Wild about wildflowers.

Harriet’s Plants main principal is about growing plants in the most sustainable way possible. I am a peat free campaigner, I grow pesticide free, virgin plastic free and collect water to minimise my impact on the planet. That said, I am also a huge advocate for letting wild things be wild. We need more wild in our world. Through protected forests, peat bogs and meadowland it is vital that these areas are protected. This is the first part of a series dedicated to these wild spaces.

Wildflowers thrive in meadows. They encapsulate to the British countryside. Wildflower meadows provide valuable support for insects and other wildlife. Up to 80% of the world’s flowering plant species rely on animals to pollinate them, including many of our important food crops. The ecosystem of pollinators also includes Insects that feed on wildflowers, which also provide a food source for other animals and help to reduce the numbers of pests like aphids that attack crops.

UK native wildflowers have a long history in the folklore and culture of Britain but our native wildflowers are in decline. Since the 1930s, 97% of UK wildflower meadows have been lost. Over the past 70 years, a move towards larger-scale, intensive farming, combined with increasing urbanisation, has led to the destruction of wildflower habitats across the UK.

With over 1200 different species of flowering plant, the countryside of the British Isles does not lack in interest at any time of year. It is a wonderful experience to stand in one of our remaining wildflower meadows or walk the footpaths through woods and hedgerows in spring and summer. Over 200,000 miles of hedgerows have been destroyed and half of our ancient woodland and heathland has disappeared.

On a single day in summer, one acre of wildflower meadow can contain 3 million flowers, producing 1 kg of nectar sugar. That's enough to support nearly 96,000 honey bees per day. Put simply we need more UK native wildflowers. You may not have a spare acre of land to plant in, few of us do but currently I have nearly 2000 newsletter subscribers. If all of my readers planted just one packet of wild seed in whatever outdoor space they have, think about how many more wildflowers would exist, How many bees would flourish, how many more fruit trees would be pollinated. It is not a flower it is an ecosystem.

Harriets Plants stands for wild spaces- lets re-wild the UK and watch it bloom.

 Love always, Harriet xx