British-grown fruit much bigger after unusual winter and spring conditions led to slower ripening
Tennis fans may be treated to juicier strawberries at Wimbledon this year after a wet and dark winter slowed the growing times, resulting in bigger and more flavoursome fruits.
Growers said the further wet and cold weather this spring, as well as less sunlight, has delayed the British strawberry season by a fortnight this year, with the main harvest expected at the end of May.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
05/10/2024 - 07:05
05/10/2024 - 07:00
One way to mitigate he eco-guilt of a to-go habit is to choose restaurants that serve food in sustainable containers
Getting restaurant meals to-go often comes with a side of guilt: “did I need to supersize? I should have saved the money and cooked at home.” And the final sting, perhaps muttered while hovering over the trash and recycling bins deciding where to toss the empty boxes: “Oh, the waste.”
Dietary and budgeting concerns notwithstanding, one way to mitigate the environmental impact (or the eco-guilt) of a takeout habit is to choose restaurants that serve their food in more sustainable containers.
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05/10/2024 - 06:00
Trust builds passes under road bisecting Berkshire commons for increasingly endangered venomous snake
How did the adder cross the road? It didn’t – it was too scared.
Now, however, road-shy populations of the increasingly endangered snake are being given a helping hand with the construction of Britain’s first adder tunnels.
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05/10/2024 - 04:00
NFU’s director of strategy asked for review of EU-derived protections as part of post-Brexit loosening of rules
The National Farmers’ Union lobbied to increase the amount of pesticides allowed in the UK’s drinking water and to allow farmers to spread manure more frequently as part of a post-Brexit loosening of environmental regulations, it can be revealed.
Nick von Westenholz, the director of strategy for the lobby group, met Timothy Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, the Earl of Minto, who is the minister of state for regulatory reform, last year and asked him to review EU-derived environmental protections.
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05/10/2024 - 02:00
The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world
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05/10/2024 - 00:00
Trust aims to boost small pearl-bordered fritillary colonies in Shropshire Hills by planting 20,000 violets this year for their caterpillars
A mass planting of marsh violets across England’s Shropshire Hills is to take place to try to prevent further decline of the small pearl-bordered fritillary or Boloria selene, a rare UK butterfly.
The small pearl-bordered fritillary’s distribution across the UK has plunged 71% since the mid 1970s and the species is now listed as vulnerable, according to the 2022 state of UK butterflies report.
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05/10/2024 - 00:00
Waste and cost among drawbacks, as researchers say renewables could power UK entirely
In the battle to prevent the climate overheating, wind and solar are making impressive inroads into the once dominant market share of coal. Even investors in gas plants are increasingly seen as taking a gamble.
With researchers at Oxford and elsewhere agreeing that the UK could easily become entirely powered by wind and solar – with no fossil fuels required – it seems an anomaly that nuclear power is still getting the lion’s share of taxpayer subsidies to keep the ailing industry alive.
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05/09/2024 - 23:00
A fifth of female climate scientists who responded to Guardian survey said they had opted to have no or fewer children
“I had the hormonal urges,” said Prof Camille Parmesan, a leading climate scientist based in France. “Oh my gosh, it was very strong. But it was: ‘Do I really want to bring a child into this world that we’re creating?’ Even 30 years ago, it was very clear the world was going to hell in a handbasket. I’m 62 now and I’m actually really glad I did not have children.”
Parmesan is not alone. An exclusive Guardian survey has found that almost a fifth of the female climate experts who responded have chosen to have no children, or fewer children, due to the environmental crises afflicting the world.
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05/09/2024 - 21:51
Albanese government has already telegraphed budget will include $566m over 10 years to map Australia’s soil and seabed for gasfield exploration and $100m to speed up environmental approvals
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The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, has attempted to head off a caucus backlash against the Albanese government’s future gas strategy by promising there “won’t be any new money” for the plan in next week’s budget.
The resources minister, Madeleine King, released the government’s gas roadmap on Wednesday, which sets out plans for gas to be used in Australia to 2050 and beyond, including the exploration and opening of new gas fields as a priority.
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05/09/2024 - 14:55
Despite its benefits and recognition as a keystone practice of ocean stewardship and conservation, adoption of ecosystem-based management has been slow to take hold. To support this change in ocean management, a group of researchers and practitioners investigated the global progress of marine EBM initiatives.
