Dave Goulson's tips for sustainable gardening
An enthusiast from our local gardening group went to Seedy Sunday in Brighton recently and has just shared her notes of the talk given by Professor Dave Goulson, the bee specialist and author. Some of his tips will be familiar but others, less so.
Mow less.
Get involved in re-wilding community spaces – see the Road Verge Campaign.
Think of weeds as wildflowers and give them space in your garden to encourage biodiversity (many bees and insects need native wildflowers such as nettles and dandelions to survive).
Don’t use any pesticides or chemical fertilisers.
Choose to grow flowers which attract pollinators ie. open old fashioned roses not the closed kind which offer up no pollen. Avoid annual bedding plants which offer up little to no pollen.
Plant insect friendly perennials like lavender, catmint, hardy geraniums, borage, comfrey, laburnum, apple trees, viper’s bugloss (echium).
Grow from seed to avoid buying plants from garden centres which are often grown using pesticides and peat-based compost.
Do not buy peat-based compost.
Install a bee hotel, a wildlife pond or a fly lagoon.
Do not use Advocate flea treatment on your pets as this carries toxic insecticide that can be washed off into waterways and kills insects far beyond the occasional flea.
Mow less.
Get involved in re-wilding community spaces – see the Road Verge Campaign.
Think of weeds as wildflowers and give them space in your garden to encourage biodiversity (many bees and insects need native wildflowers such as nettles and dandelions to survive).
Don’t use any pesticides or chemical fertilisers.
Choose to grow flowers which attract pollinators ie. open old fashioned roses not the closed kind which offer up no pollen. Avoid annual bedding plants which offer up little to no pollen.
Plant insect friendly perennials like lavender, catmint, hardy geraniums, borage, comfrey, laburnum, apple trees, viper’s bugloss (echium).
Grow from seed to avoid buying plants from garden centres which are often grown using pesticides and peat-based compost.
Do not buy peat-based compost.
Install a bee hotel, a wildlife pond or a fly lagoon.
Do not use Advocate flea treatment on your pets as this carries toxic insecticide that can be washed off into waterways and kills insects far beyond the occasional flea.
