Vibrant flowers and blooming planters have added a welcome splash of colour across Stirling city centre.
Pollinator-friendly plants, funded and organised by Go Forth Stirling BID, can be seen brightening up the city in Station Road Square, Murray Place, Pitt Terrace, King Street, Wellgreen Road and Melville Terrace.
The number of planters has been gradually increasing each year and there are now a total of 73 across the city which are regularly maintained by Stirling Community Enterprise.
The planters and the city’s ground-level flower beds are filled with plants and flowers from Stirling’s Homesteads Nursery.
William Johnston, who runs Homesteads Nursery, said: “We’ve picked a lovely selection of colourful plants and flowers which look fantastic as they liven up Stirling for everyone.
“We’re pleased to work with the BID each year to do our best to improve the look of the city centre.”
Meanwhile one of the flower beds, in the Top of the Town, has been adopted by Stirling Baptist Church who have planted it out and are maintaining it.
Alison Wilkinson from the Church said: “When, as a member of the city centre community, Stirling Baptist Church was asked if we would be interested in taking on a flowerbed on Bow/Baker Street, the Church’s Green Team was keen to respond.
“Over the last few years, we have developed the narrow garden around the church for colour and wildlife, and the opportunity to go ‘outside the walls’ was very welcome.
“As a team we plan to bring long-lasting wild-life-friendly colour to that prominent spot, to be enjoyed by residents and visitors alike.”
Fiona McMillan, Community Engagement and Business Improvement Officer at Go Forth Stirling, said: “Ensuring Stirling looks wonderful with beautiful planters and flower beds to welcome visitors and residents is an important part of our remit to make the city a more inviting destination for shoppers and business owners.
“The floral arrangements help give the city centre a vibrant appearance and feature pollinator-friendly native species which promote biodiversity.”
The Go Forth team have also been busy spearheading a drive to clean up the city’s streets through a series of ‘Friends of the BID Spring Clean’ litter-picking sessions over the last few months.
The initiative, designed to inspire pride in Stirling, saw BID Street Ambassadors Gail Lamb and Josie Brown, Stirling Council archaeologist Murray Cook and volunteers from the city’s business and residential communities join forces to pick up litter and remove graffiti.
They are now continuing the clean-up drive by hosting monthly maintenance days where volunteers can join the BID team to improve Stirling’s environment.
And they will have some extra help with their efforts thanks to the donation of equipment for removing stickers and graffiti from the Wickes Community Programme which supports local initiatives aimed at maintaining and renovating community areas.
Ms McMillan said: “We’re so pleased to have this support from the Wickes Community Programme. Having the right gear for city centre maintenance, especially tricky tasks like graffiti and sticker removal,
makes the job so much more impactful.
“It’s great to kit our volunteers out properly and we thank Wickes for helping us to keep Stirling gleaming!”
She also encouraged anyone interested in lending a hand to come along to the next Maintenance Day which takes place on Wednesday June 25 from 10am until 12 noon.
She said: “Anyone who would like to help is more than welcome to join our efforts to make a visible difference to the city centre. Collectively, we can do so much more to make our beautiful city a welcoming place for
everyone.”
Anyone who would like to volunteer for the maintenance sessions or needs more information can contact admin@goforthstirling.co.uk
Go Forth Stirling BID (Business Improvement District) represents more than 600 business owners with a key objective of increasing visitors to the city and devising initiatives to help make it a more welcoming environment for businesses and shoppers.
For more information, visit www.goforthstirling.co.uk
