Tag: advice

Dobbies’ Edinburgh store gives customers hot tips for summer gardening

Free workshops this August

With summer in full swing, Dobbies, the UK’s leading garden centre, is sharing its expertise to help gardens thrive this season. Dobbies’ gardening experts in Edinburgh are hosting two free sessions, for both children and adults, to help them learn about what plants do well during sunny spells and how to protect your garden in the warmer months.  

According to Your Weather, the last two summers in the UK have been drier than the historical average. Dobbies’ horticultural experts will lend a hand to offer free advice to customers in Edinburgh about how to maximise their outdoor space and ensure their gardens are prepared for whatever the weather may bring.

Dobbies’ interactive Grow How session takes place on Saturday 5 August at 10:30am where customers will be invited along to further their gardening expertise. Attendees will get advice on plants that will thrive in sunny spots, insider tips for getting the garden to grow and the different types of drought-friendly plants to keep your outdoor space vibrant all summer long.

The Little Seedlings Club takes place on Sunday 6 August and is ideally suited for children aged 4-10 years old, offering a jam-packed interactive workshop with educational content and craft activities. Kids will learn about summer as a season, what the warm weather means for the environment, how plants adapt to dry weather, specific plants to grow and how we can be safe in the sun.

Dobbies’ Horticultural Director, Marcus Eyles, said: “The hottest summer months can have an impact on the overall health of your plants and the success of your garden. Choosing the correct plants for the right position and soil in your garden is essential.

“Many plants have adapted and evolved to cope with hot and dry weather conditions, and gardeners in Edinburgh can take advantage of this by potting up plants such as Lavender and Rosemary or by growing palms or outdoor succulents. 

“Certain plants like Salvia, Lemon trees and Dahlias all burst with vibrant colours and thrive in a sunny spot, a great choice for south facing gardens or balconies that get sunlight all day.

“Our in-store experts are looking forward to speaking with customers and our Little Seedlings Club members to make sure everyone is putting their best foot forward this summer.”

For more information about how to take part in Dobbies’ sessions, visit Events | Dobbies Garden Centres

Password loss ‘as stressful as a personal illness’

Around 70% of British people consider password loss as stressful as a personal injury or an illness, financial problems, or dismissal from work, the latest digital stress survey conducted by NordPass indicates.

The study, which investigated the effects increasing cybersecurity demands have on people’s mental health, reveals that 67% of adults in the United Kingdom (UK) fear losing access to an important account without a reset option.

To compare, fewer people — 64% — find a personal injury or illness highly stressful. Dismissal from work and financial problems terrify 70% and 72% of people respectively.

Tomas Smalakys, the CTO of NordPass, said: “The fact that password management issues cause more worries for British people than personal health matters is concerning.

“This insight again proves passwords no longer fit  people’s needs, and the switch towards alternative methods of online authentication should become the key priority for service providers,”

Why do passwords cause so much stress?

NordPass found that the fear of losing access to an account is related to a person having too many passwords at hand and, as a result, struggling to recall which password belongs to which account.

In the UK, almost half (45%) of internet users agreed password management is a challenge for them. In the US, even more people (56%) feel this way.

According to NordPass data, an average internet user has around 100 passwords to manage. This number contains both personal and business accounts, many of which are used on a daily basis.

As Smalakys explains, with so many credentials to remember, people tend to create weak passwords and reuse them, which then results in data breaches:

“It’s an unfortunate cycle. We fear losing access to our accounts and  create simple passwords so we don’t forget them, while the most direct way to lose an account is actually to create a simple password for it,” says Smalakys.

Based on the latest Verizon Data Breach Investigations report, 74% of all breaches include the human element, and creation of weak passwords is among the key causes.

Tips to reduce password management induced stress

To ensure password management is less challenging, Smalakys recommends using the following cybersecurity practices:

1. Adopt a password manager. This solution allows someone to securely store all passwords, passkeys, credit cards, and other digital assets in one place, autofilling them on websites and sharing them with others in an end-to-end encrypted environment. Password managers also generate secure passwords consisting of at least 20 digits.

2. Give passkeys a try. Many tech companies, including Microsoft, Google, and Apple, offer a passwordless login with passkeys. Passkeys are a new technology, approved by the prestigious FIDO Alliance and considered the healthiest and the most convenient alternative to passwords.

