Sherborne In Bloom!

Sherborne In Bloom isn’t just about wonderful floral displays, it’s also about creating a sustainable environment in the town and helping to preserve wildlife.

One initiative that is now starting to showing results is the creation of a bee and insect garden on a wasteland verge at the far end of Sherborne Station car park.

The plot was entirely overgrown and neglected when the Sherborne Beekeepers Association decided to adopt it and turn it into a bee-friendly garden.

During July, members clubbed together and cleared the plot of the accumulated overgrowth and litter which was all there was to see. With the help of a generous load of compost donated by Viridor Waste Management, some topsoil donated by Sherborne Turf, and machinery loaned and operated by Lillington Plant, the plot was cleared and levelled ready for planting.

The beekeepers decided that they didn’t want to plan or design a formal garden, rather they wanted to establish a range of bee-friendly plants and, with the help of Mother Nature (and the insects themselves), encourage the plants to take over the plot.

The first step in this plan is to establish some ground cover. Bees don’t like grass but they do like clover and this has now been planted with wild white clover seeds donated by Pearce Seeds. This is growing well, helped by the generous amount of rain we’ve had in August!

When the clover has grown a little more, further planting will take place. Bees love plants such as borage, foxglove, verbena, honeysuckle, rosebay willow herb, purple toadflax (to name but a few) – all of which will be encouraged to spread and encroach on to the wasteland adjoining the railway track.

Bees are an essential link in the horticultural chain and, in recent years, have been subject to a number of stresses caused by disease, environmental pollution and bad weather. The bee garden at the end of Sherborne Station car park is intended to help redress the balance and to covert an overgrown eyesore into a productive haven for bees and insects of all kinds.