Go Wild about Wildflowers

To  celebrate the work of community gardeners and mark the launch of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Britain in Bloom 2012 campaign, millions of wildflower seeds will be sown over the weekend of 14th to 15th April, 2012, writes Sandy Felton.

The largest environmental campaign of its kind, Britain in Bloom, brings communities together to clean up and green up where they live through gardening. Supported by Anglian Home Improvements, the campaign pays tribute to over 100,000 volunteers who devote 4.4 million hours, each year, to projects that benefit the wider community. Trees, shrubs and plants are planted in their millions, miles of graffiti removed and tons of rubbish cleared.

This year's launch activity will see the equivalent of 50 acres of wildflowers sown over 48 hours, during the weekend leading into National Gardening Week (16th –22nd April). Seed packets have been given to Britain in Bloom volunteers, schools registered to the RHS Campaign for School Gardening and gardening clubs affiliated to RHS. Comprising of a mixture cornflower annuals, the country will be dotted with red, white and blue, plus a splash of yellow, as corn poppy, corn marigold, corn chamomile, corncockle and cornflower seeds are distributed across the land.

Stephanie Eynon, RHS Communities Manager, explained, "We wanted to do something to celebrate the constant and often underappreciated work of community gardeners across the country, the start of our Britain in Bloom year, and pay homage to the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, hence the majority of the flowers are the red, white and blue.

"Britain in Bloom is well known for its hanging baskets and floral displays, but much of the work is about safeguarding our environment and local wildlife. We hope Wild about Wildflowers will raise awareness of the lesser known side of Britain in Bloom while also working to stem the decline of our wildflower populations and the pollinating insects they support."

You can learn more about RHS Britain in Bloom, RHS Campaign for School Gardening and information on your local gardening club by visiting:

www.rhs.org.uk/Gardening/Community-gardening

For more information on National Gardening Week – 16th to 22nd April – log onto: 
www.rhs.org.uk/nationalgardeningweek


Picture Credit: © RHS – Wildflower meadow of Leucanthemum vulgare (oxe-eye daisies) at RHS Rosemoor, Devon.