I watched a fantastic special edition of Gardener's World last night, on Wildflowers. I have always loved wildflowers and noted the importance of planting native wild plants in the garden to encourage wildlife. So it was very sad to watch the programme and hear that many of our beautiful native wildflowers here in England may soon be extinct (something like 200 species on the endangered list?!)
The wonderful Sarah Raven gave us all hope though, with her fantastic quest to get 'rivers of flowers' running through our towns and villages, where wildflowers are planted in gardens, fields, meadows, verges and hedgerows, connecting up to make a 'river' and thus not only save so many species of plant, but also provide homes for many species of animals, birds, insects and most importantly, our beautiful butterflies which are disappearing so worringly rapidly.
I have been planning to plant a small wildflower meadow in my new garden, but having seen this programme I want to give even more of my garden over to the wild. Please fellow Enchanted Folk members, if you have a garden then please try these ideas too!
* Plant native wildflowers, or sow a wildflower meadow if you have the space. They are very low maintenance - just let them grow and flower, and cut them back in late August. Source wildflower seeds locally so that they suit your soil.
* Leave an area to go wild. Long grass, a nettle patch, and rotting wood logs are all havens for important wildlife and insects. We might not be fond of creepy crawlies, but the more we have, the more food there is for the birds!
* Grow organically, so that there are no chemicals to kill off important wildlife
* Hang homes for wildlife! You can buy all sorts of homes - bird nesting boxes, bat boxes, owl boxes, hedgehog houses, butterfly feeders and houses, lacewing towers, bee boxes (for solitary non-aggressive bees), toad houses etc - or be creative and make your own!
Just imagine the rewards of giving some of your garden over to the wild - beautiful flowers, and more wildlife! (And less lawn to mow!!!)
Visit the following link to find out more. The homepage currently has a video from the show and tips on what you can do, including how to make a wildflower meadow.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardenersworld/
Bless you all! :o)
PS for all our non-UK EF residents, why not find out what native plants you can help to nurture in your area too?