How to help bees
Provide a friendly home for bees and create a safe haven for them! Bees are an essential part of our ecosystem, and they need our help. By creating a safe haven for them, we can ensure they thrive in our environment and continue to provide valuable services like pollination of
November Gardening
Leave those leaves! In autumn leaves fall from deciduous trees, its okay to let them stay on the ground, we encourage you to! The leaves act as a mulch on flower beds, protecting the soil and when they break down they improve the structure. Worms pull leaves below ground where
Batty facts and creepy crawly news!
Batty facts The UK has 18 native bat species; 17 of which breed here. UK bats are one of the most endangered wildlife species. The loss of roosting sites, along with a crash in the insect population and night-time light pollution have all made it harder for these night-flyers to
Autumn Scatter Time
You don’t have to wait until spring to scatter seed balls however. Autumn is a great time to get to work on your own wild flower patch. It’s also a lovely time to be out in the garden. The light is soft, it’s often still warm and everything takes a deep breath after a summer of frenetic activity.
Autumn is the best time to scatter wildflower seed balls
You don’t have to wait until spring to scatter seed balls however. Autumn is a great time to get to work on your own wild flower patch. It’s also a lovely time to be out in the garden. The light is soft, it’s often still warm and everything takes a deep breath after a summer of frenetic activity.
10 Super Simple tips for rewilding a garden
Some simple ideas to get you started up the rewild garden path! Wow! Did you know research shows that even a tiny garden can house over 700 different species of insect. From the minuscule organisms living in the soil to the nocturnal visits from hedgehogs, bats and foxes. No space is
August Wildflowers
Here are three of our favourite wildflowers, that you might find blooming in the summer month of August Teasel – Dipsacus fullonum We love seeing a teasel, it makes a stately specimen in a garden or in the wild and can grow over 5ft tall. The strong stem often has
The Big Butterfly Count 2023
This year’s Big Butterfly Count begins on 14th July, and is the largest public conservation survey in the world! Run by our friends at: Butterfly Conservation. Natural Indicator Butterflies are a fantastic indicator of the natural environment around us. Meaning environmentalists and conservationists can gain lots of important information from
How To Create A Wildflower Meadow
Follow these easy steps to create your very own wildflower meadow! Choose a site that receives full sun during the summer. Wildflowers prefer nutrient-poor soil, so the next thing to do is check your soil. Ironically, ex-arable land is usually depleted of nutrients. Perennial weeds, such as nettle, dock and
Coronation Meadows
In 2013, after reading the 2012, Plantlife report: Our Vanishing Flora, which highlighted the staggering loss of British wild flowers since Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953; King Charles III, (formerly HRH The Prince of Wales), joined forces with The Wildlife Trust, Plantlife and the Rare Breeds Trust; to pledge the
10 best wildflowers to grow for insects
Most insects have a special relationship with a wildflower, usually for food. Butterflies and moths use them as nursery plants for their young, other insects use them to hide out in wait for prey. Bees and pollinators visit them for nectar and pollen. With the UK’s natural wildflower habitats now
Insect Week 2023
The next Insect Week is 19 to 25 June 2023, and is run by the Royal Entomological Society to encourage people of all ages to learn more about insects and their conservation. Follow @insectweek on socials and check out the @royentsoc to find insect related events, facts and fabulous photos. In
Seedball Wins at RHS Chelsea
We were super excited to be invited to have a Seedball stall at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023. The show usually runs during the last week in May. We hired a van and drove down to spend the Sunday, flower-faffing and product-placing, until we were happy with the way the
No Mow May
“We can think of nothing better to help make the world a better place, than cultivating your garden. Someone who grows a garden, to help nature, is personally doing the important work of improving the world. Never underestimate the power of such a seemingly simple act” Ana & Emily Seedball
Hedgehog Awareness Week
Organised by The British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS), the first week of May, is all about raising awareness of the problems faced by UK hedgehogs, and what we can all do, to make a difference. Naturally, we thought this the perfect time to think about how we can make our gardens a
