The Chequers team has created six wild-flower planting plans for our customer Southern Housing – one of the largest housing providers in the UK.
And, as part of our social value initiatives, team leader Dennis Reynolds (pictured above) has also made an individual bug hotel for each area.
The hotels will encourage a wide range of beneficial insects to take up residence in Southern Housing residents’ gardens, as they provide safe places for insects to hibernate.The large boxes have been made from sustainable timber and include a slotted section for butterflies and moths, drilled wood and bamboo tubes for solitary bees, cut up buddleia cuttings for ladybirds, and a chamber to fill with leaf litter in autumn to entice lacewings and hoverflies.
Chequers director Naomi Childe said: ‘We are delighted to be able to work with Southern Housing to help boost the insect population around its gardens.
‘Insects are really beneficial to the environment as they pollinate many fruits, flowers and vegetables and also feed on rotting vegetation and fungi and help breakdown the soil.
‘Most of them also eat the bugs that devour garden plants and keep pest populations at a manageable level and, of course, they are themselves a food source for birds and other animals, such as hedgehogs.’
Dennis said: ‘The bug hotels were great fun to build. They contain a range of different structures and are full of the holes and crevices insects need to enable them to rest and hibernate safely and they will offer Southern Housing residents the opportunity to watch them at close quarters and learn more about wild planting and wildlife gardens.’
Southern Housing’s sustainability project manager, Kerry Briffitt said: ‘It is fantastic to work with Chequers; the team is committed to our sustainability values, especially with our aim to increase biodiversity.
‘We look forward to seeing how the insects will thrive in their new habitats and hope our residents enjoy the wildlife they will attract.’
