Bee on the Verge

Bee on the Verge is a National Landscape wide project to enhance road verges and other green spaces. We are working with Parish Councils, local groups and landowners and residents who have an interest in verges, wildflowers and pollinators.

Biodiversity loss has been catastrophic in recent times, with pollinators suffering as a result of loss of habitat and change in land management practices. Road verges provide corridors for movement across the landscape, with the National Landscape being a key link through the North West of England, highlighted in the Buglife b-line map. Ensuring these habitats are rich with a wide range of wildflowers across the season is key to supporting pollinators and wider biodiversity. The National Landscape currently manage a number of sites in the area for biodiversity.

As part of this project we have:

  • Identified local groups to work in partnership with
  • Identified a number of verges/small greenspaces with potential for enhancement
  • Surveyed the areas to get a baseline data set of species present
  • Collected seed through meadow makers and volunteer activities including species yellow rattle, knapweed, eyebright, plantain, meadow cranesbill, betony, birds foot trefoil
  • Grown plug plants in partnership with Cumbria Wildlife Trust and Hermitage Field Community Meadow, and at The Growing Station, our community growing space
  • Carried out volunteer activities to prepare, sew and plug plant the verges

Areas we have worked on have included:

  • In Arnside we have assisted Arnside Parish Council in their wildflower verge restoration works on Black Dyke Road, around the level crossing, and Sandside Road. In the Beechwood nature reserve we undertook plug planting and seed dispersal.
  • In Beetham we have seeded and plug planted with local school children on the verge at Four Lanes End.
  • In Silverdale we have helped plug and bulb planting at Cove Drive with local school children, residents and Lancaster City Council partners.
  • In the Yealands we worked with Yealand Redmayne and Conyers Parish Councils, and the Yealand WI group to enhance verges at Dykes Lane and the community wildflower meadow on ‘The Meadows’ with plugs and seed. 

Want to enhance a verge or section of grass local to you?

There are a number of useful resources available to assist when improving a verge for pollinators. Plantlife have a Road Verge Campaign and a guide to road verge management.

Also more locally: