A new Innovation Award for the Wildlife Friendly Gardening Competition

Picture credit: Ken Dolbear, MBE

Dorset Wildlife Trust’s Wildlife Friendly Gardening Competition is once again open for entries, and this year a brand-new award for innovation is being introduced. The idea behind this new category is to encourage more people to think about alternative ways to help wildlife, even if they have limited outdoor space or aren’t gardening experts. Along with pollinating plants, habitats and corridors, judges will have an eye out for recycled and upcycled materials being used to help create wildlife havens, while reducing waste.

Wildlife friendly gardeners can enter for free online at www.dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk. Entry closes on Friday 25 May and an awards ceremony will be held on Thursday 26 July at Castle Gardens.

Mike

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Wildlife Friendly Gardening Awards Ceremony

Photo credit: Gardeners’ World/Paul Debois 

It’s almost that time of year again, on Wednesday 19 July Dorset’s most wildlife friendly gardens will be celebrated at the Dorset Wildlife Trust Wildlife Friendly Garden Competition Awards Ceremony, being held at Castle Gardens from 6:30pm. As well as championing the best gardens in each category throughout the county, we are very lucky to have guest speaker Kate Bradbury, RHS qualified gardener, author and journalist. Kate will give a captivating talk on making the most out of what the natural world has to offer, as well as a revealing the do’s and don’ts of organic gardening, the best natural methods for pest control and advice on wildlife friendly planting.

There will be light refreshments in The Walled Garden from 6:30pm before the awards are announced from 7pm. Tickets are £5 each and are available at all of our garden centres and from Briony Baxter on 01305 264620 or at BBaxter@dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk.

Mike

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Braving new heights for charity

On Sunday 21 May Alexa, Karen, Rachel, Lizzie, Brian, Ryan, Kate, Roy, Nicky, Samuel and Helen will embark on a 100ft abseil down the side of Yeovil Hospital. Their brave efforts are for a great cause, and one very close to all their hearts as they raise money for improvements at Yeovil Hospital’s Cancer Ward.

This is a completely new and terrifying experience for the team, so please do all you can to show your support, whether it’s donating through their Just Giving page or cheering them on as they descend down the hospital.

Good luck to you all, we’re all behind you!

Mike

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Planting summer containers

The pot on the right which looks empty is filled with bulbs and the pot on the left is just starting to sprout shoots.

These full tubs are developing nicely but I will be pinching out some of the growth next week to increase the business of the plants to increase the amount of flower in the summer. It’s still too early for these to be fully out but I am putting them out during the day to keep the growth compact. That morning we had light frost, which is a reminder that we are still 6 weeks away from when we can start to relax on that front!

The wonderful thing about growing plants in containers is the flexibility that it brings, such as choosing the perfect size to fit your space and being able to change their position throughout the year. Container plants are brilliant for brightening up a dark corner, adding colour and interest to a patio or even as a centre piece to a larger display. There is a wide variety of container plants available all year round, which are easy to look after, what’s more they don’t require the need for heavy gardening equipment and all the while keep those pesky pests at bay!

With summer just around the corner, I’m on a mission to prove that everyone can have beautiful potted plants no matter the size of their garden. So each week I will be posting the progress of my own potted plants to show you just how easy it is to introduce fabulous plants into your garden.

Mike

 

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