New for 2015: The Wildlife Meadow at Ashwood

We are pleased to announce the official opening of our beautiful wildlife meadow on Saturday May 30th.  With its mature trees, unspoilt grassland and stunning canal side views, the meadow is already well worth a visit. Under the guidance of conservationist Tom Woodhall, we are now managing the area specifically to encourage local wildlife to visit too! Our aim is to increase biodiversity by creating a new haven for wildlife for all to enjoy while hopefully giving our customers the enthusiasm and know-how to do the same.

Cowslips amongst the birches

There will be lots going on this year starting with scrub clearance and the planting of native shrubs followed by detailed surveys of plants, birds,invertebrates, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fungi. Once we know exactly what species we have we will adjust our management plan using the latest ecological knowledge in order to benefit any rarer species we find and make further improvements.

Don’t forget to look out for our annual ‘Go Wild in the Garden!’ event this summer for fun and educational wildlife related activities!

The Wildlife Meadow (which is situated adjacent to the nursery) will be open to the public  in conjunction with John’s Garden Open Days starting on  Saturday May 30th for the grand opening. Entrance is via John’s Garden and will be well signposted. We’ll look forward to seeing you then! It will also be available for private visits from special interest groups: for more information please contact us.

In the meantime don’t forget you can encourage wildlife to your garden no matter how little space you have. Look out for the RHS ‘Perfect for Pollinators’ logo on our plants as well as plants native to Britain when designing your garden and soon your garden will be buzzing – just like our meadow!

A welcome visitor: the Common Frog

Fritillaria meleagris growing in the grass