Flower Beds
The flower beds in the Wildlife Garden are planted with the interests of both gardeners and wildlife in mind.
Some of the bigger shrubs and roses have been in the garden since the mid 1980s (such as a very large Hypericum 'Hidcote', Rosa glauca and Rosa 'Graham Thomas'). Other plants have been self-seeding for many years (e.g. Euphorbia characias, bronze fennel Foeniculum vulgare 'Purpureum' and various Verbascum). Recently we have been growing Echium species in the beds near the Children's Shelter. Many of these are rare in their native habitats — for example Echium pininana in the laurel forests of La Palma, Canary Islands, or Echium candicans in Madeira.
Plants in the genus Echium are almost all attractive to bumble bees and so are good for the insects as well as fascinating for the gardener. One flower spike of Echium pininana in the garden in June 2001 was nearly fourteen feet high. 'Weeds' are often tolerated in the borders if they are of some interest or value to insects (for example the deadnettles, Lamium species are very attractive to bees and bumble bees) so the beds can sometimes look 'erratic'.
