Let your lawns grow / have a wild area to your garden - help the bees, butterflies

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/11205984/Let-your-lawns-grow-wild-to-save-Britains-bees-gardeners-told.html

Scientists warn that British bees are in serious decline with 71 of our wild bee species under threat and more than 20 already extinct. Loss of habitat and forage are the main problems facing wild bees.

Since the Second World War, 97 per cent of the UK’s wild flower-rich grasslands have been wiped out due to modern farming practices and urban development.

Sarah Raven, the writer and television presenter who writes a regular gardening column for The Daily Telegraph, welcomed the plans. She said: “It is right that you should not mow your lawns.

“Daisies and dandelions are key for pollinators because dandelions flower from very early in the year, and then daisies take over and flower to late.

“Gardeners should also introduce crocuses and snow drops into their lawns because they will provide nectar and pollen early in the year when food is scarce. Queen bumblebees often starve in the early spring.”