Pollinating

 It was while we were looking out on our garden, and trying to come up with a 'game plan' for the coming year regarding additional planting, formative pruning and path re-routing, that our Edgeworthia, fairly prominant at this time of year, reminded me of a plan for the coming years that not only we, but all of us should perhaps bear in mind.

Edgeworthia grandiflora, just coming into flower now, will, in two weeks amaze us with it's beautiful, clear yellow flowers, an attraction to the few types of bees and butterflies around at this harsh time of year.

We must all plan any garden work to include those plants that bees and other insects rely on, regardless of whether or not they fit in with our overall plan of what we want to achieve as a finished product.

There was a time when none of this mattered. Agriculture and horticulture accommodated pollinating insects in abundance. But thanks, or no thanks to the likes of Monsanto, Bayer and other such corporations with their pesticides, farming techniques that are destroying dividing hedgerows resulting in vast barren areas, and our own self centred plans and projects within our own gardens, we are contributing to the problem in a devastating, and possibly irreversible way.

We need much more diverse planting within our gardens. Forget all of that 'fashionable' hard landscaping. More variety of plants I say!! Plan your new garden, or supplement your existing garden with a wide variety of shrubs and herbaceous perennials.

 Perhaps just simply think about purchasing a 1kg bag of mixed wild flower seeds, and just casting them about with wild abandonment amongst ANY borders you may have. Feel free to selectively weed out a few that may not look right in your own eyes, but try not to, and live with the results, and feel good about it.

If anyone one is interested, I can maybe give you some ideas based on what part of the country you live in. Or maybe you can give me some new ideas about plants that I haven't thought of?

Are you a Spring, Summer, Autumn or Winter 'planty' person?

Do you have an absolute favourite plant?

Do you have a plant that you hate?