Campsites Join Hedge Conservation Project

Around  300 campsites across the UK have taken part in a hedgerow conservation project – to the benefit of over 360 miles of hedges.

The scheme was announced in 2017 by botanist David Bellamy and his son Rufus. One year on, an audit was carried out by qualified assessors.

This year's challenge for sites was to increase even more the volume of pollen-rich wild flowers in their grounds, so providing extra foraging for honey bees and other pollinators.

Says Rufus: “Hedgerows are vitally important as they provide food and shelter to many species, including those that need particular help such as dormice and bank voles, which use hedges to move around.

“Our assessors also found that the hedges managed by many parks are largely made up of a rich mixture of native plants which, crucially, are left to grow bushy and cut only at the right time. This means that wildlife has the chance to enjoy the berries which the hedges produce, and nesting birds are not disturbed – a bonus both for holiday guests and the environment.”

Examples of sites taking part in the project are:

• Silverdale Holiday Park in south Cumbria planted eight miles of new hedgerows to benefit dormice, hedgehogs, red squirrels, butterflies and birds. The work took nine months to complete, and brought in a raft of species including hawthorn, hazel, ash and oak, interwoven with climbers such as traveller's-joy and honeysuckle.
• Tyddyn Isaf Camping and Caravan Park on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales, planted over 40,000 native trees and shrubs.

All sites involved are members of the trade organisation, the BH&HPA (British Holiday and Home Parks Association).