Forum home› Wildlife gardening
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

Red Campion (wild) Silene dioica

edev08edev08 Posts: 56
in Wildlife gardening
Morning,

I just thought I would ask on here if bees and other pollinators like Wild Red Campion flowers? Do they?

I am trying to plant as many wild plants in pots and on the lawn Vipers Bugloss etc and this pdf that is printable I enjoy reading and  others may too is linked
https://www.rhs.org.uk/science/conservation-biodiversity/wildlife/plants-for-pollinators
Grow wildflowers in your garden

Posts

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Yes, the red and the white campions are great for pollinators, including moths ... particularly these https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/campion

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • ButtercupdaysButtercupdays Posts: 4,546
    They prefer a bit of shade to full sun. and soil that doesn't dry out too much. They look lovely early in the summer, but if happy they can spread rather too much. I've had to add them to my list of things to be controlled in some parts of the garden.
  • edev08edev08 Posts: 56
    Many thanks Dovefromabove and Buttercup days.

    I am happy if the plant spreads as it shan't do masses of damage as it is a wildflower.

    I know a lot of moths feed on it as I am an experienced moth trapper, a moth recorded in my garden called the Rivulet feeds on Red Campion and I know the plant grows in my area.

    Moth traps do not kill the moths, you have speciailst equipment. the trap works like: The moths fly to an Actinic or Mercury Vapour light bulb, hit a plastic slide and go in the box of the trap to sleep in eggtrays, at 6am I come down and photgraph them, record them and set them free. I luckily live in Rishworth, Calderdale, W Yorks, one of the best places for moths.,
    Grow wildflowers in your garden
  • ButtercupdaysButtercupdays Posts: 4,546
    I've got a large, wild garden and loads of different wildflowers, many of them part of the natural local flora, but the campion can get quite hefty and upsets the balance with other more restrained plants, like Cardamine, which I am trying to encourage as it is a foodplant for the Orange Tip. I only try to control things when they are creating a monoculture, which reduces the wildlife value overall :)
  • edev08edev08 Posts: 56
    your garden sounds fantastic!!
    Grow wildflowers in your garden
  • ButtercupdaysButtercupdays Posts: 4,546
    I love it, but trying to retain some resemblance to a garden rather than a wilderness can be difficult!
  • edev08edev08 Posts: 56
    Indeed!
    Grow wildflowers in your garden
Sign In or Register to comment.