The story behind the poppies on Belton Road
You may have noticed the recent explosion of poppies at the corner of Belton Road – and wondered how they got there. Here’s the story.
This spring, Climate Action Silsden (CAS), in partnership with Bull Brand, started work on improving the bare verge at the Bull Brand corner of Belton Road. Our aim was twofold: to make the area more attractive, and to encourage wildflowers that are vital for pollinating insects.
In late winter and early spring, we sowed a wildflower seed mix. We knew this area would be tough for any plant – the soil is poor and dry – so we chose a seed mix designed for a coastal environment (think cliff tops!). We also planted a lavender hedge along the front of the plot. Lavender originates from the Mediterranean, so it actually thrives in poor, dry soil. Three ornamental trees were also added to the corner.
What we didn’t know at the time was that the following spring would be one of the driest on record.
We had to water the trees and lavender every single week. At first, we hauled water up from the beck using a rope and bucket – but as the water level dropped, we had to start bringing water in ourselves.
But now, our hard work is starting to pay off.
In recent weeks, we’ve been rewarded with a wonderful display of poppies. Looking at the number of buds still to open, it seems this show will continue for some time. The lavender is also showing buds and should be flowering in a few weeks.
The dry weather will have delayed the germination of many of the flower seeds, but they should start to appear soon – giving us flowers to follow the poppies. We’ll also be sowing more seeds and planting home-grown wildflower plugs on the slope in front of the lavender. That slope is prone to erosion, and we’re hoping the plants will help to stabilise it.
This has been a promising start to our efforts to brighten up this end of town and improve local biodiversity.
Fancy getting involved?
If you’d like to be part of our activities in this area, please contact us.
