Around 150 members of the public gathered in the evening sunshine on Rimrose Valley on Tuesday, 28th May to sow seeds and to play their part in creating a huge wildflower meadow [1] on the popular country park. They were accompanied by Jazz trio, ‘The Jubilee Stompers’ who played as people walked and scattered seed across the ‘Chaffers Field’ section of the park.
The community sowing event signified the final phase of the work required to create the meadow which is being delivered by Rimrose Valley Friends’ “Bees, Blooms & Butterflies” project. Prior to this, the ground was prepared and mechanically sown by Maghull farmer, Dave Roughley.
The crowd-funded initiative raised over £4,600 in just over 3 weeks, with public donations totalling over £1,800 and the remainder coming from two corporate sponsors; the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation and Idverde UK. [2]
Expected to be in bloom by August, the meadow is set to become an important, new habitat for bees and other insects and to be a visual spectacle on a previously overgrown section of the park.
The project was planned and supervised by Richard Scott from the National Wildflower Centre. Speaking about the importance of supporting nature in heavily urbanised areas, he said:
“Taking inspiration from artists and scientists, we are modern day sowers; as John Lennon said ‘Pushing barriers and planting seeds’, showing what is possible, with all the hope of colour, sunshine and wildflowers. With joy, we are bringing life back into places, for nature and people.”
Speaking on behalf of Sefton Council, Cllr Michael Roche, who was influential in making it happen, said:
“This project has been a huge success and is something Sefton Council have been happy to support. Having seen what has been achieved by the public's incredible donations, Councillors are now considering extending the project next year with a half mile long, 50 meter wide strip in the adjacent field alongside Queensway allotments”
Speaking on behalf of the charity, Project Leader, Linda Gaskell said:
“I’m absolutely delighted at what we’ve been able to achieve in such a short space of time. We simply couldn’t have done it without the incredible public support we received. It’s this level of interest which attracted the backing of the corporate sponsors.
“This initiative is exactly the kind of work Rimrose Valley Friends was created to do. We want the meadow to become a symbol of how much Rimrose means to local people and to send another message to Highways England about how unwelcome its road is. We are calling on those in power to see the madness of destroying this beautiful space and demand that plans for the road be scrapped.”
References
[1] Meadow is roughly one hectare in size - approximately the size of an international rugby pitch
[2] Full details of donations and costs associated with the project can be found at: