Autumnal Levada Walking

Experiencing Madeira though its levadas has to be one of the most thrilling and enjoyable activities you can do while you are here. And now that the weather is cooler it’s the perfect time to pick up a pair of hiking boots, grab your phone (for emergency calls and back up torch) and either head out on one of the more relaxed walks with a couple of friends or go out with a tour and experience the challenges the ‘Madeira rockers’ faced when they built the islands historic waterways.
This time of year, with the leaves of the deciduous trees turning into their autumnal hues, the landscape is a kaleidoscope of oranges, yellows and reds against a backdrop of evergreen and silver-grey eucalyptus. The walks themselves are graded from one to four, with four being the hardest, so now is a perfect time to break in those boots with a couple of beautiful easy walks such as Levada dos Tornos (Camacha to Monte), the Balcony at Ribeira Fria and the beautiful levada da Serra do Faial.
And remember ‘your boots were made for walking!’

Firefighters on Animal Rescue Mission

24th November 2019

Having rescued a clutch of duck eggs from the Santa Luzia river the other day, Funchal’s firemen have been on a couple of other animal rescue missions.

On the 22nd the Madeiran Volunteer Firefighters (BVM) were called to rescue a dog trapped in the João Gomes River. While earlier in the afternoon, two divisions were called out to catch and save a wounded cat in Monte. The cat was later taken to a place of safety.

Samantha Gannon

info at madeira-weekly.com

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Autumn Gardening Tips

After perhaps the most topsy turvy year I’ve experienced weather-wise, it’s time to look at its effect on our gardens.
If like me you have spent most of the summer watering, you are probably relieved that the cooler weather is at least giving our gardens a bit of well-deserved respite. However, it’s not over yet as the long dry spring and summer has certainly taken a toll on my borders and garden as a whole. So now, before the rains (hopefully) set in, it’s time to take a cold, hard and ruthless look at your garden and decide what has to go! It may feel cruel, but straggly bedding plants, faded blooms and woody perennials are not going to recover, so the best thing is to pull them out.
Once you’ve been brutally honest and before you do anything else, dig over and rake affected areas and give you garden a thorough composting if possible. Your roses will love it! And now, it is one of the best parts of the season, planting bulbs for next year. Freesia’s, daffodils (if you’re cool enough), anemones and a whole abundance of bulbs are available for you to create your late winter and early spring borders come alive. My Narcissus are already poking their heads above the soil, and hopefully the two Camellia seedlings I’m nurturing are not thugs in disguise.
Don’t forget to trim back shrubs, cut hedges, prune roses and give everything a well-deserved feed. And above all else, enjoy your garden and the joy it brings.