3. Delete accounts you no longer use. Rarely used accounts often get abandoned, which makes them attractive to cybercriminals. The passwords for these accounts become outdated and are then easily crackable.

Jobs Fair in Leith this Thursday

Leith Job Fair is coming to the Drill Hall! 📢

We’re delighted to be welcoming Joined Up for Jobs (part of Capital City Partnership) to the Drill Hall for the Leith Job Fair.

It’s an employability event for clients to come along and meet directly with employers and partners based in Edinburgh for support in looking for jobs, CV writing, job interview preparation.

📅 Thursday 20th July
⏲️ 10am – 1pm, free entry

Find out more on our website. ↩

July Gardening Advice: Everything You Need to Do This Month

July is a beautiful month for enjoying the garden. Traditionally the hottest month of the year in the UK, July is all about spending time in the garden and enjoying your outdoor space.

When it comes to maintaining the garden, this month is all about keeping on top of your blooms, nurturing your plants, and providing your garden with that extra bit of TLC that it needs to prevent damage or dryness.

Expert gardener Fiona Jenkins at MyJobQuote.co.uk has a list of top tips on what you need to do in your garden during the month of July. Take a look at the list below:

Get The Watering Just Right

With July being typically the hottest month, watering is key. Your plants will be very thirsty at this time and may be prone to drying out. With this in mind, you want to make sure you maintain your beautiful blooms by regularly watering your container plants. Add a balanced liquid fertiliser every couple of weeks, as this will help to encourage continual flowering and strong, healthy growth. Remove all dead flowers as soon as you notice them to encourage new growth.

You also need to remember to water your shrubs, trees, and perennials. Water the base of the plant and avoid watering the leaves, as the leaves won’t absorb water. Wet leaves can encourage fungal diseases, which is why you must always aim to water the base of the plants.

Aim to water your plants first thing in the morning, as this is when the sun rises, and the plants will begin using the water.

Thin Out Your Fruit Trees

In the month of July, you may find that your fruit trees can abundantly over-produce due to the optimal conditions. Large levels of heavy fruits on branches can result in a final crop of much smaller fruits due to the high demand for the tree’s resources and the limited sunlight that is blocked by the large fruit.

This month, you want to focus on thinning out your crops by removing all of the damaged or excess fruits. This will enable the tree to develop a much more even and more appealing crop of fruits.

Show Your Lawn Some Love

During the summer months, everything in the garden grows very quickly. This means you’ll need to make some extra effort to mow the lawn. Aim to mow your lawn once a week to keep it in good shape. It’s also important to keep on top of watering your lawn regularly to prevent it from drying out and turning brown. If the ground becomes dry, gently spike it before watering to allow the moisture to penetrate easily.

Reduce the cutting height of your lawn during hot weather, as this can also help to prevent the lawn from drying out. Keeping your grass blades slightly higher can help the grass thrive and can prevent it from becoming damaged by the additional summer wear.

Take Cuttings From Perennials

When it comes to perennials, it’s important to take cuttings to encourage new growth. Place supports around your tall perennials to prevent any damage from wind, rain, or other typical British weather phenomena.

If you have any tender perennials in your garden, such as Fuchsias, you can use the cuttings for propagating. These perennials are best propagated from cuttings. Cuttings should be taken from the new growth for the season. You can either pot the plants now or keep hold of your cuttings until next spring. If you pot the plants now, they will have enough time to develop a sufficient root system so that they can survive through the winter months.

Get a Head Start on Sowing

If you want to be one step ahead with your gardening routine, consider beginning some of your sowing now. Biennials such as wallflowers, forget-me-nots, and foxgloves can be sown now and ready for planting in autumn. This will provide you with a stunning display next spring.

Sow your plants into large seed trays or, alternatively, a dedicated seed bed. After that, when the seedlings are large enough to handle, you can separate them.

You can also sow late summer and winter crops now, such as carrots, cabbages, and leeks. In addition, you can continue to sow radishes, lettuce, and beetroot at this time.

Check Plant Supports

During this month, you should spend some time inspecting your climbing plants to ensure they are able to handle strong winds and torrential rain. If you think your plants need new or additional support, now is the time to take care of that.

