Group stand together by the Millennium Bridge. Emma is on the far right.
“I’ve always wanted a little garden. Now I’m the Head Gardener!” laughs Emma about the communal wildlife garden she’s started. Inspired by our nature workshops, Emma has created a mini oasis for both the residents of her flats and wildlife. But it all started with a walk.
Emma leads a busy life, working full time for a not for profit health organisation. Outside of work, she supports her parents and runs an active social group in York for single people. Somehow she finds time to run, but she also really loves to walk. She had tried a number of walking groups around York but was frustrated by what they offered. When a York Bike Belles walk on Eventbrite caught her eye, she decided to come along.
“The York Bike Belles walk was just completely different to anything I had been on before, and I loved it! On other walks I found you had to race to keep up, or the aim was to walk really far. I am car-free and would have to get up very early just to get to the meeting point. But these walks were really enjoyable and relaxing. We stopped to learn about nature along the way. Everyone was really lovely, there was such a good vibe”.
After that first walk, Emma has been on as many of our weekend walks as she can. She values the fact that they are local and easy to walk to. And she also values the local social connections she has made. “I had had a bit of a difficult day and bumped into someone from the group. We managed to catch up for 10 minutes and it just made my day”.
It was on the walks that she heard about our Nature Workshops, and decided to give them a try too. Themes for our workshops have included Citizen Science, Nature ID, Growing Wildflowers, Wildlife Gardening and Hedge Planting. One of Emma’s favourite moments was working as a team to create a nature-friendly hedge as part of our new Wilder Spaces. “I feel we built something to be proud of. People tell me that they’ve stopped to water it as they go past. I’ve even taken my parents to see it!”
The workshops also inspired Emma to make changes closer to home. This year, she has created a garden in the gated communal area of her block of flats. “I’ve got lots of containers full of plants. I’ve planted some of them with the seedballs that we made at the Wildflower Workshop and I’m waiting to see what flowers blossom. I’ve even made a composting area!” The changes she has made has in turn inspired some of the other residents to join in.
Emma recently won a Wildlife Gardening Award from Yorkshire Wildlife Trust for her gardening efforts. She kindly said thank you in our WhatsApp Nature Group to Bike Belles for all the wildlife gardening skills we had taught her. Thank YOU, Emma, for all your support, enthusiasm and hard work! We can’t wait to see the photos as your communal garden develops. 🙂
York Bike Belles 