Keep Wales Tidy run the 'Local Places for Nature' initiative that offers a range of free garden packages with the intention to reverse nature's decline and boost well-being throughout communities in Wales.
First Choice were awarded some of these garden packages, allowing improvements to the garden space for tenants and giving nature a home. All tenants were involved in participating or supervising First Choice staff and tenants' support staff with planting various herbs and wildflowers in their gardens to create a small wildlife friendly garden filled with a variety of habitats for pollinators to thrive.
Keep Wales Tidy supplied us with fruit and herb garden packages for 2 properties in Neath and Cardiff. Keep Wales Tidy also provided the tools and equipment for us to be able to develop the gardens with ease. Included in a fruit and herb garden package:
Five fruit trees Ten soft fruit bushes Ten herb and pollinator plants Fruit tree handbook Peat-free compost Gloves Hand tools (fork, spade, secateurs, trowel) Wildflower seed containing 24-nectar rich UK native species
Lynette, who's garden has been mentioned in previous blogs, was incredibly excited to get involved. She helped dig holes and plant the produce in the her garden and is looking forward to seeing what comes out of the garden in Neath.
Kathryn, the Project Officer for Keep Wales Tidy in Neath and Jessie, the "Local Places for Nature" Coordinator attended as well, overseeing how the garden was being developed and provided essential information to the tenants on how to properly use the tools, soil and plants that were provided to give them the knowledge to get the best out of their garden!
We would like to thank Keep Wales Tidy (especially Kathryn and Jessie), support staff and First Choice tenants for helping us give nature a home at our properties, increase biodiversity, and improve wellbeing for tenants and their support networks.
We have 2 more projects in Neath and Powys as well as trees being delivered to all 4 of the properties in the next few weeks as well!