Heartland

UK's butterfly populations got under pressure through the great weather of last year's summer.
Gardeners can help by bedding plants that will bloom to provide the butterflies with food.

..and omit poisoning the caterpillars, of course.

I remember reading somewhere that the growing tendency for Brits to concrete over their gardens (or put gravel over them, or otherwise getting rid of a lot of the vegetation) is having a severe negative effect on insect life, and therefore on the birds that eat the insects.

I like insects.

..moreover, mentioning carbon dioxides: Plants "breathe it in", and "exhale"O2. So if there actually the influence of CO2 on the climate, here's something people could do: Put one or two real trees in their gardens (apples from your own garden are phantastic, for example!), allow hedges to grow etc.
And then, it's not a matter of liking insects or not: We depend on them.

eotunun wrote:So if there actually the influence of CO2 on the climate,

There is.

I know it looks a bit like 'argument from authority' but the consensus of climatologists is that human-generated CO2 is causing global warming. It's pretty much not being argued by anyone any more -- other than the oil companies and their hired hands.

So: Ladies and Gentlemen: Get your spades, stand straight and center! Present the tree!
Aaaand:

Plant the tree!

We have a lavender bush in our front garden that usually attracts hundreds of bees and butterflies during the summer. It's not really big enough for a proper tree, unfortunately.

Bushes and hedges are great for starters!
Every plant that drops its leafes in autumn helps battling the erosion of the groud, by the way. I read that especialy the east cost of Ol'Blighty suffered quite a bit loss of land.
..just to prevent there is only the rocks of the western parts and a corroding platform of occupied Sea Land remaining in the long run.

markfiend wrote:We have a lavender bush in our front garden that usually attracts hundreds of bees and butterflies during the summer. It's not really big enough for a proper tree, unfortunately.

Not to detract from this most important of threads, but I just wanted to say - Theres nothing wrong with a little Bush

It's quite big and a bit straggly to be honest.

I'm not helping.

I've got a fig tree in my back garden, at least I think they are figs

DerekR wrote:I've got a fig tree in my back garden, at least I think they are figs

Mrs. R said so, I presume?