Bumblebee-friendly seed share
Bumblebee Conservation Trust supporter and keen gardener, Juliet Pearce, shares how she and her friends from Dunnington Green Initiatives Group have encouraged others to sow seeds and grow bumblebee-friendly flowers.
Pass it on for Pollinators with Freebies for Bumblebees
Calling all wildlife-friendly wannabees with pollinator-friendly flowers! Can you Bee the Change in your community by gathering and giving away pollinator-friendly flower seeds?
In March, we – a group of volunteers from a community eco group, Dunnington Green Initiatives Group – did just this. With the help of our local church, we offered free seeds, which had been collected from homegrown flowers and packaged up in compostable homemade envelopes, to anyone visiting the local church. We invited everyone to help themselves to these pollinator-friendly wildflower seed packets, which included feverfew, cornflower and corn marigold. Before the end of the month, all 130 seed packets had found homes!
Since this project involved a relatively small input for such a big impact, it seemed a good one to share in the hope that other communities might also be encouraged to grow and share their pollinator-friendly blooms. We think this no cost activity is not only easy to do but also offers relaxing mindful moments as you gather seeds and create your own seed packets from paper. Interested? Here’s how …
Step 1 – Grow pollinator-friendly blooms with easy-to-harvest seedheads (e.g. cornflower, corn marigold, feverfew, nigella, ox-eye daisy).
Step 2 – Late Summer. Gather seeds from those flowers by waiting until they’re dry and then snip off the faded flower heads into a labelled paper bag. Store these somewhere cool and dry for 2 weeks.
Step 3 – Make origami seed packets reusing compostable paper (e.g. parish magazine). The RHS has a guide to follow.
Step 4 – Gently shake out or rub the seeds off the seed heads, then tip the seeds into your origami packets and store in a cool, dry and dark place (ideally in an airtight container).
Step 5 – Early Spring. Arrange an accessible local collection point (e.g. library, church) where you can leave your seeds and let folk drop in to take their pick! Consider creating an accompanying poster with basic advice on sowing and a toxicity warning if needed. Advertise your ‘Freebies for Free Bees’ within your community (e.g. public noticeboard, library, parish magazine, newsagent, GP practice).
Step 6 – Mid summer. Use the same channels to encourage those who collected your seeds to ‘Pass it on for Pollinators’ by sharing their seeds with family and friends.
That’s it! Six simple steps so we can all pull together for our pollinators and help nature thrive!
For more ways to Bee the Change for bumblebees, check out our gardening and our Bee the Change resources.