FRIDAY, 23 JUNE, 2023

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: L-R Caishlan Sweeney, Project Engagement Manager, Eden Project, Vicki Tully Teaching Lead for Healthcare Improvement, Mark Anderson, NHS Tayside Head of Property, Philip Wilde, NHS Tayside Property Environmental and Quality Manager and Paul Neave, NHS Tayside Gardener

NHS Tayside and Eden Project partnership flourishes as first seeds are sown in wildflower meadow

NHS Tayside have today (23 June) sown a variety of native Scottish plant species on the grounds of Ninewells Hospital to create the first in a series of wildflower meadows.

Staff from the Eden Project joined staff from NHS Tayside to sow the first seeds in a small wildflower meadow near the entrance to Ninewells Hospital. The meadow is the first in NHS Tayside with others to follow at sites across the NHS Tayside estate.

The planting programme is part of Eden’s commitment to the city ahead of the opening of Eden Project Dundee in 2025 and delivers on NHS Tayside’s ambition to meet the NHS Scotland targets of being a net zero health service by 2040.

Funded by the Alexander Moncur Trust, the project directly addresses the decline of natural wildflower meadows that support bees and other pollinating insects. Species sown today will flower in late summer and include native local provenance species such as corn chamomile, poppy, oxeye daisy and red campion.

Caishlan Sweeney, Project Engagement Manager, Eden Project said, “We’re delighted to be working with NHS Tayside’s staff and students at Ninewells Hospital to create this first wildflower habitat, and we are looking forward to working together moving forward at this site and possibly more. Wildflowers and other nature spaces can improve our well-being, and this meadow will provide visitors, staff and students with a space to enjoy.”

NHS Tayside Chief Executive, Professor Grant Archibald said, “I would like to thank the Eden Project for working with us to bring this project to life. We are all aware of the health and wellbeing benefits of being out in nature so I would encourage staff, visitors and patients to visit the meadow and see it in its glory once it is in full bloom. We are very lucky in NHS Tayside to have beautiful grounds surrounding many of our buildings and I look forward to seeing more meadows sown across the NHS Tayside estate.”

Pavan Bangalore, Consultant Anaesthetist and Chair of NHS Tayside’s sustainability group said, “Environmental and climate action can have co-benefits for health if delivered with the right intent. This wildflower meadow is the first of many planned across our estate and is one way we can help tackle climate change and reduce our impact on the environment. We are continually striving to improve our performance in sustainable development in line with the NHS Scotland targets set for 2040 and this fantastic initiative will help us move towards the target.”

The Eden Project team will teach members of the NHS Tayside grounds maintenance staff the skills to enable them to implement the wildflowers in other sites across NHS Tayside where it would be best suited. The team have identified a number of sites across the estate where a series of wildflower meadows will continue to be developed and bloom throughout the late summer months.

This will contribute towards a wider Eden Project National Wildflower Centre initiative to bring colour and biodiversity to the city with the planting of a series of wildflower meadows covering 14 hectares of land across Dundee.

Contact:

Abigail Reid

NHS Tayside Communications

(01382) 424138