Looking for lavender
Lucky ducks at Arundel?
Folklore says to plant lavender for luck. The Arundel Wetland Centre is hoping to have some soon in their search for these pretty plants. The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust site needs donations of enough lavender plants to fill a one by fifteen metre raised bed. Dry and in full sun, the raised bed beside the World Wetlands duck feeding bay is a perfect spot for lavender to flourish.
‘’Lavender is a hardy plant which attracts a lot of insects – these will supplement the duck’s diets quite nicely.’’ said Paul Stevens, the grounds manager at the reserve. “The plants will also provide a lovely scent for the people on the benches near the feeding spot.” The WWT Arundel grounds team is hoping someone redesigning their own garden can spare some of the fragrant plants.
Many gardeners have donated plants and other objects to Arundel Wetland Centre. Recently, a gardener from Worthing donated an old tree stump he pulled from his own garden after he found it was home to larvae from the increasingly rare stag beetle. The stump has found a new home as part of the stag beetle log pile in the Woodland Loop at the wetland centre.
In the language of flowers, lavender means devotion. If you are devoted to conservation and want to help the Arundel Wetland Centre by donating some lavender plants, please call Paul Stevens at 01903 881527 or email paul.stevens@wwt.org.uk.
"Ladies fair, I bring to you, lavender with spikes of blue;
sweeter plant was never found, growing on our English ground."
Caryl Battersby 1896
