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Out of Doors: Flax, a Bike Bus, and Dandelions

Flax, a Bike Bus, and Dandelions

BBC Radio Scotland - Out of Doors, Flax, a Bike Bus, and Dandelions

Mark Stephen and Rachel Stewart with stories from the great outdoors.

Rachel visits Fairhill Rise, an education centre in East Lothian which is part of the Ruskin Mill Trust. The centre provides outdoor learning and activities for those with autism and additional needs. Rachel meets the manager and hears about their work. 

Ahead of World Otter Day this coming Wednesday, Mark visits International Otter Survival Fund in Broadford on Skye to hear about the work they carry out across the world and meet some of the otters they have in their care. 

Over the past couple of weeks folk singer Kirsty Law has been walking along the route of the River Tweed. Her Meander tour has seen her meet other musicians along the way and stop to perform gigs as she goes. Maud Start went to catch up with her near Innerleithen. 

Mark joins a bike bus in Edinburgh - a safe way for kids to cycle to school. He hears from the organiser, Jarlath Flynn, about where the idea comes from and sees first hand how they work. He also chats to some of the children and their parents about the benefits of cycling to school. 

Soil Association Scotland and other groups have been carrying out crop trials to see which varieties of flax might grow best in Scotland. Rachel visits Lauriston Farm near Edinburgh, who are part of the project, to see the process of sowing the flax. And she meets Rosie Bristow from Fantasy Fibre Mill who has been using flax to make yarn and then linen.

There seem to be a lot of dandelions on the go at the moment, with many gardeners cursing their presence in their lawns.  However, the humble dandelion actually has many great properties so perhaps we shouldn’t be quite so quick to pull it out. We chat live to M.T. O’Donnell, founder and editor of Scotland Grows Magazine, about the benefits of the dandelion.  

And in our latest Scotland Outdoors podcast Mark spent some time at the Chippendale International School of Furniture near Haddington. We hear an excerpt of him chatting to some of those at work making some unique pieces of furniture.

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