bees

Things are looking ‘rosy’ for pollinators at Buckland Abbey

Visitors to the National Trust's Buckland Abbey near Plymouth are being rewarded with an explosion of colour and scent as the newly planted rose beds in the Elizabethan Garden start to bloom.

Over 100 new single and semi-double flowered rose plants were planted by the garden team in February. As well as looking and smelling wonderful, these varieties are easily accessible and...

‘RGBee’ to create habitats for the unsung heroes of the bee population

Between Monday 28th June and Sunday 4th July, RGB Building Supplies will be taking part in Solitary Bee Week by purchasing bee bricks to donate to community groups, schools and allotment associations.

Solitary bees are vital for the ecosystem, and as their name suggests, they tend not to live in colonies like honeybees and bumblebees. They make up 90% of the bee populations and are...

Yeo Valley says no to mowing this May

Yeo Valley says no to mowing this May

The garden and conservation teams at Yeo Valley Organic are hanging up their lawn mowers this month in a bid to put nature first and encourage bees and pollinators to flourish.

Yeo Valley’s sites across Somerset and Devon including its HQ, factories and its six and half acre Organic Garden in Blagdon will not be mowed this month in support of conservation charity Plantlife’s No Mow...

Wildlife organisations call to arms to help Devon's bees

Buglife and other organisations involved in Devon Local Nature Partnership are appealing to Devon's residents to do one simple thing to help bees and other pollinating insects this National Pollinator Week.

Wild bees and other insect pollinators are faced with a perfect storm of pressures which have all led to their decline, these include: a loss of wildflower-rich habitats through the...

Wasp warning after wet and warm winter

An unused lawn mower, the folded sails of a yacht and an old sofa became foundations for homes built by Plymouth’s most unwelcome guests last year – wasps.

Plymouth’s pest control service treated around 250 nests last year and they warn that the city could see a bumper year for wasps following a mild winter and spring.

Service manager Nicola Horne said: “We are coming into the...

Letting the grass grow in Plymouth

Selected areas of Plymouth will see meadows created as part of a city-wide scheme to support bees and other pollinators.

Ten areas, which are open tracts of land, are to be cut only three times this year instead of nine as part of a trial to encourage wildlife to thrive in and around housing estates.

It is hoped that while residents may be used to seeing grass short and cut on...

Bees shy away from field-facing hedgerows

The pollination service provided by bumblebees on the field-side boundaries of hedgerows may be limited because farming methods are having a negative impact on their sources of food, a study has found.

Research by ecologists at Plymouth University has shown some of the most common species of bumblebees are more than twice as likely to visit flowers on the road-facing side of hedgerows...

Alison Seabeck MP calls on Government to take action to save bees

Alison Seabeck, MP for Plymouth Moor View, joined Friends of the Earth’s Bee Cause campaigners on 23rd September to support calls for the Government to improve its plan to protect bees and other vital pollinating insects, due to be published later this autumn.

The use of toxic pesticides and the loss of habitat are major factors causing the drop in bee populations. 97% of the UK’s...

Devon charity helps Cornish bees

Cornish bee experts have been awarded a Lottery grant to help save the county’s very own honey bee. And a Devon conservation charity is playing its part.

B4 - Bringing Back Black Bees - is a Cornwall-based conservation organisation working to promote the qualities of the native black honey bee Apis mellifera mellifera.

Their project, ‘Strengthening the Heritage of the Cornish...

Families buzzing about free events inspired by bee exhibition

Plymouth University will be a hive of activity on Saturday 17 May when it hosts two fun family-friendly events inspired by an exhibition about bees.

‘Bee Happy’ will be led by the Wild About Plymouth team – a partnership between the City Museum and Art Gallery and Plymouth University, which organises a natural history or science-based event each month throughout the year.

The...

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