Taken from Lynne’s weekly column ‘Green Scene’ for the Western Mail
19th July 2025
Hot (Cross) Bunny
It was so hot in work last week that I found a little bunny flaked out on a client’s patio.
My first thought was that it had Myxomatosis – the worst disease ever ‘invented’. But his eyes were clear and he seemed OK other than being ‘unnaturally approachable’.
I gave him some water, an apple and a kale leaf from the garden all to no avail so – because it made sense – I took my cooling neck scarf off and put that over him to see if it would cool him down.
I went back to work and when I checked on him 20 minutes later he had gone.
I can’t tell you how good it felt to have ‘made a difference’ – and what an original marketing angle for the cooling neck scarves too.
Watering Tips
Apart from the wildlife, I am also feeling so sorry – and worried – for plants and trees in this weather. A lot of them are showing real signs of distress in the drought conditions and watering containers is becoming a skill in itself to try to beat the compost drying out and losing all absorbency. One gardener friend of mine is freezing tubs of ice in her chest freezer and putting them on the surface of hanging baskets and herb boxes to defrost and water gently.
My brother and I used an iron bar to make holes around 30 young fruit trees that were planted last winter for another client. They have done well until recently but the scorching temperatures and wind proved just too much for them and they were starting to wilt. Once we had ‘barred’ the holes we kept them filled with water until it was very slow to drain and now they are filled every morning and evening, ensuring the water gets to the roots rather than just run off. The holes are at the right distance from the trunk to avoid damaging the roots whilst allowing them to access, and actually grow toward, the moisture.
Ash Dieback is also becoming more and more obvious as the dead and dying tree skeletons stand out starkly against the other green canopies, although I did hear some encouraging news last week. Apparently scientists have found that the young, ‘new’ saplings have developed a natural immunity toward the disease and are ‘thriving’. It’s nice to have some good news.
Have Another Harvest
I have already harvested lots of pea shoots, rocket and coriander grown in large tubs this year, but despite regular watering and harvesting one or two of the tubs are past their best. So I’ll tip them out and redo them for the latter part of the season. I’ll add some fresh compost, but I’m also going to shred some of Yogi’s spare incontinence sheets and add those. They are obviously designed to absorb and ‘trap’ water so should help to keep the compost hydrated.
I’ve used nappies to line hanging baskets before now, which has worked a treat, so this should work in much the same way.
I’ll also line the tubs with the absorbent sheets too, as most of the ‘water run-through’ happens when the compost shrinks away from the sides of the container. Then I’ll sow Red Mustard Leaves – which are delicious – and some more rocket which, believe it or not, will be easier to grow than lettuce which doesn’t like germinating in hot weather and will also bolt once established. It is also hugely versatile, great in salads and sandwiches but also for pesto too. And I have tried gently sautéing it with a bit of garlic, olive oil and some chopped roasted cashew nuts – that was delicious.
Brain Fed
My ‘menopausal memory’ has been getting me down for a while now (ironically, I forget for how long) and I have been worried that it was ‘beyond menopausal’. And it seems I’m not alone. So many women I have talked to are just putting brain fog, forgetfulness, feelings of hopelessness and general lethargy down to menopause or ‘old age’. It’s awful.
After delving a bit deeper than ‘brain fog’ and researching ‘brain health’ I stumbled across Patrick Holford’s website – and was even more reassured by his Welsh connections. Patrick has been a leading figure in nutrition since 1984, and written over 45 books – one of them being ‘Upgrade Your Brian’. Interestingly, as someone who spends a lot of time and effort on improving emotional, physical and more recently, gut health, I had sort of forgotten about this part of me. So I was keen to do the Brain Health Test on his website (a free service). Foodforthebrain.org has collected data on 410,000 people, and have recently launched the Dementia Risk Index functional Test (DRIfT) which measures homocysteine , HbA1c, omega-3 index and vitamin D to determine your risk factor.
If you don’t want to take the blood test, you can still complete a validated online Cognitive Function test, which takes ten minutes, followed by a comprehensive 144 question Dementia Risk Index diet and lifestyle questionnaire. This works out a person’s future risk and shows what’s driving the risk, in order for you to address that particular aspect. Alarmingly I found the instructions for the first couple of tests harder to understand than the tests were to do, but did persevere. The good news is that there are various things you can do to improve your brain health, from making dietary changes to taking supplements and also other ‘lifestyle’ ways of increasing the blood flow – and therefore oxygen levels – to your brain, including learning new skills and exercising regularly.
I was also quite heartened by reading all of Patrick’s research and findings on GL – Glycaemic Load – and how it is affects brain fog, lethargy etc – but I’ll let you read about that for yourself.
What I lack in clarity at the moment I seem to make up for with synchronicity, as Patrick is speaking at a Wellness Retreat offered by Wellsynergy in the heart of the Black Mountain from 25th – 28th of this month. I appreciate its short notice but I have enquired and there are a few spaces left. Founders of Wellsynergy, Janine Price and Chris Thomas also offer numerous other ‘wellbeing’ options based in nature and say, “Our mission is to empower individuals to take control of their health through evidence-based tools, compassionate support, and the healing power of nature. We believe that true wellbeing comes from synergy — between science and nature, body and mind, movement and rest.’ More details of all aspects of wellbeing that Janine and Chris offer can be found atwww.wellsynergy.wales
Patrick is one of many speakers at next weekend’s event and I was particularly taken by his observation that most people are ‘vertically ill’, that is that they are upright – as opposed to ‘horizontally ill’, – but suffer from brain fog, lethargy, inflammation, anxiety and other debilitating health issues. Patrick’s aim is to get more people vertically well.
I love that explanation and it resonated with me so much that I put my hand straight up in the air for some guidance. I’ll let you know how I get on. If I remember.
You can find out more at www.patrickholford.com and the test can be taken at www.patrickholford.com/how-to-test-your-brain-health
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