25/08/2026
Researching what to plant in the far reaches of the Fairground garden. This website lists the best plants for insects, and that includes plants for their eggs and larvae, not just flowers for pollinators. So we'll shortlist from it - the plants will be attractive to people too. But we'll avoid larger trees that would just compete for water on this dry site, or shade out the few sunny parts we have. And alder buckthorn is a no no, despite its usefulness, because of its bad habit of suckering. The ultimate aim is to have a relatively low maintenance area, as volunteers are few and far between!
The link below has an image but as we haven't posted it, we can't add alt text. So here's the description: view of a long plant border with tall spikes of purple foxglove and clumps of flowers (white, purple, yellow) with grasses in between. There is a stone wall behind with buttresses, and a distant view of fields.
UK native plants support 10x more wildlife than exotics. Expert guide: 40+ trees, shrubs, and wildflowers with wildlife value, soil types, and UK sourcing.
