19/12/2024
12,000 bulbs to blossom across east of England in biodiversity campaign
Samphire Homes neighbourhood officers Simon Ford, left, and Jason Brett plant bulbs at a Flagship-owned green space off Bloomfield Street, Ipswich.
Thousands of flower bulbs will be planted across the east of England in coming weeks in the aim of making 2025 a ‘bloomin’ marvellous’ year.
Flagship Group has set out to plant 12,000 bulbs including wild daffodils, bluebells, grape hyacinth, snake's head fritillary and winter aconite.
The housing provider’s 24 neighbourhood officers are each being given 500 bulbs to plant in their areas across Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire.
Among them are Simon Ford and Jason Brett, who planted some of the first bulbs at a green space off the appropriately named Bloomfield Street in Ipswich.
The bulbs are expected to flower at different points over the coming spring.
Mr Brett said: "It’s great to be part of something that brings a bit of life and colour to our communities while helping local wildlife. We hope the flowers they bring will brighten up people’s days and bring a smile to their faces.”
Daniel Salliss, Flagship Group’s Biodiversity and Land Manager, said they hoped to see a growing number of flower bulbs each year.
He said: “We want to increase biodiversity on our land and help improve access to nature in the communities we serve, and our neighbourhood teams want to add more colour to our green spaces. “The flowers will not only look good, they’ll also become a source of nectar for insects. Bulbs naturally multiply, we should see more coming up each year.”
Flagship Group is a not-for-profit housing provider which owns over 33,000 homes for over 78,000 people through three housing associations – Victory, Samphire and Newtide.
The group also owns around 1,200 green spaces, which it is improving for both nature and people according to a six-year biodiversity plan launched earlier this year.