Bees, butterflies and blooms, part2

[Brosville]

8pm, BBC2, Weds 15th Feb (tonight)

2/3. Sarah Raven encourages gardeners in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, to embrace flowers rich in pollen and nectar over traditional bedding plants, as she continues her mission to halt the decline in bee, butterfly and pollinating insect populations. She also launches a bid for a pollinator-friendly logo to be introduced at the Chelsea Flower Show, and finds out from naturalist Steve Head how her own garden can be improved.

 

[kighill]

Just watching the programme whilst checking the forum, well worth watching so see if you can watch it on a catch up service.

 

[beeboybee]

Inspiring.......

 

[region2]

http://www.rhs.org.uk/Gardening/Sustainable-gardening/pdfs/RHS_Pollinators_PlantList

R2

 

[YorkshireBees]

Very interesting, wonder what wild flower mix they used towards the end?

 

[Anduril]

What a fantastic way to educate and inspire people to plant insect pollinated plants and then see the other beds totally barren of insects. The other side of the coin would be for those with an allergy to stings buying the plants barren of insects. Hopefully please both camps. But for those sympathetic to the insect world totally inspirational.

 

[Anduril]

http://www.rhs.org.uk/Gardening/Sustainable-gardening/pdfs/RHS_Pollinators_PlantList

R2

It doesn't tell you which plants are pollinated by which insects! RHS could do better!

 

[Erichalfbee]

Lot of Linaria in that last wildflower planting.

 

[DarynWebb]

Found it on Iplayer.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episod...es_and_Blooms_Villages_Farms_and_Countryside/

 

[HiB mary]

Hi YorkshireBees

I did try to reply to your PM but I've not written enough posts to be allowed to do so!

The answer to your question about the seeds used in the programme is Pictorial Meadow's Candy mix - but they do quite a range of seed mixes.

Details can be found on the link half way down this page

Ooops, I'm not allowed to put a link in yet either, so you'll need to Google them!

Glad you enjoyed the programme!

Mary

PS: I only found this forum 'cos I was looking at the stats for the HIB website and was astonished to see someone had actually been reading my nectar-testing blog!

 

[thurrock bees]

Where do you get seed mixes like that as i would like to plant the front garden and the orchard with them?!

 

[region2]

Try this: http://www.pictorialmeadows.co.uk/annual_mixes

R2

 

[Erichalfbee]

I've already bought some. Perhaps we should all plant a little area up and swap pictures in the summer

 

[Russel]

Try your local Wildlife Trust eg. Gwent Wildlife Trust they may have a wild flowers seed project.

 

[beeboybee]

http://www.wildflower.org.uk/. National wild flower centre, just down the road from me highly recommend there cafe and food

 

[kighill]

Here is another source for the seeds some of which were mentioned on the programme.

http://www.pictorialmeadows.co.uk/annual_mixes.

Ps I have not used the company nor have any connection.

My motivation is our bees and native insects and butterflies. But crikey itdoes look a tad expensive, but you will hopefully only buy it once.

Starts at about £14 to £22 for 50 gramme of annuals 2/3 gramme per meter. Then gets a bit silly for perennials.

 

[The Cumbrian]

Starts at about £14 to £22 for 50 gramme of annuals 2/3 gramme per meter. Then gets a bit silly for perennials.

Try working out the price of 50g of some of the F1 varieties of annual for "normal" plantings. It was eye watering 10+ years ago.

For example Lobelia seed is like dust and 2500 seeds currently cost about £2.09

 

[Russel]

Lidl's have this Flower seed mix £1.99 Assume they've been passed okay for use in the UK?

 

[Skyhook]

Lidl's have this Flower seed mix £1.99 Assume they've been passed okay for use in the UK?

I don't like the use of the word 'meadow' as they're not, theres no grass and none of these mixes are natives, they are garden hardy annuals. Also it's a fairly short-term project- you have to re-sow every year, and you can only use the same bit of ground for about 3 years then it is too weedy.

Having said that, it is very pretty

 

[Luminos]

Just received the latest T&M catalogue (Thompson and Morgan) and on page 2 they offer a Wildflower "Honey Bee" seed mix.
I shall order some and give it a go, trouble is there's only 1g - I really need enough for several acres...