The RSPB’s Luke Phillips keeps his head down as he takes a stroll to look at wildlife on the verges

I’m writing this after just arriving back from my evening walk which, in theory, is my way of trying to keep healthy.

However, my fairly brisk walk turned into a mere stroll with my head bowed as if I was texting on my iphone.

This wasn’t the case as it was something far more interesting which had got my attention.

Roadside verges and lawns aren’t what you’d consider to be wildlife hotspots but my very recent walk around the Southill area of Weymouth proved otherwise.

Wildflowers and plants are what I consider the backbone of our British wildlife. They are not only amazing to look at and admire but also provide a vast number of insects a place to feed, breed and seek refuge.

These insects also provide all our familiar garden birds with plenty of food to feed not only themselves but also their young.

The verges and gardens I passed were thriving with an incredible range of species. Luckily my girlfriend who is much more knowledgeable than me when it comes to plants kept me informed of what I was looking at. Plants with fantastic names such as Goats beard, Broomrape and Bristly Oxtongue were just three that have stuck in my mind.

My contribution to the walk was at first a rather sad sight. I’d earlier been looking for Bee Orchids at Radipole Lake where we have several small colonies so I had become pretty familiar with the plant whose flower looks rather a lot like a bee. Not surprising given its name.

I’d also become familiar with its leaves as some weren’t quite flowering. My find on the walk was of some leaves I recognised from earlier in the day but unfortunately just half remained as the orchid had become a victim of a lawn mower. Before anyone suggests I’m accusing anyone of a hideous crime, I’m certainly not. They aren’t easy to tell apart from other plants and mowing a lawn is something that we do as part of our day to day lives. I certainly mow my lawn.

A few steps on was a small section of verge which was a little less trimmed than the previous section and this one had something very spectacular! A six-inch tall Bee Orchid in full flower, an amazing sight.

To me the verge didn’t look untidy or scruffy, just a little taller than its neighbour but the range of plants it contained was simply staggering.

There were bees buzzing around it collecting nectar, beetles scurrying around and I bet someone’s resident blackbirds had been paying it a visit earlier in the day to get a few bugs and worms for the kids. All this extra life and a result of a little less work.

This year I’ve created a few ‘wildlife patches’ in my lawn and it’s been great watching it mature.

We’ve also created one in our very small lawn area outside our discovery centre down at Radipole Lake. I mentioned that bees and bugs love them but also butterflies go mad for these areas too.

It’s really easy and you’ll be creating an amazing home for nature. Give it a go!

More advice and help can be found at our website homes.rspb.org.uk or simply pop into the RSPB Wild Weymouth Discovery Centre down at the Swannery car park, Weymouth where staff and volunteers can give you a ton of ideas as well as show you what we’ve done already!