The typical British weather can put a considerable amount of pressure on your garden. It’s much easier to deal with this now than to wait until late summer.

Now is also a time for checking for weeds in flowerbeds, as weeds can affect your plants. It’s much easier to deal with weeds now while the weather is good.

Police Scotland: Vehicle Security

Have you ever considered improving the security of your vehicle? 🚗

Sometimes simply locking it is not enough.

The list below provides a range of options which will make stealing your vehicle more difficult, especially if several are combined together!

• Check vehicle doors are locked before walking away.

• Do not store keys near windows or doors.

• Keep your key device in a ‘Faraday pouch’ which prevents it receiving or transmitting radio signals.

• If you buy a second-hand keyless car, get the key reprogrammed.

• Make sure the key and any spares are stored securely and safely.

• Consider having an On-Board Diagnostic port (OBD) lock professionally fitted/ask at a main dealership.

• Use a steering wheel lock.

• Fit a pedal box, which encases the driving pedals in a high visibility secure box.

Please report any suspicious behaviour or incidents to Police on 101 or 999.

Taking your dog abroad this summer? Time to get your pooch travel ready

Vets are advising anyone planning to travel abroad this summer with their pets or assistance dogs to book an appointment with their vet practice well in advance to allow plenty of time to complete all the required health checks and paperwork.

With school summer holidays here, the British Veterinary Association (BVA) is calling on owners to first carefully consider if it would be in their pets’ best interests to travel overseas with them.

For anyone choosing to holiday abroad with their pet, BVA has issued a handy checklist to remind owners about the checks their animal will need before travel. This includes trips from Great Britain and Northern Ireland to the European Union, as post-Brexit rules mean owners now have to get the more complex and time-consuming Animal Health Certificate (AHC) from a vet trained to issue them no more than ten days before travel.

British Veterinary Association Senior Vice President Justine Shotton said: “The countdown to summer break has begun. While we should all consider whether a holiday abroad is appropriate for our pets’ welfare or their carbon pawprint, if you are making plans that include travelling with your pet or assistance dog, now is the time to contact your local vet for information on pet travel requirements.

“Book an appointment as soon as possible to make sure your pet has all the necessary paperwork and is fully protected against diseases they may encounter in their travels.

“We’d like to remind owners that the post-Brexit requirements for travel to the EU are a significant change from the previous and much simpler ‘pet passport’ system, so they will take longer to complete and cost more. A pet travel consult at the vets can now take around an hour and even longer where there are multiple animals.

“Vet practices are already under a huge workload pressure. To help make the process as smooth and stress-free as possible for yourself, your pet and your vet, we would urge you to contact your vet as early as you can ahead of travel to make sure there’s a vet available for this certification work and enough time to complete the required health checks and paperwork.”

Prior to Brexit, as many as 250,000 cats and dogs from the UK were taken to the EU on holiday every year.

BVA has prepared a seven-point checklist for to help pet owners:

  • Timings: Contact your vet well in advance to ensure that you can get an appointment at least three weeks before your planned travel. Dogs, cats and ferrets need an Animal Health Certificate (AHC) for each trip from Great Britain to an EU country or Northern Ireland. Unlike pet passports, AHCs are 9-12 pages long, which means a much more complex, time consuming and costly paperwork process. Some vaccinations, like rabies, are time-sensitive, so even a one-day delay could result in your papers being rejected at the border. As Northern Ireland remains part of the EU pet travel scheme, travellers from the country can use an EU pet passport as an alternative to an AHC. Contact your vet to update the pet passport.
  • Destination: Be clear about the countries you intend to travel to so that your vet can identify specific health risks your pet may be exposed to, such as ticks, sandflies, heartworm or tapeworm.
  • Rabies: Check that your pet’s rabies vaccination is up to date.
  • Microchip: Ensure your pet’s microchip is working and contact details are up to date.
  • Heat: Talk to your vet if going somewhere hot to discuss prevention of heatstroke and how to recognise symptoms in your dog.
  • Emergencies: Identify a local vet in the area where you will be holidaying in case of an emergency and to administer compulsory tapeworm treatment to dogs one to five days before arrival back into the UK. 
  • Return: If your pet becomes ill after returning to the UK, it is very important to tell your vet that you have been abroad with your pet, even if it was some time ago.

