Gardeners from around the region headed to Kirkley Hall to hear a talk by organic expert Bob Flowerdew.

The event organised by the Friends of Kirkley Hall saw the gardener known for his appearances on BBC2's Gardeners' World and Channel 4's Muck and Magic give a talk called No Work Gardening.

Last week's poll on the Your Place Northumberland sites asked people to vote for their favourite natural beauty spot in the county. We celebrate the winner, the Farne Islands, with a gallery of photos showing some of the islands' inhabitants:

You've picked Northumberland's top castle and its top beauty spot, but now we're asking you for your views on the county's best building.

Our choice of 12 impressive structures ranges from the Royal Border Bridge in the north to Seaton Delaval Hall in the south, from the 12th century Hexham Abbey to modern buildings like Woodhorn and Alnwick Treehouse.

You can also pick from Morpeth Chantry, Howick Hall, Belsay Hall, Wallington, Brinkburn Priory, Cragside or Biddlestone Chapel - or add your own choice if we've missed it.

You can vote by clicking your choice on the Local Poll section at the bottom of this home page. The voting will be open for the next two weeks, with the winner announced on April 10.

At the top of the Northern Alliance there were victories for leaders Gillford Park and second-placed Walker Central with only a point separating the two pace-setters.

Gillford, who have played two games more than their rivals, held on to pole position by beating visitors Heddon 2-1.

Poor travellers Heddon had Daniel Dunn on target but his goal was outweighed by Steve Skinner's brace for the Park.

Peterlee Town's last league win was way back in October but they ended the miserable sequence by beating Saturday's hosts Ponteland United 1-0.

Jonathan Monaghan ended an hour of stalemate with his winner.

Free-range farms are ringing the changes with fancy coloured eggs for Easter.

Northumberland's Blagdon Estate has 800 free-range hens and the breeds - Aracauna , Leghorns, Maran Cuvee and Warren - produce eggs ranging in size and colour from white to deep nut brown and duck egg.

Jo Celerier, pictured, who runs Blagdon Farm Shop where customers can pick and mix their eggs, said: "Animal welfare is of prime importance to us and we want customers to see that our eggs come from happy hens who have freedom to roam around the farm."

A tree planting ceremony will take place next week to celebrate the inauguration of the new Northumberland County Council.

Council leader Jeff Reid and chief executive Steve Stewart will be planting an oak tree in the grounds of County Hall, Morpeth, on Wednesday at 1pm.

They will also be officially raising the new county council flag.

Meanwhile, residents across the county can still give their opinions on how they would like the new-look authority to tackle problems in their community.

Property directors at the centre of a major fraud investigation have refused to speak as thousands of clients faced losing their homes.

Police raided houses and offices of those in charge of North East Property Buyers and Newcastle Home Loans amid claims both businesses had defaulted on mortgage payments.

Last night Michael Foster, a director of North East Property Buyers, whose home in Burnmoor, Houghton-le-Spring, was searched, said he would be issuing a statement through his solicitor on Monday.

The Farne Islands have been voted Northumberland's top beauty spot.

In the latest poll on the Your Place community websites, the Farnes got 27% of the votes, ahead of Lindisfarne (22%) and the Cheviots (17%).

Votes also went to Bolam Lakes, Crag Lough, Allen Banks, Druridge Bay and Kielder Water.

Identical twins Ben and Daniel Brown are going double Dutch after their debating skills earned them a trip to Europe as British ambassadors.

The 18-year-old brothers - both students at Ponteland High School in Northumberland - have been chosen as part of a seven-strong UK team which will attend this year's European Youth Parliament general assembly in Rotterdam, Holland.