It’s a bug’s life – but we can make it better
WILD pollinating insects like bees, butterflies and hoverflies, have suffered drastic declines in recent decades, according to Buglife, the Invertebrate Conservation Trust.
It warns they’re being pushed to extinction, due to lack of space for wildlife in our countryside, towns and cities, and pesticide use.
So, there has never been a better time to fill borders with flowering plants and trees which are magnets to pollinating insects.
If you have a narrow plot then use space vertically, perhaps with climbing shrubs – such as honeysuckle or passionflower – which bees and butterflies love.
If you have room, the minimum width for a border should be around one metre, in which to grow a dwarf shrub and some smaller perennials.
According to Buglife, the key things to remember are that native plants are best, as well as close relatives to native plants, so many cottage garden varieties will fit the bill.
Herbs are also good – lavender, rosemary, marjoram, chives. Provide a range of plants that will supply nectar and pollen throughout the year, from early spring to late autumn.
Don’t forget shrubs and trees. In the spring, pollinators will gather on the blossom of apples, pears, cherries, hawthorn and blackthorn and fast-growing flowering shrubs – such as buddleias and ceanothus – will provide nectar for butterflies and bees.
Plants with differentshaped flowers will provide a range of resources for different types of pollinating insects – some bumblebees favour deep flowers, others require more shallow options with big ‘landing pads’ like ox-eye daisies.
■ National Insect Week runs from June 22-28. For more information visit national insectweek.co.uk