More information for travellers from Great Britain is available on the government website: https://www.gov.uk/taking-your-pet-abroad/travelling-to-an-eu-country-or-northern-ireland

Schools face summer crime spike

Schools in Scotland are being warned to take precautions amid fears of a rise in crime over the summer holidays.

As many schools across the country prepare to close their doors for the summer holidays, specialist insurer Ecclesiastical says schools will be an attractive target for criminals over the coming months.  

Ecclesiastical is encouraging residents in Scotland who live near local schools to be vigilant this summer and report any unusual or suspicious activity they notice on school grounds.

Ecclesiastical reports schools have been targeted over the summer months including vandalism, arson, break-ins, smashed windows, theft of lead from roofs and stolen laptops.

Amid high inflation, soaring prices and more facing economic hardship, there are worries there will be a large spike in criminal activity.

Faith Kitchen, customer segment director at Ecclesiastical Insurance, said: “Schools are far more vulnerable during the summer holidays when school buildings are closed and largely unoccupied, tempting opportunists.

“With high inflation and the cost of living crisis, it is more important than ever that schools take steps to protect their premises from offenders. There are a number of measures schools can take to better secure school property and assets, which would ideally be a combination of both physical and electronic protection.

“Fencing around the perimeter can often offer a good first line of defence against unwanted visitors, while CCTV can act as a visual deterrent for those not wanting to be caught on camera.

“Vigilance from the local community can be a huge help. We urge those who live near schools to be vigilant this summer and report any unusual or suspicious activity they notice on school grounds.” 

How to protect schools in Scotland this summer

  • Ensure CCTV systems have remote 24/7 monitoring services. Monitoring and alerting the police is far more effective than tracing criminals after a crime has taken place.
  • Install remotely monitored intruder alarms and change alarm security codes and passwords on a regular basis.
  • Install security lighting systems that have motion sensors to detect body movements.
  • Restrict access to school premises. Well-designed perimeter security such as walls, fences and electric security gates, and anti-climb paint help to prevent people from getting onto school sites.
  • Restrict vehicular access to the school site. Locate any designated parking as far from the school building as possible. The further thieves have to travel on foot the greater the risk of detection.
  • Use security marking systems such as SmartWater which can help with successful prosecution of thieves.
  • Ask the local community near your school to be vigilant and report any unusual or suspicious activity they notice on school grounds.
  • Inform neighbourhood watch schemes / police liaison officers of planned work over the holidays as thieves might pose as contractors.
  • Seek advice. Specialist insurers can offer advice and expertise to help schools manage security risks. Insurers can offer a combination of onsite and remote risk management services including security assessments and advice, alongside broader property protection and building valuation services.

Ecclesiastical Insurance offers a range of risk management support and guidance to help schools manage the risks they face.

For more information, visit the Hub for Education.

Police advice: Keeping your sheds and garages safe

Police have had reports of sheds/garages being broken into across Edinburgh. Please remain vigilant and review the security of your property.

Key points for shed/garage security are:

• Use a good quality closed shackled padlock

• Fit coach bolts or anti tamper screws on shed hinges

• Install a stand-alone shed alarm

• Secure bikes within sheds/garages to a ground anchor or immovable object

• Review the lighting and fencing around your property

• Consider a garage defender

Please see attached documents for further advice.

If you see anyone acting suspiciously near to your property or vehicle please contact the police immediately with as detailed a description as possible of any person or vehicle involved. Please call 999 if an emergency and urgent police assistance is required or 101 to report the matter to the police.

Tomorrow: Future-proof your home!

Happening this Wednesday evening, 7pm at Stockbridge Parish Church!

Find out how you can make your tenement flat or house more energy efficient, find funding to support you, and save money on your bills.

👉

Register here: http://bit.ly/StockbridgeEvent

Ratflation: Councils tackled 618 rodent infestations a day in 2022

  • Local authorities dealt with 225,430 residential rodent infestations in 2022 – equivalent to 618 per day
  • On average, each council spent more than £100,000 on pest control visits to homes
  • Swansea, Southwark and Birmingham councils tackled the most infestations while Eastbourne Council saw the biggest annual increase (188 per cent)
  • London faced more than 40,000 infestations in 2022 – almost one in five of all infestations

Local authorities dealt with 225,430 rodent infestations in 2022, equivalent to 618 per day, according to new research from Direct Line Home Insurance1. There has been a significant rise in residential rodent infestations in the last two years, increasing 12 per cent from 201,871 infestations (552 per day) in 2020.

