Get buzzing to help the bees

WELL, April was an interesting month, the driest on record and many nights of frost, it certainly affected my garden, with tomato plants in the greenhouse dying like flies and the French beans looking pretty frail.

All those seeds I’d nurtured through lockdown took a right battering, and I admit this might be because of my over enthusiasm to plant them out too early.

I guess it’s a good reminder that we are all reliant on the climate to ensure we can put food on the table.

When crops fail the prices in the shops rise and everyone struggles that bit more. Of course, the scientists have been predicting that our weather would become more extreme, in unpredictable ways, as the climate warms, and maybe the frosts, hail, snow and winds we’ve experienced recently are just another indication that we’re on that route. However, the blossom is out and I think that makes us all feel a little bit brighter.

Our wisteria, which we planted many years ago inspired by a spring trip to Italy when we saw it in bloom, is looking fabulous, despite having nearly fallen over during a storm last autumn and having to be heavily chopped back.

I’m sure the bees and other pollinators are loving it, and of course they are vital to a successful harvest of much of our fresh produce.

If you’ve noticed that there are more areas not being mown regularly in the city, I can explain that it is because we are trying to support threatened populations of pollinators which have been badly affected by changing climate, different farming practices and the use of pesticides. We want to see our green spaces buzzing with life and be a bee-friendly city that will then support our other wildlife higher up the food chain.

So if you are a keen gardener and get agitated when you see dandelion seeds drifting in your direction, remember that dandelions are an important source of nectar and in the end we will all benefit from having more of them.

The British charity Plant Life has been promoting “No Mow May” to encourage all of us not to mow our lawns this month, to encourage wildflowers to flourish and help local ecosystems.

Just a small thing we can do to improve the environment, and it seems like the ideal time to do it, when people are really appreciating local nature.

So I’ve locked up the mower and am really looking forward to a carpet of wild flowers – all bees welcome!