Grow your own Bee Garden as part of National Gardening Week

UPDATE:

Due to the wonderful response to the Grow your own Bee Garden initiative, the Council has suspended receipt of applications for the free seed packets.  The Council will endeavour to meet all the requests for seeds however due to demand, it will take a little bit of time to process the orders.

Fermanagh and Omagh District Council is celebrating National Gardening Week by giving away a free packet of wildflower seeds to families who want to grow a bee bed and help wildlife in their garden.

Wildflowers and garden flowers that are rich in nectar are great for bees, butterflies, hoverflies and other pollinators. You can do your bit for nature at home and also sit back and enjoy the colours and sounds a mini-meadow brings throughout the summer months.

Speaking about the initiative, the Chair of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, Councillor Siobhán Currie said, “in these challenging times, what better way to create a bit of colour and get out and into the garden by availing of the free seeds and growing your own bee garden. The beauty of this initiative is you don’t even need a space in your garden. You can use a window box, hanging basket or any other suitable container you have available. Just add the seeds to compost or soil, water and wait! You are not only providing a haven for bees but you are also contributing to promoting the biodiversity of our district.”

The Council would love to see your bee beds flourish over the next few months so please post your pictures to spread the colour and joy your bee garden creates.

The RHS are calling on people to go out into their gardens, as a way to look after their physical health, wellbeing and ‘keep gardening’.

To register for your free packet of seeds please click on this link,  https://form.jotform.com/201172565524047 to complete the request form. If you want to find out more about biodiversity in 2020 and about our wildlife events when they resume, please provide us with your email address too.

Fermanagh and Omagh District Council continues to work hard to manage our open spaces for pollinators in keeping with the All Ireland Pollinator Plan which can be viewed at www.pollinators.ie.  So far this year, the Council has planted over 100 heritage apple trees in our Trees for Bees campaign and is re-sowing several roundabouts with its annual wildflower mix.

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