CARE HOME gardeners in North Yorkshire have received an award for their wildlife friendly garden from the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust.
The Wildlife Gardening Award 2023 was given to Hazelgrove Court Care Home, on Randolph Street, in Saltburn-by-the-Sea.
Residents and staff from the care home worked hard to ensure their outdoor space met the criteria for the award, which was divided into five categories.
For the food category, residents made bird feeders as part of an arts and crafts workshop, as well as planted early spring flowers, and tended to their berry bearing shrubs and herbs.
For shelter, bird boxes and bug hotels were installed in the garden, and they sent pictures of their hedgerow and bramble tangle as they provide a home for various insects and birds.
The garden’s bird baths fell under the water category, with residents also putting out additional shallow water dishes.
They also had to demonstrate how they manage their garden to encourage and support wildlife, which they showed by committing to avoiding the use of pesticides and created a leaf pile for animals to forage through and shelter under.
The final category was connectivity, with the care home’s outdoor spaces being connected via their trees, shrubs and hedges.
In addition to their garden meeting the competition criteria, staff and residents had to explain anything they do additionally to help local wildlife, with their participation in the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch and Butterfly Conservation’s Big Butterfly Count helping them to clinch the award.
Joyce Wooffindin, 83, a resident at Hazelgrove Court Care Home, said: “I love birds and have always enjoyed putting food out for them. It is marvellous that we’ve won an award for something I’ve enjoyed doing all my life.”
Fellow resident Ellen Else, 91, said: “I loved helping to create the tangle, which is where the brambles and thistles are left to thrive.”
Joyce Baxtrem, 92, added: “I loved seeing a hedgehog in our garden and now we have a leaf corner we might see more.”
Sharon Lewis, activities coordinator at Hazelgrove Court Care Home, said: “We are all very excited to have won the award and received our certificate. We are waiting for the plaque, which we will proudly display on the wall.
“It was great how enthusiastic our residents were about making our garden a haven for wildlife and their enthusiasm has paid off. We are hoping to see a lot of wildlife in our garden this year.”