Wildlife – and Pests!

Although the primary purpose of allotment sites is to grow food, they offer many other benefits and their contribution to supporting wildlife in urban areas is significant. They form some of the best habitat and wildlife corridors. PPA link up with parks, tracks, hedgerows, and the River Taff.

Plot-holders can help to support wildlife and ensure a balanced eco-system that will reduce pests and diseases and increase productivity by following some simple steps.

Tips for a wildlife friendly plot

  • Reduce or eliminate – so far as practicable – use of chemicals. Use companion planting where feasible and physical removal to combat pests such as aphids, slugs and sawfly.
  • Create habitats for wildlife – bee-boxes, hedgehog homes, log and stone piles for invertebrates, toads and slow worms, which will also inhabit a compost heap.
  • Plant late, mid-season, and early blooming nectar-rich flowers to attract pollinators and beneficial insects all year round.
  • Make a pond, keep it ice free in winter – e.g. by floating a ball on the top – but ensure that it is safe for other plot-holders’ children.
  • Feed birds through the winter and supply nesting boxes.
  • Make sure that there are no bundles of netting left lying around. These are death traps for the gardeners’ best friends hedgehogs. Let’s bag it up.
  • Before strimming, make sure that there aren’t any of our furry or feathered friends hiding in the undergrowth – this is especially the case for hedgehogs. Fortunately for those, we aren’t allowed bonfires on site – let’s remember!

If PPAA find any resources to help us to be more wildlife friendly on the Pontcanna Permanent Allotment site, then they’ll post them below on this page.

If anyone should be aware of any interesting wildlife on the site, then please inform the Committee. It would be great to keep a record of the animals present!

On the other hand, some animals can be very unwelcome.

Rats, Wasps Nests etc.

If anyone should see any of the above, and suspect a nest or infestation, then could they please contact the Council’s Allotment Officer, Celia Hart.

She will arrange for a Pest Controller to visit the site. There’s no charge for this.

Celia Hart, Swyddog Rhandiroedd

Parciau a Chwaraeon

Ffôn  (029) 2233 0235

E-bost parciau@caerdydd.gov.uk

Awdurdod Harbwr Caerdydd, Ty’r Frenhines Alexandra, Ffordd Cargo, Bae Cardydd, CAERDYDD, CF10 4LY

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Celia Hart, Allotments Officer

Parks and Sport

Telephone (029) 2233 0235

Email parks@cardiff.gov.uk

Cardiff Harbour Authority, Queen Alexandra House, Cargo Road, Cardiff Bay, CARDIFF, CF10 4LY

The best way to avoid rats on our site is to ensure that NO cooked, processed or harvested foods are left out for them, and that bird feeders etc. are inaccessible to them.

A tidy plot also provides few suitable nesting places for them. So let’s please keep all of ours free of junk.

Bee Swarms

On the other hand again, honey bee swarms are not a pest at all. All bees are protected species, as there’s a serious decline in pollinating species, so swarms must not be destroyed. The season for such natural events is from April to July.

The Cardiff, Vale, and the Valleys Beekeepers’ Association (Affiliated to the Welsh Beekeepers’ Association) will collect them instead.

Their contacts are:- 

Barbara and Harold Williams (that Association’s Training and Apiary Manager) 02920 597275.