EXPERTS from the University of Worcester, St Peter’s Garden Centre and BBC Hereford and Worcester will be encouraging people to go wild in their gardens.

A talk at the Hive on Tuesday, March 21, aims to help gardeners grow, attract and support wildlife and reduce their reliance on pesticides.

Senior lecturer in ecology and the environment, Dr Duncan Westbury, and St Peter’s Garden Centre specialist, Neil Domoney, will provide practical advice and tips before joining radio gardening expert Reg Moule to take questions from the floor.

Dr Westbury said: “The need to have greater food security during 1960s saw the intensification of agriculture through the frequent and heavy use of pesticides to maximise production.

“Whilst this was highly effective at increasing yields and reducing the amount of spoiled food, this approach also had negative impacts on our wildlife.

“Efforts continue to reconcile biodiversity with agricultural production, but it has emerged that gardens can also harbour and support a number of important insects, amphibians, birds and mammals.

“Approaches that enable gardening for wildlife is now an important component of many UK gardens, but in my talk I want to show gardeners how to maximise the benefits from their efforts. The thrust of the talk will therefore be based on making wildlife work for gardeners.”

People attending the event at 6pm will receive free wildflower seeds and a £5 garden centre voucher. Admission is £2.