By Elaine Smith, Heswall in Bloom

Heswall in Bloom has launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise money to support our work throughout the year.

Last year, in addition to planting up and maintaining the beds, planters and barrier baskets, Heswall in Bloom refurbished the bed located close to the ambulance station on Telegraph Road.

Dale Farm kindly donated the bark chippings for the revamped bed and the volunteers provided shrubs and perennials from their own gardens.

There is still a little bit of work to do, but once the shrubs establish, it should provide a colourful focal point in this area. Already the daffodils have brightened things up no end.

The Heswall Society continued its work on the beds in front of Castle Buildings, and at the other end of Heswall we have planted saplings as a backdrop to the large shrub border by the Catholic Church and this whole area is now looking very attractive.

In line with RHS guidance, the team is also looking at ways we can be more environmentally friendly by planting shrubs and perennials which attract pollinators and move away from traditional seasonal bedding.

With this in mind, we are trialling new planting schemes in several of the beds along Telegraph Road. We have been fortunate to obtain some money through our ward councillors from the Wirral Together Fund, which will be a great boost to our being able to purchase these plants. We hope you enjoy the new planting schemes.

With the environment in mind, Heswall in Bloom will be supporting The Heswall Society at the "Cool Heswall, Caring for our Climate" event, which is being held in Hill House Gardens, adjacent to Heswall Hall, on 14th May 2022.

As part of this event we are hoping to raise money to create a wildflower meadow in the grassy area at the top of Telegraph Road.

On a community level, we have the support of businesses in the village and ongoing and vital support from the officers at Heswall Community Fire Station who water the planters and help to maintain the station flower beds.

We are always looking for volunteers and we are very relaxed about how often or how long you need to attend a work session. We also like to finish with a cuppa and chat, so it's not all hard graft!

You don't have to know a lot about plants, just a willingness to help improve the urban landscape, and we are always looking for people with I.T. and social media skills.

If anyone would like to discuss our work further, or volunteer to help, please email [email protected]

Donations can be made via our fundraising page - just click or tap here.