The life of the Hairy Footed Flower Bee
[The Hairy Footed Flower Bee (HFFB) gets the name from the male, who has long whiskers on his front legs. He uses these to stroke the female’s eyes in an attempt to becalm her long enough to mate. (Seedball)] Penny Metal (@penny.metal) blogs about the life in the bushes of
Sustainable Garden Ideas For Earth Day
Look after your garden soil Mulch once a year. This means adding a 5-10cm layer of bulky organic matter, such as homemade peat-free compost. If you have clay soil, Autumn is the best time to do this, for sandy soil, mulch in Spring. Mulching will help protect the soil from
Earth Day 2023
For us, every day is Earth Day. If you feel the same, here are some actions and tips to make a difference, every day of the year. Go Pesticide Free – Take the Pesticide Pledge Help protect important pollinators like bees and other insects by pledging to go pesticide-free! Take
Spring planting and Easter Fun
Spring Planting Growing wildflowers is an awesome way for children to increase their connectedness with nature. It’s so easy for children of any age to start the cycle by scattering Seedballs, watering and then watching the seedlings grow and develop into plants. Once in bloom, even the smallest patch of
April wildflowers
April is here – and with it comes the start of the wildflowers! This month really brings us joy as wildflowers begin to emerge in earnest. And, it’s the perfect time to plant wildflowers too! We’ve popped some info below on some of the ones you might spot at this
Raising awareness of rare bees
To highlight the plight of the Bumblebee, Seedball have launched three new tin designs focussed on our rarest bumblebees, and launched to celebrate the ten year anniversary of the first Seedball tin in 2013. The UK supports around 10% of the world’s species of bumblebee. These two dozen species play
New Bumblebee Mixes!
The UK supports around 10% of the world’s species of bumblebee. These two dozen species play a vital role in pollinating hundreds of millions of pounds of crops. From the 1950s, scientists noticed bumblebee populations in the UK were in decline and three of the UK’s native bumblebees have become
Half of British wildflowers declined
The past twenty years has seen a steep decline in native wild flowers, the latest BSBI Plant Atlas finds. The overall shocking news is that British flora is now so depleted there are. more non-native plants recorded in the wild than native. Over 50% of native flora recorded over
National Nestbox Week
National nest box week starts on Valentine’s Day on the 14th. This is the perfect time to install a nest box, and help out the dwindling garden bird population. As gardens have become tidier and many hedges replaced with fences, there are fewer and fewer places for birds to nest.
LOVE wildflowers this Valentine’s!
Let’s LOVE wildflowers this valentine’s! At Seedball we’re all about the ‘birds and bees’ this Valentine’s Day, here’s what you can grow to share the love with wildlife that can be found in your garden. It’s time to think about planting up your garden to give wildlife a valentine’s day
Rewild Your School 2023
Yikes, unfortunately we have run out of bags but please do check again soon as we will have more available in the next few weeks. Time to rewild our schools and fill 2023 with wildflowers! We hate waste, and post Christmas, we have lots of wildflower odd balls! Not round
🐦 Big Garden Birdwatch 🐦 2023
Join in with the RSPB’s annual Big Garden Bird Watch. Simply count the birds you see in your garden, local park or from your balcony for one hour between the 27-29th January 2023! It’s a great way to help conservation! So why not get the kettle on and settle down
How To Make A Pine Cone Bird Feeder
This is a super cheap way to make a bird-feeder, which can be hung in a tree or your back-garden as a festive feeder for the birds or all year round. It’s a great activity for young nature lovers too. What You Need: Pine cone String or twine Assorted seeds
Which animals are the true hibernators?
We may all feel like hunkering down during the winter months but which animals truly hibernate in the UK? Hibernation is a survival tactic, a form of deep sleep, as protection against a period of time when food is scarce or non-existent. When temperatures drop, it is often too cold for
How To Make A Mini Bug Hotel
Giving wildlife somewhere dry to shelter is a wonderful addition to any wildlife-friendly garden. Nature loves an untidy corner with lots of nooks and crannies to climb into. This super simple tutorial will show you how to make one for free. What you will need: Hollow canes we used old raspberry
