What is Meant by Biodiversity?

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) says ‘Biodiversity encompasses all life on Earth, and the biodiversity we see today is the product of 4.5 billion years of evolution’.  Put simply, biodiversity is all the different kinds of life you’ll find in one area—the variety of animals, plants, fungi, and even microorganisms like bacteria that make up our natural world.

Cultivating Ealing’s vision

Cultivating Ealing focuses on promoting horticulture and biodiversity-friendly gardening practices to improve the well-being of people in the borough of Ealing. We aim to encourage local residents, allotmenteers, schools and community groups to embrace sustainable gardening techniques that benefit both the environment and people's health.  Improving green spaces also helps to improve the overall health of the planet.

Tips for creating a more biodiverse green space

• With your garden or green space, try to include a wide variety of plants to lengthen the flowering season and support different kinds of wildlife 

• Grow plants which are good for pollinators (insects and bees) – shrubs such as rosemary, lavender, buddleia and nepeta; trees with blossom; wildflowers such as poppies and foxgloves

• Plan for drier months and make a gravel area.  Grow drought tolerant plants – grasses, salvia, geum, agapanthus, heather

• Plan for wetter months and create a damp area or rain garden

• Make wood piles, bird boxes, bee hotels or hedgehog homes to encourage wildlife

• Provide some water for insects, birds and amphibians – a pond or a shallow dish

• Consider planting things that grow year after year (perennials) so you don’t have to keep up the cycle of digging and sowing.  If you leave the ground undisturbed this can benefit soil structure

• Plant a tree if you’ve room to create some shade

• If you have a lawn, let a patch of it grow wild to provide a home for insects

• Plan your growing for different seasons – blossom in spring; flowers in summer; fruit in autumn; berries in winter to help wildlife

• Garden without chemicals – find ways to deter slugs such as sprinkling used coffee grounds, spreading crunched up eggshells, using copper bands around pots.  Keeping your plants healthy deters harmful pests

• Leave your growing space a little bit untidy so garden creatures will thrive

• Think about digging up a concrete slab or two and making a small growing area

• Have a compost heap or pile of leaves – small creatures will love it

• With food scarcity in future due to climate change, grow food in your green spaces whenever and wherever you can!   

Where to go for more help and advice

Local Garden Centres are always happy to give advice.

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has a wealth of advice - https://www.rhs.org.uk/

Kew Gardens also has helpful information - https://www.kew.org/

Ealing Wildlife Group has an interesting Facebook page where you can join and ask questions.

The Woodland Trust has specific ideas for more biodiverse growing

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2023/04/increase-garden-biodiversity/