Conservation charity Buglife is calling on everyone – from balcony gardeners to landowners – to manage green spaces for pollinators, celebrate these pollinator-friendly spaces and add their habitat to the B-Lines map.
Buglife is encouraging everyone to play their part in celebrating pollinators and helping to connect pollinator-friendly habitats across the nation. In the face of growing threats to wildlife in Surrey from habitat loss, fragmentation, climate change and chemicals, Buglife is calling on people across Surrey to do their bit by creating pollinator-friendly habitats and adding these to the local B-Lines network. Every piece of land can help, no matter the size – from balcony herb garden or sprawling meadows.
“Our countryside’s beauty and health for both wildlife and people is under serious threat,” shares Buglife B-Lines Officer, Rachel Richards. “But every single person can make a difference. Whether you’re growing herbs on a balcony, managing a park or nature reserve, or stewarding species-rich meadows, your contribution matters.
“Today we are asking everyone who can, to help create pollinator friendly habitat and then add it to the B-Lines map on our website, no matter how big or small. We would like to be inspired by what you’re doing and for what you’re doing to further inspire others.”
Why it matters
Pollinators face mounting pressures from multiple sources, making connected, flower-rich habitats increasingly vital for their survival. By mapping these spaces, B-Lines aims to inspire others, demonstrate the collective impact of individual actions, and strategically identify where additional pollinator-friendly habitats are most needed.
Over the last three years the Surrey B-Lines project Space4Nature, a partnership between Buglife, Surrey Wildlife Trust, Surrey University, and Painshill Park, has completed over 60 hectares of habitat restoration across 22 sites, working with 13 landowners; including private landowners, local Government, NGO’s, community groups and churches.
“We’re extremely grateful to the 250 volunteers who have supported this project, without whom much of the botanical survey work and other tasks could not have been completed. Their enthusiasm and dedication to Space4Nature has come from a number of hard working local community groups including Albury Vinyard, Denbies Vinyard, St Michael’s Church, Rosamund Community Garden, Unstead Wetland Nature Reserve and Hampton Estate,” shares Buglife Space4Nature Conservation Officer, Peter Heweston.
The Space4Nature project team, and volunteers have carried out or organised a variety of habitat works, ranging from much needed scrub removal, establishing annual cut and lift and/or winter grazing, with the addition of native wildflower seeding and plug planting as well as pond creation and hedge laying, depending on each individual site.
Peter continues, “All project site partners are asked to sign up to a minimum ten year Management Agreement ensuring continuity and resilience well beyond the life of the funded projects. We’re very proud of the significant areas of habitat which, thanks to all involved, this project has restored and moved into favourable management. But helping pollinators and our wildlife can encompass small actions too!”
Who can participate?
B-Lines brings communities together with a common purpose and goal, to improve green and wild spaces for nature. Restoring ‘insect pathways’ and creating wildflower-rich stepping stones across the nation can help bees, butterflies, beetles and other wildlife to move across the landscape. Who can get involved?
- Home gardeners adding pollinator-friendly plants, leaving areas to grow long and flower, or maintaining wildlife-friendly ponds;
- Community food growers working without herbicides and pesticides;
- Farmers stewarding species-rich hay meadows, restoring species-rich hedgerows or creating new flower-rich habitats to support biodiversity and Integrated Pest Management (IPM);
- Local authorities improving public green space management;
- Volunteers and conservation groups managing nature reserves.
All pollinator-friendly work, regardless of scale, can be added to the B-Lines map. Simply head to buglife.org.uk/our-work/b-lines, scroll down to the map and hit the green “Add Site” button in the top right hand corner to add your green space. The ambitious initiative aims to reach 4,000 mapped locations by the end of 2025, further adding to the visible network of spaces that support bees, hoverflies, butterflies, and other essential pollinators.
Main Image Credit: Marbled White (Melanargia galathea) at Albury © Louis Harrington-Edmans