The Natural History Consortium are leading a project across the West of England to support and inspire residents to create pollinator and wildlife friendly habitats, funded by the West of England Combined Authority.
The project is being delivered through a fantastic partnership between Avon Wildlife Trust, Bath and North East Somerset Council, Bristol City Council, Bristol Regional Environmental Records Centre, Bristol Green Capital Partnership, Bristol Museums, Bristol Zoological Society, South Gloucestershire Council, University of Bath, University of the West of England, Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, and Your Park.
There are plenty of opportunities for you to get involved!
Wildlife Gardening Competition
*THIS COMPETITION HAS NOW CLOSED*
The competition celebrates the amazing green spaces across our region which are making a difference for wildlife. This could be a blossoming balcony, a small urban nature haven, a sprawling back garden, community patches, nature-friendly allotments, school spaces and everything in between. There were three categories: Individual, Community and Food Growing.
This competition has now closed and a panel of judges selected the winners and sent a photographer to take magical images of the chosen green spaces!
Who won the competition…
1,255 votes were received for the individual garden, community space and food growing categories!
Well done for all of the entries, finalists and winners.
Individual garden: Jenny in Bristol, BS4
Community space: Redcatch Community Garden in Bristol, BS4
Food growing: Bath Organic Group demonstration garden, BA1
Discover the winning entries on the Avon Wildlife Trust website.
Pesticide Reduction
Are you a West of England organisation, group or community garden committed to improving local wildlife? We’d love to showcase your practical stories of and pieces of advice for wildlife-friendly gardening and pesticide reduction in growing.
Do you have a pesticide reduction story to tell?
We’re seeking short stories and pieces of advice to share with the public on our free online resource page, aimed at people in the West of England who wish to reduce their reliance on pesticides and introduce more wildlife-friendly methods into their gardening and planting.
Explore a range of inspiring examples on our new webpage here.
Want to be part of this campaign? We’d love to hear about the changes you’ve implemented to reduce pesticides and support pollinators and other wildlife and showcase it to our local audience. Please send your example, name, organisation/group and photos to izzy@bnhc.org.uk
Free Training Sessions
We’re thrilled to be able to offer free training sessions through the People for Pollinators programme helping residents to develop wildlife gardening skills, delivered by our partners Avon Wildlife Trust and Your Park.
There’s so much on offer, including twilight sessions for teachers, courses for local authority staff and friends of parks groups, an 8-week wildlife friendly gardening club, sessions for allotment holders, and one day wildlife gardening courses at Grow Wilder.
Explore the Autumn events and courses available with Avon Wildlife Trust here.
Join us at our next Pesticide Reduction Workshop!
Following the success of our Pesticide Reduction Workshops in September and October, we’re running one at St Werburghs City Farm in Bristol on Monday 20th November 6:30 – 7:30pm.
During the workshop we will:
▪️ Consider what chemical pesticides are and the symbols to look out for
▪️ Share tips and techniques on chemical free alternatives in growing and planting
▪️ Contribute to a shared resource of tips and ideas for growers across the West of England.
This free event is for all growers, no matter where you are on your journey to sustainable gardening. Find out more and register for a place here.
Pollinator Friendly Demonstration Gardens
Five demonstration gardens will be created across the region to inspire residents and share ideas for creating pollinator friendly spaces. The gardens will be created at Grow Wilder, Wild Place, UWE’s Frenchay Campus, University of Bath, and at a Bristol allotment site. We look forward to sharing more details about the gardens and how to visit them as the sites take shape.
Resources
Over the year we’ll be creating gardening guides, toolkits, and inspiration on chemical pesticide free gardening. Watch this space for more tips and resources!
Following wildlife-friendly gardening workshops delivered with South Gloucestershire Council at the end of 2022, this Wildlife Friendly Gardening: Tips from Allotment Holders resource was created.
In May 2023, a small group of community growers in the Bristol region came together to connect, share insights and celebrate growing that is friendly for both Humans and Nature. The project was coordinated by Bristol Green Capital Partnership and funded by the West of England Combined Authority’s Community Pollinator Fund. Following these sessions, this Human (&) Nature: Growing Together zine was created.
Thank you to all the project partners and our Consortium partners who will be supporting this activity throughout 2023.
Find out more about the West of England Combined Authority’s Community Pollinator Fund here.
