Rooting for Lickey End

Green fingered volunteers recently got stuck in to a community planting event at the Spadesbourne Brook in Lickey End Recreation Ground. Aiming to improve biodiversity and make Lickey End a more welcoming environment for wildlife.

Local residents gathered at Lickey End Recreation Ground on a Sunday morning in May to help reintroduce native plant species after damage caused by invasive Himalayan Balsam weeds over a number of years.

Not only did the overgrown Himalayan Balsam plants contribute to flooding they also killed off other weaker plants, reducing the quality of the natural environment.

The get together was the latest in a series of events organised Norton and Lickey End Councillor, Rob Hunter. Last year the community came together twice to clear out the Himalayan Balsam. With the waterway now much clearer, the community met again to work on reintroducing native plantlife that was lost.

Over the course of a just a couple of ours budding gardeners of all ages came and planted around a hundred plants including water mint, sweet flag, water avens, sweet grass, marsh marigolds and water plantain. The event was supported by Bromsgrove District Council who funded the plants.