Published 22 May 2025

Are the trees OK? BLPT Update May 2025

It’s been dry in Cumbria for months now. We had a gorgeous early spring – bright and cold and a wonderful clarity to the light. The trees sprang into life and started growing with gusto. Then as the dry spell continued, the enjoyment of watching them develop has been tinged with increasing concern. We check the forecast regularly. It feels strange, in Cumbria, to hope for rain but the rivers and lakes are as low as I’ve ever seen them and a lot of the becks have dried to a mere trickle.

Land at Low Fell in Cumbria with thousands of trees planted

However, so far the trees are fine. The ones that were planted last season all went into bracken or soft rushes, and these have remained mercifully damp. What could be perceived as challenging terrain has actually been beneficial to the saplings. Trees that were planted into acid grassland suffered from drought two years ago. We mourned the loss of many of them. We didn’t need to mourn so soon though – a lot came back from the roots, so although the stem died back, they concentrated on keeping the roots alive and put down deeper roots to seek out water. Hopefully those little ones are drought-trained, and can cope with the current dry weather.

Scots pine in acid grassland

 

What has also been gratifying is seeing all the life at the new ponds we put in at Distington. There are deer, fox, other unidentified small mammal and all kinds of bird prints in the mud. They’re all enjoying the new water source. Swallows fly in and scoop up wet mud for nest building. And there are tadpoles EVERYWHERE.

Tadpoles in a pond

It's forecast to rain for the bank holiday weekend, and throughout the school holidays. So here’s hoping for a week of “miserable” weather. Farmers, foresters and gardeners will be cheering in the rain! The other major threat the dry weather brings, as well as drought, is wildfires. These can start in many ways but in the Lake District, the most frequent cause of wildfires is camp fires and barbeques. At the moment, it’s just not possible to have a safe campfire or barbeque anywhere in the region, not even on a lake shore. It just takes one spark to be blown away on the wind; everything is so tinder dry.

Green Hair Streak Butterfly on aspen at Low Fell Cumbria

Last time we had a drought like this, it went from one extreme to the other, and we were all complaining about the constant rain. I’m sure we’ll be missing the fair weather soon enough. But I’m actually looking forward to seeing how the trees get on with a good slurp of water.

Group of Herdwick Sheep

Sally Phillips

Inventor of Chimney Sheep

PlanetCare Microfibre Filter Starter Kit

PlanetCare Microfibre Filter Starter Kit

£140.00 78.57% £30.00

How does it work?

This ingenious washing machine microfibre filter kit uses cartridges to physically catch and retain the fibres that come loose when you wash your laundry. Each cartridge will last around 15-20 loads of laundry and is easily replaceable in just a couple of minutes.

Fibre retention is based solely on physical retention with the help of clever patent-pending technology.

You can also send the used cartridges back to us and we'll forward them on to PlanetCare. They will ensure that they are reused or recycled.  This ‘closed loop’ system ensures that there is minimum wastage throughout the whole process.

Something to think about:

Doing the laundry can have a huge environmental impact, whether that be using tons of energy running the washing machine and tumble drier - or the pollutants that are released from the products you use. Using a microfiber filter is just one way of reducing that impact. Why not make a few more changes - we've tons of handy tips in our blog.

 

What's in the box?

You'll get everything you need to fit your PlanetCare washing machine filter with these handy starter kits, meaning you can get it in place and start catching microfibers straight away.

The Mini Starter Kit includes:

  • 1 housing top with a cup, 1 holder, 4 screws, 1 tube (1.5m), 1 silicone lubricant, 1 counter, and 3 filter replacement cartridges.
  •  3 cartridges. These can last up to 60 washes.

The XL Starter Kit includes:

  • 1 housing top with a cup, 1 holder, 4 screws, 1 tube (1.5m), 1 silicone lubricant, 1 counter, and 3 filter replacement cartridges.
  • 13 cartridges. These can last up to 260 washes.

    Note: All the filter cartridges are 100% recycled and refurbished for use again and again via a closed-loop service.

       

      Is it easy to install?

      The microfiber filter is very easy to install. In fact, for most washing machines this process takes less than 10 minutes. The filters are compatible with all types of washing machines.

      There's actually a handy how-to video and a useful installation guide  you can take a peek at if you need a little bit more guidance.

      It’s a good idea to position it high enough above the floor/surface so the cover can be removed to change the filter and position the device so that it is easy to screw the cover back after each filter change.

      Please note: you will need 13 cm on the side of the washing machine and approx. 60 cm in height clearance so that you will be able to easily unscrew the housing and change the filter comfortably.

      The filter must be placed outside the washing machine on the drain hose. It should not be raised above the height of the drain hose exiting the washing machine. The hose length should be held to a minimum. Raising the filter and a long drain hose will both reduce the efficiency of pumping and filtering and should be avoided.

       

      What are the dimensions of the filter housing?

      The filter housing alone, without any attachments, measures the following:

      • height 325 mm, width (hose attachment direction) 122 mm, and depth 130 mm.

       

      Is the microfiber filter easy to use?

      For the first load, just make sure the filter cover is replaced correctly and screwed tight before using the washing machine. Try a short wash and make sure all connections and covers are fixed and watertight.

      It’s also a good idea to hold the top of the device when replacing the filter cover to avoid putting pressure on the bracket fixings when unscrewing the cover.

      After that, you do not need to do anything until the cartridge is full.

      >Easy!

       

      How does the closed-loop system work?

      When your cartridge is full you can send it back to us directly, simply go onto the delivery website Parcel2Go and produce a label to send the cartridges to us, don't forget to include your order details as we'll refund you the postage cost. We then send these off to PlanetCare who disassemble the cartridge and remove the fibres and filtering medium.  This is done in a controlled environment, ensuring that caught fibres do not pollute water or the environment.

       

      What does Planetcare do with the fibres?

      >At the moment PlanetCare is safely storing the used filtered materials. Once they have sufficient quantity, they will reuse/recycle it all. At the moment they are planning to reuse the materials by converting them into insulation mats. But, they're always on the lookout for viable solutions and will choose the best available option to reuse/ recycle the fibres.

      The waste will never be burned or sent to a landfill!

      The remainder of the cartridge is cleaned, and fitted with a new filtering medium ready to be used again.

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