Gardeners are charity's 1,000th wildlife-friendly award winners

A community group is transforming green space on outskirts of Plymouth

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A DEVON-BASED conservation charity is celebrating the presentation of its one thousandth wildlife gardening award.

Devon Wildlife Trust's Wildlife Garden Award scheme has been encouraging the spread of nature-friendly garden practices by local people and groups, schools and businesses since its launch in 2021.

Friends of Downhorn Park, in Plymstock near Plymouth, were the 1,000th recipients of a Wildlife Garden Award. Based next to Plymstock Community Centre, the group has transformed a neglected green space into a community garden that is not only welcoming to people, but also offers a real haven for wildlife.

To qualify, participants need to have done ten things for nature on their home patch. Each of the nature-friendly actions is easy and cheap to do but make a real difference to local wildlife. They range from going peat-free and opting not to use pesticides/herbicides, to building a log pile and providing a garden birdbath.

Over the past two years, Friends of Downhorn Park have been busy improving the site by introducing wild areas to help pollinators, planting hundreds of trees, installing a bug hotel and adding benches and raised beds that contain a range of flowers, herbs, and vegetables.