A wedding florist has got on board with Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust's 30 Days Wild campaign and planted her own patch of wildflowers.
Signing up to the challenge to connect with nature everyday during June, Isabelle Soobramanien, of artisan wedding floristry business Violet & Vine, has started a wildflower patch of her own in a raised bed in her garden at home.
Like many who have joined in the project, Isabelle received a packet of wildflower seeds from the Trust. Upon receiving hers via Jessica Banham, group marketing & brand manager of Centrum Pile Ltd she said: “Delighted to receive some wildflower seeds from the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust".
She added: "As a wedding florist myself, we do love our flowers and look forward to seeing these bloom – especially as we use the majority in our floral arrangements!"
Creating your own patch of nature as a random act of wildness for 30 Days Wild not only provides colour to your garden, it also provides food and habitats for pollinators such as bees and butterflies.
By growing a bee and butterfly buffet, you will be helping reduce the decline in these species which also have the job of pollinating our food production too. Gardens can provide suitable breeding places for many pollinators.
But how do you tell a wildflower from an invasive weed? The trust has produced a handy 'Summer flower spotter' identifying an array of wildflowers that you may find locally including plants such as meadow buttercups, tufted vetch, toadflax, and teasels.
Summer is peak season for wildflower meadows, and a field of colour buzzing with insects is a great place to spend a day during June's 30 Days Wild.
However, you don’t need to go far to spot a wildflower - you can see them peppering roadside verges, popping up in parks, and growing through cracks in pavements, so, challenge yourself to identify at least one wildflower you didn’t know before.
If like Isabelle you'd like to create your own patch of colour in your own garden, then you can pop into The Bird Hide Micro Pub or Attenborough Nature Centre near Beeston, or Idle Valley Nature Reserve Visitor Centre near Retford and pick up a free packet of wild flower seeds while stocks last.
