Little Green Space

LITTLE GREEN SPACE

Originally published in the Peak Advertiser on 21 August 2008

It has been wonderful to receive all your emails about action you have taken to create your own green spaces.

Christine from Hathersage emailed to tell me that her bird feeders have attracted a great spotted woodpecker, nuthatch and goldfinch, amongst others. She has also managed to create a small area of wildflower meadow. Although she has not seen many butterflies, she tells me that bees have been “buzzing in by the dozen”.

The lack of butterflies in Christine’s garden is not surprising. According to statistics from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme, butterflies are in short supply across the country. Many species, such as the small tortoiseshell which has seen an 81 per cent decline since 2003, are really suffering.

Wet Weather

One of the main causes of their decline is last year’s awful summer – the wettest since records began. Butterflies can’t fly in wet weather – which means they can’t breed or seek out nectar-rich plants to feed.

Bees, too, have suffered from the wet weather. Like butterflies they can’t forage for nectar and pollen when it’s raining. A survey by UK Beekeepers has shown that one in three honey bees did not make it through the winter and spring.

So warmer and wetter summers brought about by climate change, combined with habitat loss, could mean fewer bees in the future.

And fewer honeybees doesn’t just mean less honey. Insects pollinate a third of everything we eat, including food for our livestock as well as fruit and vegetables. Bees are an important part of this process, so it is also in our own interests to do all we can to safeguard their future.

If, like Christine, you can plant up an area of your garden with nectar-rich plants that bees and butterflies will love, you will be doing a great job not just for wildlife, but for people too.

For more information on attracting bees to your patch, read Ken Dykes’ advice below. Meanwhile, please keep letting me know your news by emailing penny@littlegreenspace.org.uk.

Penny at Little Green Space

THE PLIGHT OF THE BUMBLEBEE

Bumblebees are not everyone’s cup of tea.

‘Bee equals sting equals pain’ is the most likely thought-chain of most people—and yet bumblebees, unless seriously provoked, are happiest just minding their own business.

Minding their own business consists almost exclusively of looking for, and collecting, nectar and pollen to take back to their nest, during which activity they perform the most useful and necessary function of pollinating a huge range of flowers, fruits and other crops. And just a little more investigation will show that they are, in fact, quite endearing little creatures.

First there’s the name, ‘bumblebee’, it rolls off the tongue beautifully. Years ago they were also called ‘humble bees’ and even earlier, in some country dialects, they were known as ‘dumbledores’. Sorry, Harry Potter fans, J. K. Rowling didn’t invent the name after all!

Then there was the aerodynamics expert (Swiss I think) who, back in the ‘Thirties, claimed to have conclusively proved that it was impossible for a bumblebee to fly. Well, to look at one, you wouldn’t exactly argue that its design was perfect for flight but nature being what it is, nobody told the bumblebee it couldn’t fly — and it does very nicely, thank you! And, let’s face it, in flight they look pretty impressive.

The Bumblebee Conservation Trust

Dr Ben Darvill of Stirling University is Director and co-founder of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust which is dedicated to improving the lot of the humble bumblebee.

He tells me that some species in Britain (there are a couple of dozen, of which three are already extinct) are having a hard time of it, mainly through massive loss of habitat such as hay meadows, hedgerows and marshes. As a result the country’s bumblebee population has virtually halved in the last 50 years and is still in decline.

So what can you and I do to help?

Bumblebees need a good supply of pollen and nectar-rich flowers as well as somewhere safe from disturbance to build a nest. In essence, this means we should all try to make sure that our back yards, whether a window box or hundreds of acres of landscaped gardens, contain the right flowers to attract these wonderful insects. Couple this with providing bumblebees with the opportunity to nest and we’re well on the way.

Remember, too, that improving the habitat for one species invariably enriches it for a whole range of creatures, including other insects, invertebrates, birds and mammals.

Cottage Garden

Let’s consider food first of all. Fortunately bumblebees seem to be happiest with many of the old-fashioned, cottage garden type of flowers which are easy to grow and provide some striking splashes of colour in patio pot or border. Things like foxglove, scabious, sweet sultan and forget-me-not. And forget-ye-not the buddleia!

Leaving a section of the lawn uncut so that smaller wild flowers have a chance to bloom will also be a big help. Try to arrange for a succession of flowers to be available right through from spring to autumn.

Bumblebees may find it difficult to find natural nest sites so why not provide some? You can’t hope to supply suitable sites for every species but readily available boxes for both ground level and subterranean siting are excellent and you can reduce the cost considerably by building your own. A simple hole dug with a spade and covered by a paving slab is an even cheaper option.

To learn more, including a full list of suitable flowers, designs for nesting boxes and nest sites and how to build them, visit www.bumblebeeconservationtrust.co.uk.

There you will find the answer to every question you might possibly have about bumblebees.

At surprisingly little cost you could make your patch a bumblebee paradise. And I think you’ll agree, your garden would be a poorer place without them.

Ken Dykes at Little Green Space