How the South Downs National Park is creating the wildflower meadow corridors – and the vital pathways between them – that bees need.
“We’ve all been there,” says Jan Knowlson, Officer at the South Downs National Park Trust. “When you walk into a room and can’t remember what you went in for.”
Jan is referring to the plight of bumblebees, specifically their reaction to some pesticides, which cause them to lose their bearings and forget what they were doing. This is far for creatures that, even at the best of times, are only 40 minutes away from starvation – that’s the longest time a foraging bee with a full stomach can last until it needs to drink more nectar.
It’s this need for bees to be able to fly between different food rich environments that Jan and the team at the South Downs National Park Trust have been working to support with Bee Lines, an ongoing charity project that launched in 2019. “Habitat fragmentation is the biggest issue facing bees,” says Jan. This is when parts of a habitat are destroyed, leaving behind smaller, unconnected areas that the bees can no longer reach. Bee Lines’ teams now plant new wildflower meadows and are also creating a growing network of wildflower “corridors,” in part by supporting different landowners in the area to add this bee-friendly vegetation.
“Here in the South Downs, we’ve got wonderful heathlands, hedgerows and woodland edges, so if we can connect all these fragmented habitats, our bees will be OK,” says Jan. The chalk grasslands that were once extensive in the area now cover just 4% of the South Downs National Park and so Bee Lines is creating a “road system” to help pollinating insects move between existing and newly planted wildflower havens.
“The chalk grasslands of the South Downs are the perfect habitat for bees and butterflies, with an array of stunning wildflowers – but chalk grasslands are essentially a man-made habitat that came about as a result of grazing,” explains Jan.
“And, increasingly, farmers aren’t making a profit from grazing livestock.” This has meant a reduction in these bee-friendly environments. So, one of the other things we’re doing is helping landowners to find other ways of grazing the land, such as with Exmoor ponies.”
The Bee Lines team of National Park staff and local volunteers has so far created more than 66 hectares (approximately 163 football pitches) of lush wildflower meadows in strategic locations around the park. The areas they transform are often wasteland. “There are some areas of wasteland, covered in brambles or nettles, where you can tell from the vegetation underneath that they were once species-rich grasslands,” says Jan. “So we’ll come in and clear the area and plant locally sourced native wildflower seed mixes.” The results are here for all to see: stunning, colourful fields where St John’s wort, pyramidal orchids, marjoram, calamint and forget-me-nots all now grow.
And it’s not just the bees that benefit. “We’re creating a habitat for lots of different invertebrates and, consequently, beetles, bats and birds, too,” says Jan. “By creating Bee Lines in areas where previously there has been no forage, suddenly all of these creatures have access to much more of this bountiful landscape. In and around the local schools, you can see children enjoying learning about these things that they’ve never seen before. It’s an absolute joy to see these places changing.”
Bee-friendly environments are a cause we’re fully behind here at THE PIG-in the South Downs. “We have a range of flowering crops and trees, so our pollinators have a food source throughout different seasons,” says Alex, our Head Kitchen Gardener. “It’s so important for us to be part of this effort, as the continued deterioration of the chalk grasslands means our key pollinators are on the decline.” We’ve also supported Bee Lines with a financial donation and our generous guests (that’s you!) top that up even further with a voluntary £1 donation option when you order from our 25 mile menu.
You’re helping to support the South Downs National Park Trust and the essential work of the Bee Lines Appeal every time you come to eat with us. To find out more, visit southdownstrust.org.uk/beelines
