York students plant ‘river of wildflowers’ on campus
Vicky Kindemba (Buglife) and student Yan Cantwell planting bulbs on Heslington East
Students at the University of York planted hundreds of wildflower bulbs last week to create a positive environment for bees and other pollinators.
Working with River of Flowers, a non-profit eco-social enterprise that donates wild plants to community groups and organisations, students planted hundreds of wild spring bulbs and seed balls on Thursday 16 October on Heslington East campus.
Afterwards, Kathryn Lwin, Director of River of Flowers, gave a talk on growing wildflowers in the city, and Vicky Kindemba, from Europe’s largest invertebrate charity Buglife gave a talk about pollinators.
River of Flowers works city by city to create trails or ‘rivers’ of wildflowers in cities, providing pollen, nectar and shelter for bees and other pollinators that we rely on for food. Mapping locations of where wildflowers can be found in a city, they link organisations growing wild plants and caring for pollinators.
Sponsored by Grow Wild and Artists Project Earth, other York locations where River of Flowers has donated to include St Nicks Nature Reserve, York St John University, Glen Community Garden and community gardens fostered by the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust.
Dr Sarah West, Research Associate and Teaching Fellow in Field Skills and Ecology in the Environment Department at the University of York, said: "This is a great opportunity for our students to get involved with some practical conservation work which will increase the amount of nectar available in spring for bees, hoverflies and other pollinators. We already have some fabulous flower meadows on Heslington East campus, but these bulbs will extend the flowering season and provide a splash of colour early in the year."
Further information
For further information about River of Flowers, visit: www.riverofflowers.org
Grow Wild is a £10.5m programme bringing people together to sow, grow and enjoy UK native wild flowers - which have seen their numbers fall by 97% since the 1930s. Supported by the Big Lottery Fund and led by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Grow Wild sets out to encourage people to transform urban spaces, gardens and windowsills into wildlife-friendly wild flower patches. Grow Wild is also a response to studies which have shown that communities across the UK, including those in Manchester are now more fragmented than ever before and young people in particular do not often have the freedom to connect with nature. For more information, visit: www.growwilduk.com/
Artist Project Earth is a collective of artists, scientists, journalists, environmentalists, film makers and authors, who believe passionately in raising awareness about climate change and addressing the major problems people face when trying to adopt a low carbon lifestyle. Their projects also help those suffering from natural disasters. For further information, visit: www.apeuk.org/
For more information about Bug Life, visit: www.buglife.org.uk