So now you have seen what you can look forward to, let's look back at something we have achieved.
The Birds and the Bees Bugthorpe project went so well, and I don't know about you but I certainly saw an abundance of bees around the village this summer!
Here is a quote from one of the organisers.
"We hope your seeds and cosmos plants did well after a difficult start weather-wise, and both you and the insects enjoyed the flowers.
I’ve got a lot of pleasure from watching the insect activity on sunny days through the summer. My plants are looking a bit tired now but most are still flowering and the bumblebees have given way to butterflies. From the piles of husks under my sunflowers, I see they are now feeding something bigger than insects. For the other species, leaving some flowers to ripen seeds will provide free plants next year. You can either let them self-seed or you can collect the seed to sow elsewhere in spring.
According to the RSPB website, nest boxes should be cleared out in autumn. That could be any time from now once you’re sure the box is no longer in use. They suggest using boiling water to kill any parasites which may be harboured in the box, assuming you can get it down easily."
If you’ve got any thoughts on how things went this year, or ideas for how to encourage wildlife in the village next year, please do get in touch at bugthorpevillage@gmail.com.
To see a few of the insects and bees we spotted you can visit our BugFeed page. Here you will also see a photo of the honey the honeybees produced, but we can survive without honey right? Follow the link below to find out why we CAN'T survive without the other services flower-feeding insects provide!
