Wildflowers blooming and attracting insects in success for Nature2 campaign

WILDFLOWER seeds planted as part of a campaign to boost nature in the Henley area are now blooming.

Nature2 is a joint initiative between Greener Henley, Henley in Bloom and the Henley Standard.

In the autumn people were asked to plant up a 1m2 patch with seeds, provided free, to help pollinators and collectively boost nature in the town.

Residents, community groups, businesses and schools are taking part, together with Mayor Rory Hunt.

Pupils and staff at Trinity Primary School planted five 1m2 beds, which are now full of wildflowers.

Jill Hall, the school’s gardening club co-ordinator, said: “We were asked last year to go to the town hall and pick up a packet of seeds.

“We planted five beds to attract bees and seeds from another pack were put in pots in the greenhouse as a bit of an experiment.

“The ones inside grew but when we transported them outside, they didn’t grow too much more. I had to use sticks to support them because of the weather.

“The club is great for the children’s mental health. I want to give them a sense of wellbeing and achievement by watching the seeds grow.”

At Gillotts School, the bed is now full of flowers, which are attracting bees. Sarah Seddon, a librarian who is leading the project with science teacher Alison Michael, said: “It’s mainly mauve flowers but it’s looking lovely.”

She said it was important for the students to learn about the environment and climate change. “It’s their future,” she said. “Climate change is going to affect people more and more, especially children.

“It’s a little bit alarming when people aren’t interested or concerned but a lot filters through, such as having a reusable water bottle.

“We have an eco-club and committee and sometimes we will have up to six or eight children but two or three really keen ones will consistently turn up.

“The science teacher runs the eco committee, which has achieved green flag status for the school and the students do particular projects to meet certain criteria.

“I used to run a book club and the parents said they were concerned about the environment, so we set up the club and I thought, ‘Let’s go for it’.”

Kate Oldridge, who chairs Greener Henley, said: “It’s fantastic to see the schools getting involved. It’s a really hands-on way for children to help protect and restore nature.

“The UK is one the most nature-depleted countries in the world and we need to take steps to reverse this decline. This campaign is a really lovely way of bringing people together and acting collectively to help nature thrive.

“We would encourage all schools to get involved. We have a target of getting 500m2, so let’s try to get everyone to get involved and get that number up. If everyone gets involved and takes part, it’s achievable. If we are all on the same mission we can achieve a lot.”

Kellie Hinton, deputy chairwoman of Henley in Bloom, said: “Loads of seeds have been given out at various events, so I hope lots of people, including children, have had fun not just planting but seeing everything start to grow.”

More than 100m2 of wildflower patches have been recorded so far. Wildflower seed packets, which are supplied by Greener Henley, are free to anyone who wants to take part. They can be collected from the information centre at the town hall. For planting instructions and more information, visit https://greenerhenley.org.uk/
nature-squared-campaign