Bee Beach at Lichfield Park

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Sat 06 May 2017

The abundance of flowers at a Staffordshire park will soon be getting a helping hand thanks to the efforts of local cub scouts. The cubs from the Lichfield Somers Cub Pack were invited to Beacon Park in the centre of Lichfield to create a 'bee beach' to help bees reproduce and, in turn, pollinate the flowers throughout the park. The creation of the bee-friendly habitat area was assisted by park volunteers who put the eager cubs through their paces. With the help of the volunteers, the youngsters dug out a large bee silhouette in a stretch of grass next to Beacon Park's poppy field, which was later filled with sand. It is hoped the sand-filled cut-out of a giant bee will act as a nesting site for solitary bees who like overgrown grass, earth and sand to nest in.



The idea for the bee beach came about following a visit from Andy Jukes, from the Staffordshire Invertebrate Group, who advised the team at Beacon Park that unused golf bunkers are the ideal habitat for solitary bees. However, as the park's golf course bunkers are all in use, the team decided to create a new one in a section of the park that is being developed into an area for wildlife. Tim Lock, Community Gardener at Beacon Park, said: "It was a great morning session. The cubs all got stuck in and worked really hard and understood why we were working to create a bee-friendly habitat. Bees have suffered a marked decline in the UK and so it's important that we all do our bit to encourage more of them. This could be from planting native flowers that bloom at different times of the year in your garden to building a bee hotel."



Richard Taylor, Cub Pack Leader, said: "We had a fantastic morning helping to make a bee beach. The parks team helped the cubs to understand the importance of making habitats for the wildlife in the park. Helping the community is an important part of the Cub Scout programme and this activity was a great opportunity for our cubs to take responsibility for their surroundings and to get really muddy." Caroline Blundell, park volunteer, said: "I have been volunteering at the park for one year now and it is great to work with such enthusiastic groups like the cubs."



There are many ways you can get involved in your local parks. Anyone interested in volunteering is asked to contact Ruth Witczak on 01543 308869 or by emailing [email protected]

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!date 06/05/2017 -- 06/05/2017
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