The team and volunteers at Dilston Physic Garden were recently delighted to welcome Durham Wildlife Trust volunteers and Laura Tedstone, Heart of Durham Project Officer. During their visit, the Trust generously donated a new mini-beast house and helped install it in Dilston’s wildlife and habitat area, before lending a hand with other garden jobs. This work forms part of Dilston’s wider commitment to nurturing wilderness and natural habitats, supported by the Riverbank and Local Environmental Action funds of the Community Foundation.

To mark the occasion, guests enjoyed the Garden’s own herbal tea for memory – a fragrant blend of sage, rosemary, and lemon balm – while Garden Director Dr. Nicolette Perry explained some of the fascinating plant science behind Dilston’s medicinal herbs.

The new mini-beast house is designed as the perfect overwintering habitat for beneficial insects, including ladybirds and solitary bees. Its hollow bamboo canes provide ideal nesting chambers where female bees will store pollen and nectar, lay their eggs, and carefully seal each cell with natural materials. Birds will also find a helping hand, using the sheep’s wool inside to line their nests.

Visitors are warmly invited to come and view this latest addition to the habitat area, explore Dilston’s remarkable collection of over 700 plants used in health and medicine, and discover how they can create similar habitats in their own gardens at home.

Dilston Physic Garden is open Wednesday to Sunday, from 11.00 am to 4.00 pm.

For more information, visit www.dilstonphysicgarden.com.