The research found that each local authority spent an average of £101,044 dealing with residential rodent infestations. In total, local authorities could be spending an estimated £36 million tackling rodent infestations each year2. Almost one in five (19 per cent) local authorities provide pest control services to residents for free. For those households that don’t qualify for discounts, councils typically charged £80 for pest control related services.

Rodents can cause significant structural damage to homes by gnawing under floorboards, within stud walls and drywall linings, or by making holes in loft insulation which can cause condensation and rot in the joists.

If mice and rats chew through plastic pipes it can also lead to damp, or flooding whilst chewing through electrical cables could cause significant fire risks. Some rodents also carry diseases such as Salmonella and Listeria, which can easily spread to humans, normally through rodent urine, droppings, or by coming into contact with food preparation areas.

Table one: Local Authorities dealing with the most infestations

RankLocal Authorities20212022y/o/y change
 1City & County of Swansea15,51616,7678 per cent
 2Southwark Council8,76116,66490 per cent
 3Birmingham City Council14,464       12,736-12 per cent
 4Liverpool City Council12,03210,373-14 per cent
 5City of Glasgow7,89410,32331 per cent
 6Sunderland City Council3,2325,96885 per cent
 7Wigan Metropolitan Borough5,3824,715-12 per cent
 8North Lanarkshire Council3,469 4,46229 per cent
 9London Borough of Lambeth3,2463,64512 per cent
10Nottingham City Council4,115         3,573-13 per cent

Source: Direct Line Home Insurance 2023

The City & County of Swansea dealt with the most residential rodent infestations in 2022, a total of 16,767. Southwark Council and Birmingham were the second and third busiest councils last year, dealing with 16,665 and 12,736 infestations respectively.

Eastbourne Council saw the highest increase in rodent infestations in 2022 with 598, up from 208 in 2021 (a significant 188 per cent increase). London Borough Councils dealt with 40,768 infestations in 2022 – 18 per cent of the total for the UK.

One estimate suggests there are now 150 million rats in the UK3. Some ‘super rats’ are now resistant to traditional pest control methods and can grow to be as big as a cat.

Dan Simson, Head of Direct Line Home Insurance, said: “Mice and rats pose a real risk to the home and people’s health. They take advantage of issues like broken pipes, slipped roof tiles or holes in skirting to gain access to a property, often causing serious damage to the structural integrity of a building or belongings.

“We recommend that anyone with an infestation contacts either their local authority or an extermination service to have it taken care of professionally.” 

Ian Andrew, Chief Executive at the British Pest Control Association, commented: “Rodents are a serious public health pest and they have rapid breeding cycles, which means infestations require swift action as they can escalate quickly.

“Unfortunately, being unable to afford pest control increases the likelihood of people either ignoring infestations or attempting DIY pest control methods, which can make the issue worse and endanger other people or non-target species.

“A pest professional such as a BPCA member will have the technical knowledge and experience required to deal with an infestation quickly and safely, as well as having access to products not available to the public.

“Pest management is vital for maintaining the safety, health and wellbeing of people, so it would be great to see something in the UK like the proactive approach New York City are taking, with the appointment of a ‘rat tsar’.”

To help homeowners prevent pest invasions, Direct Line Home Insurance has provided the following five tips:

  • Keep refuse bins sealed: Avoid attracting rodents to your property in the first place by keeping all rubbish bins containing food waste properly sealed, clearing away garden waste and by using rodent safe bird feeders.
  • Keep surfaces clean: Rodents are drawn to food debris so wiping down surfaces regularly, clearing up food spillages and throwing away uneaten food will help to prevent unwanted visitors.
  • Fill cracks and crevasses: Many rodents are crafty at finding entry routes into the home. Prevent them from getting in by sealing gaps around doors and windows. Also block holes above or under the sink as many pests will use this area to gain access to water.
  • Seal food: Store food in safe and enclosed containers to prevent rodents from being tempted to visit your home.
  • Avoid clutter: Rodents love hiding in dark areas so keep the home clutter-free to remove opportunities for them to set up a home in your house.