News

Blossom Day Friday 6th May 2011 Bowling Park Community Orchard

Submitted by Nick on Mon, 11th Apr 2011, 9:00am

Between 11-3 come and enjoy the orchard's tree blossom spectacle. We will carry out our spring maintenance tasks and there may be activities for visiting groups. Contact the office for further information.

Find out more about the orchard including directions here

P.S. fingers crossed there will be blossom on the trees - I have seen some already and it is only mid April! However it will still be a lovely time to visit the orchard

Wildlife Wanders Programme

Submitted by Nick on Mon, 28th Mar 2011, 9:00am
BEES have received a grant from Big Lottery Fund to expand its current education wildlife programme. The project is called Wildlife Wanders and will offer practical maintenance skills training, walks, activities and species identification in the local environment. Participants will have the opportunity to develop skills and a greater understanding of conservation and the environment. The programme will be discussed at the User Forum on Friday and as dates are arranged will be published on the website. Contact Nick at BEES for more information.

Friday 17th September: BEES 25th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION EVENT

Submitted by Nick on Mon, 13th Sep 2010, 11:00am

We are delighted to reach the milestone 25 years of environmental work in the District. 

We will start to celebrate this achievement by touring some of the sites that we have worked on over the years.

Then in the evening we will continue the celebration by holding a social gathering at the YMCA Building.

Thursday 19th August 2010 Extra Task Day - Redcliffe Community Orchard, Keighley

Submitted by Nick on Thu, 12th Aug 2010, 9:17am

We have been requested to visit the orchard and cut the grass. This will allow the community association to use the site for apple themed activities and is an excellent opportunity to revisit the site and see how well the trees are growing.

** Depart at 9.30am YMCA Building, please let us know if you wish to attend **

Goodbye To Raquel!

Submitted by Nick on Tue, 3rd Aug 2010, 12:42pm

Raquel's last cakeRaquel's last cakeOn Friday, we said a farewell to Raquel. Raquel has been a volunteer with us for the past 10 months. She joined us as part of the Everything's Possible programme and quickly established herself as a core member of our team. Raquel worked on all aspects of BEES projects often putting in more time than was required. She got on well with everybody at the YMCA and will be remembered fondly. Raquel also specialised in cakes and no occassion went by without a themed cake, not least her own last day with a beaming Cheshire cat Thank you cake. We would like to express our thanks to Raquel and wish her well for the future.

 

 

 

 

 

BEES Wildlife Wanders

Submitted by julia on Mon, 28th Jun 2010, 4:15pm

We are running a series of short sessions on introduce people to local wildlife sites. This is an opportunity to enjoy and learn more about flowers, birds and insects at local wildlife sites.

The events, listed in the attachment below, are aimed at anyone with an interest in wildlife – you might be a complete beginner and just starting to explore local wildlife or you may already be an experienced naturalist wanting to enhance your skills and enjoy the habitats in the company of others. 

They will be at 5pm on Wednesday's from the 30th June until 11th August (except 7th July...instead you can stay home and watch the World Cup semi final or join Friends of Northcliffe pulling Himalayan Balsam in the woods).

Please contact the office if you are interested. We will be taking our minibus, or you can meet us at the site.

These events are part of our programme celebrating 2010 International Year of
Biodiversity.

Bees at Park events

Submitted by julia on Tue, 15th Jun 2010, 5:23pm

On Saturday 22nd May there was a celebration event to make the refurbishment of Roberts Park in Saltaire.

BEES were invited to attend, and as this coincided with International Day of Biodiversity so we choose to do offer activities that got people talking about wildlife. People made bird and butterfly masks and insect finger puppets. We also offered people the chance to sow (in our recycled tetrapak pots) some wildflower seeds to grow at home. The seed mix included corncockle, poppy, corn marigold and cornflower. 

If you attended the event but didn't receive the instruction sheet you can download it from the attachment below.

Visitors also contributed to the construction of bird and bat boxes which will be put up in the park later in the year.

Lister Park Eco Day  was held on 5th June, World Environment Day. This event was organised by Bradford West Area Committee. It was another hot day that attracted a crowd into the park to join in the activities. People were encouraged to make environmental pledges, they received free lighbulbs and other goodies and once again we offered wildlife craft and planting activities.

Both events were also a good opportunity to talk to people about the wildlife in the Bradford area and about groups and projects that they can get involved with, including BEES conservation group and wildlife field visit programme.

Heron Day at Bretton Lakes

Submitted by julia on Tue, 15th Jun 2010, 4:55pm

On Sunday 9th May a group of volunteers assisted at the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust Heron Day at Bretton Lakes.

This is the one day of the year the Wildlife Trust have access to this reserve and they enabled 1,100 people to enjoy the spectacle of the young herons. There are approximately 60 nests on the two islands on the lakes. The young herons, although only 6-8 weeks old are almost fully grown, but have not yet fledged so create quite a show. The chicks can last longer between meals so the adults are catching food further afield. They do not feed in the lake at this stage - saving this for when the chicks leave the nest and are learning to fish for them themselves.

We ran craft activities, making fingerpuppets and 'herons on sticks'. We also collected some plant materials and used these to create large temporary pictures and sculptures. Everyone one was very imaginative - have a look in the gallery at some of the creations.

Blossom Day at Bowling Park Community Orchard

Submitted by julia on Wed, 21st Apr 2010, 7:18pm

Blossom Day at Bowling Park Community Orchard

Friday 7th May
11am - 3pm

Come and enjoy the orchard's blossom spectacle. The day will include tours of the orchard and a chance to find out more about fruit growing. There will also be information about creating habitats for insects - with a particular focus on bees - essential as pollinators for the fruit trees and so many other food crops.

Visitors will be invited to enjoy light refreshments and join in with art activities as well as practical activities to create insect homes. If you come for the day please bring a picnic.

For more information please contact us
[email protected]
01274 513102

The orchard is in the allotments on Bowling Park Drive, BD4 - more about the orchard and directions can be found here 

P.S. put Bradford Apple Day in your diary - 10th Anniversary celebration - Sunday 10th October 10.10.10