CATCH THE BUZZ – A Year on a Wildlife-Friendly Allotment Plot

Allotment Plot - BUZZ

An allotment is essentially a public garden plot, common in the UK. They may house vegetable gardens, chickens, flowers and more, and are used, quite often, year round. This is from a blog written by a group of people who work in an urban allotment. They have quite a display, and have attracted a vast assortment of pollinators to this very diverse planting over the course of a year. Enjoy.

Allotments can be great places for wildlife especially when planted and maintained in a wildlife-friendly way. If you use no pesticides, plant pollinator-friendly flowers in between your vegetables or in a dedicated flower bed, have fruit trees and bushes, a herb bed, a compost heap and a little pond, some green manure and if you do regular mulching you are already providing a great habitat for all sorts of wildlife such as pollinators and other insects, spiders, frogs, toads and small mammals. You will also soon realise that you have a lot less problems with pests such as aphids and caterpillars as their natural enemies such as ground beetles and wasps will thrive in a habitat with lots of food, places to hide and no pesticides sprayed.

To get an impression of how a small productive plot can also be a great place for wildlife come with me on a journey through the seasons on my allotment plot in Wallingford which does not only produce a great amount of fruit and veg but also has a lot to offer for pollinators and other wildlife.   You can also watch the two allotment videos I recently made to see how my allotment looks now and to get more ideas of how to make your plot more wildlife-friendly.

My wildlife-friendly allotment in June/July 2015

My wildlife-friendly allotment plot in early August 2015

January/February

Lots of snow and it looks like as if not much is happening. But looking on the ground there are quite a lot of different animal tracks to see, from …

Read the rest of this blog from URBAN POLLINATORS on Urban Allotments here.