Hedge laying in the nature reserve. #Nature #Conservation #HedgeLaying #RestoreNatureNow

Some hedge laying on the nature reserve before and afters. Good fun and we were quite well sheltered on a very stormy day. #HedgeLaying #Nature #Conservation #RestoreNatureNow

Last Thursday’s conservation work in the nature reserve. The area next to one of the ponds was cut back and cleared to promote new growth. It was all piled up inside the apex of trees to provide an area of wildlife habitat and to start composting. #NatureReserve #Nature #Biodiversity #ClimateAction #RestoreNatureNow

A very damp bumblebee who stopped out all night on a cardoon flower. No idea what species this is, it's very black. The cardoon plant is way too big for my garden, reaching over 7 feet tall. At the first storm it toppled over and there is masses of material to chop for composting, but it is a magnet for bumbles.
#bees
#gardening
#RestoreNatureNow

@[email protected] At the allotment insect numbers are down, but still more numerous than in my partly rewilded garden. I put this down to my neighbour who sprays everything with pesticides and herbicides. These chemicals should be banned from general public use as a first step. See my bio pic.
#RestoreNatureNow

Took a trip to Wakehurst in Sussex to see their Prairie meadows. On the lawn they have planted what the are calling " meadow bombs", small areas of different plantings. The first pic is the pictorial meadow type and the second is a more natural meadow with achillea and long grass. The less visually impactful had many more insects and a greater diversity of insect types. So, yes, the first is loved by bees but the second is much more useful to a wider range of insects.
#RestoreNatureNow

I went on a short wall to a small piece of parkland locally known as the dog walkers field. And it was full of knapweed, clover and a good mix of grasses. And subsequently full of bees and butterflies and crickets. This is an area that the council do not mow on a regular basis, allowing insects to complete their life cycle. Such a simple low cost solution to
#RestoreNatureNow

Weasel spotted on the allotment site! For context, the site is in the middle of a large town.
#UrbanWildlife
#RestoreNatureNow