Let’s hear it for the bees!

We’re buzzing with excitement, this month, because not only one – but three! – of our bee-friendly wildlife planting projects received an award.

Our station gardens at Alresford Rail Station, Essex and Sudbury Town Rail Station, London plus the youth centre garden at Coram’s Fields, London have all received a Bees’ Needs Champions Award from Defra.

Chosen not only for their bee and pollinator-loving credentials but also the community team spirit that was involved in bringing each project to its current blooming state, the Bees’ Needs Champions Awards are an annual showcase of the best bee-friendly initiatives around the UK.

The praise is well deserved:

At Alresford Rail Station, we worked alongside Essex County Council, Essex & South Suffolk Community Rail Partnership, Greater Anglia, Cobnuts Co-operative, Alresford Primary School and Arlesford Community Gardeners, to create a wildlife garden of raised beds and a cob bug hotel (pictured) on the former site of a Portacabin.

At Sudbury Town, tons of donated manure were used to breathe live back into neglected pre-existing beds. The Sudbury Community Gardeners then joined the party, bringing plants and green-fingers to create displays of pollen-rich flowers and edibles for all to enjoy.

At Coram’s Fields, lockdown had taken its toll on the children so, what better way to end 2020 on a high than with a bee-friendly holiday planting project. The kids – aged 14-16 cleared an area of debris and rubbish, installed raised beds, planting myriad pollinator-friendly plants and upcycled tyres to create unique wildlife habitat art.

Sending (socially-distanced) pats on the back to all those involved!