. 
  • Our shower takes ages to warm up so we keep a bucket in the bathroom where the cold or tepid “while you wait” shower water gets saved to use for loo flushing in the winter and garden watering in the summer.
  • If your water supplier offers you a free water-saving consultation, accept it!  Ours a few years ago provided us with attachments for taps and showers which aerate the water, create a spray, provide direction and above all minimise the amount of water used.  A loo “Hippo” placed in the cistern reduces the amount of water wasted when flushing – and if you don’t use one of those, at the very least use properly your “two options” flushing mechanism.
  • We keep a large enamel jug on the kitchen windowsill and any reusable water goes in there – unfinished drinks, unused water from the iron, boiled egg water, anything you can think of!  The quality of our tap water in this country is incredibly high and many people around the world would be appalled at how much of it run away down the plug hole.  It can all be used on houseplants or garden tubs or beds.
  • Finally, don’t buy bottled drinking water.  Do I need to say that?  Tap water is absolutely fine, and we should all be in the habit of taking our refillable bottle out with us as the weather gets warmer so we don’t suddenly need a drink and buy a single use plastic bottle.

See you in the churchyard!

Julia Hoaen