Many in York are buzzing with excitement as the City Council launches its ‘Buzz About York’ campaign, a fresh initiative aimed at promoting biodiversity and supporting local wildlife. The campaign brings sustainable planting to the city’s flowerbeds, featuring long-lasting, perennial plants that provide a feast for bees, butterflies, and other pollinators.

Alongside these vibrant additions, the council is introducing a reduced mowing programme in select areas, following guidance from Plantlife and The Wildlife Trusts. By letting grass and wildflowers grow longer, it is thought these areas will become havens for a variety of flora, fauna, and insects.

York’s dedication to biodiversity is also reflected in its recent participation in the world's largest biodiversity competition, the City Nature Challenge. From April 26-29, 2024, York competed against 690 cities worldwide, including 24 cities in the UK. Thanks to the efforts of local organisations, groups, student volunteers, and individuals using the iNaturalist app, York achieved remarkable success.

Participants across the greater York area recorded observations of birds, plants, fungi, insects, and more in their gardens, streets, and parks. York’s impressive results were as follows:

• 2nd place in the UK for the number of observations, with a total of 12,833 biodiversity observations.

• 3rd place in the UK for the number of observers, with 221 people contributing.

• GOLD for the total number of species observed, with 1,487 different species, showcasing York’s incredible wildlife diversity.

• 47th place globally out of 690 cities, an outstanding achievement.

“We are excited that Buzz About York will help make our city a place for nature to thrive, and hope everyone will take part,” said Cllr Jenny Kent, Executive Member for Environment and Climate Emergency at City of York Council. “The plants have been chosen to feed our pollinators – vital to the wellbeing of our native species and food crops – and with the aim of being able to do well through our increasingly long spells of rain and drought.”

So, keep an eye out for those green signs and let’s all get buzzing about making York a greener, more biodiverse city!