Rosebay Willow herb

[Finman]

Warning from USA : Do not plant Crimson Clover with other wildflower varieties; it has a tendency to become very competitive and crowd out other flowers.

I am going to put wild raspberry plants in river banks.

 

[East Yorks New Bee]

I pray that no-one would consider planting Himalayan Balsam rather than Willow Herb for the benefit of their bees- it spreads like wildfire, kills out all the native plants and is also responbible for increased erosion of river banks- and it's really hard to get rid of.

Rather than plastering the countryside with invasive weeds, I used a really wonderful mix from Kings - It is called Butterfly and Bumblebee mix and is composed of Borage, Phacelia, Bird's Foot trefoil and Red Clover. It was a revelation - I could not believe the number of insects it attracted. Honey Bees however seem to find the long anthers on the Phacelia flowers quite an obstacle. A few were proficient at getting through them to collect nectar, whilst others simply collected dark blue pollen. Bumblebees seemed to be able to cope better. However the Borage was v. popular with the girls. Unfortunately the weather got so bad in Cumbria last summer that the clover and BFT was a bit of a disappointment.

Kings sell the mix in acre packs for £36.00 (4.5 kg), They also do Grass free pollen mixes which have Alsike, Birds Foot Trefoil, Black Medick, Common Vetch, Fenugreek, Lucerne, Phacelia, Red and White Campion, Red Clover, Sanfoin and sweet clover for £62.00/acre (10kg seed) You can also throw in 1kg of Cornfield Annuals- Poppy,Corn Cockle, Corn Chamomile, Corn Marigold, Cornflower ansd scentless Mayweed for £58.00/kg which does 1000 sq meters. They do other pollen mixtures but most have a high proportion of grasses.

I know the cost is quite high, but you are dealing with large areas and if people wanted to club together to buy a bit for their patch it is a hell of a lot cheaper than buying seeds in the Garden Centre.

I promise I have no connections with Kings, you can see what they do at http://www.kingscrops.co.uk or telephone 0800 587 9797

Dont bother with King's go to Cotswold seeds and get their Pollen & Nectar Flower Margin @ £4.45 a kilo:

Pollen & Nectar Flower Margin
Grass & Legume Margin
Ref. MIXPN
The mixture below is designed for Entry Level Pollen & Nectar margins but it can also be used at Higher Level. It is a well balanced mixture containing grasses and nectar source legume species. The field margin is the ideal place to create a visible habitat for insects, birds and mammals. The mixture is excellent for attracting bumblebees and butterflies. It can be sown from March until mid September. It is important to sow thinly to allow the non aggressive species to establish.
5% certified common bentgrass
5% certified crested dogstail
10% certified sheeps fescue
20% certified meadow fescue
15% certified red fescue
10% certified smaller cat's-tail/timothy
15% certified smooth meadowgrass
5% certified late flowering red clover
2% certified alsike clover
2% certified birdsfoot trefoil
5% common sainfoin
4% certified common vetch
2% certified black medick
Sow at 20 kg per hectare £4.45 per kg

 

[peteinwilts]

Warning from USA : Do not plant Crimson Clover with other wildflower varieties; it has a tendency to become very competitive and crowd out other flowers.

I am going to put wild raspberry plants in river banks.

raspberry plants on river banks.... that IS an idea!! (I have access to a few hundred raspberry plants) and have a large stream running through the farm.

Interesting about the clover. On the farm we have an issue with Buttercups in many fields. They grow so thickly and densely they look like a field of rape from a short distance.
I don't really want to plough (and am not sure it would help a huge amount anyway), and was thinking about getting a bee freindly plant to try and crowd it out.
Buttercups irritate the mouths of the horses if eaten in large numbers and make rubbish hay and silage.

The question would be, would crimson clover be good enough to crowd out the buttercups or would I be just compounding the problem?

 

[peteinwilts]

Dont bother with King's go to Cotswold seeds and get their Pollen & Nectar Flower Margin @ £4.45 a kilo:

Pollen & Nectar Flower Margin
Grass & Legume Margin
Ref. MIXPN
The mixture below is designed for Entry Level Pollen & Nectar margins but it can also be used at Higher Level. It is a well balanced mixture containing grasses and nectar source legume species. The field margin is the ideal place to create a visible habitat for insects, birds and mammals. The mixture is excellent for attracting bumblebees and butterflies. It can be sown from March until mid September. It is important to sow thinly to allow the non aggressive species to establish.
5% certified common bentgrass
5% certified crested dogstail
10% certified sheeps fescue
20% certified meadow fescue
15% certified red fescue
10% certified smaller cat's-tail/timothy
15% certified smooth meadowgrass
5% certified late flowering red clover
2% certified alsike clover
2% certified birdsfoot trefoil
5% common sainfoin
4% certified common vetch
2% certified black medick
Sow at 20 kg per hectare £4.45 per kg

Most seed companys suggest you plough before sowing mixes.... I would prefer just to add.
I have a crop of NZ Clover that was planted in the '70's that is worth preserving!