I love the Wildlife Trusts.  They are a grassroots movement of people from all sorts of backgrounds and they are on a mission:  to restore a third of the UK’s land and seas for nature by 2030.  I'm a member of three Wildlife Trusts and I love to hear all their news and what they are up to.  Even more, I love supporting them in their work to help wildlife. 

Each Wildlife Trust is an independent charity.  Those involved (in whatever way) want to make a difference to wildlife, to nature, to our climate. 

There are now 46 Trusts throughout the UK, from Alderney Wildlife Trust in the Channel Islands to the Scottish Wildlife Trust, from South and West Wales to Suffolk, from Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly to Northumberland.  So wherever you are, or wherever the nature lover in your life is, there should be a Wildlife Trust in their area you can tap into and get involved with.

The Wildlife Trusts together have over 944,000 members, over 33,000 volunteers, 4,100 staff and 600 trustees.  They manage over 2,600 nature reserves for nature and for people. (January 2026 from the Wildlife Trust's About Us page.)

Members are helping their Trust to look after wildlife and the natural places in their area, and they receive a welcome back, regular magazines and lots of information. It’s the sort of thing where you can get as involved as you want; if you are really manic with life, you can at least know that your membership is helping your Trust continue with its vital work.   

Membership benefits

Because each Trust is an independent charity, the memberships will vary on cost (most are about £3 a month) but generally they include a welcome pack of goodies, regular magazines full of news and features, access to beautiful nature reserves, talks, walks and events – these are a great way to meet fellow wildlife lovers who care about the natural world – and chances to campaign for wildlife.

Many Wildlife Trusts have half price membership offers (or similar) in January 2026, (most to new members only)!

So this could be a great opportunity to treat yourself or a loved one to a reduced price membership, be it half price or anything else for that matter, and to support wildlife at the same time!

Give a gift membership to a Wildlife Trust here

Take Action and Support your Local Wildlife Trust

Take a look at your local Wildlife Trust, you can find yours here – and sign up.  It’s a great way to show your support for nature and to help Wildlife Trusts reach the 30x30 target - that's 30% of land and sea protected by 2030. 

The Wildlife Trusts are aiming to put nature in recovery, making more space for it and connecting habitats on a large scale so that wildlife can pass safely through to new territories.  The Trusts want to restore nature so that ecosystems can function again - the UK natural world is very much depleted now.   

The Trusts are also hoping to inspire us all to act for nature and rewild our neighbourhoods, working with our communities.  I am a member of a couple of Wildlife Trusts and love to receive news of how I can get involved and make a difference - and also to see success stories.  Together we can all drive change and actually help nature help us - nature is vital for our wellbeing. 

So give a gift membership to a Wildlife Trust and you'll be giving a gift that helps nature, wildlife and people and is a win-win for nature lovers all round!

You could also donate to an appeal.   There's a HUGE appeal for the Rothbury Estate - the Trust has until September 2026 to raise £30 million (no, I didn't type that wrongly) to secure 3,800 hectares.   You can discover all about it here.

How about a plant subscription for someone who loves plants? 

Now, Flying Flowers are based in Jersey, in the Channel Islands (the island famous for Gerald Durrell, the conservationist) and the beautiful, gentle Jersey milking cow), and they've been delivering flowers for over 40 years.   

So how did it start? Back in 1981, some holidaymakers in Jersey stopped sending postcards home and they began to send carnations instead.  They were a great and colourful way to send love to family and friends back home and to let them know that they were being thought of! 

And if you're looking for a gift for whom flowers would be just the thing, you could take a look at their flower subscriptions.  You can choose from  3, 6 or 12 months - and there's a choice in the subscriptions of seasonal flowers or a flower subscription.  

The seasonal flowers depend on what Mother Nature has in stock.   And Flying Flowers support British growers, so they say they ensure British stems are included in each box, year round. 

This is a lovely gift idea to give someone a surprise for however many months you choose to have your subscription run - just imagine their faces when they open the door!  And plants arrive in a co-ordinating container, so the recipient doesn't have to go rummaging for pots and so on - they can just decide where to put them and sit back and enjoy them!

Fly away to see the subscription gifts here.

At the moment, they've got special offers on flower subscription gifts, too - I'm not sure how long that will last, so make the most of it! 

Keep the love flowing month after month!

Here's a shout-out for Heritage Open Days!

It's England's largest community-led festival of history and culture, and thousands of local volunteers and organisations are involved.  

The festival celebrates heritage, culture and history - so there are stories to hear, traditions to explore and histories brought to life!  And it's all FREE!

Amongst the events, there are walks and tours, exhibitions, workshops and talks.  They cover all sorts of categories:  local history, faith, outdoors and nature, living history and re-enactment, traditional skills, sport and leisure, eco/green living and geneaology, to name a few.  Many need you to pre-book.

Organisations taking part (not at every venue they look after, by the way), include the National Trust, the Churches Conservation Trust and English Heritage.

There's a search facility so that you can find out what's on in your area, which makes life easier - or perhaps next year, you could think of volunteering yourself!

Find an event near you here.

Volunteering is a great way to meet people and make new friends amongst people who also want to do things for their local community (or further afield!).

In 2025, the Heritage Open Days run from the 12th  to 21st September. 

Find out all about Heritage Open Days here.

RHS Garden Wisley Flower Show

The RHS Wisley Flower Show in Surrey takes place from 2nd to 7th September 2025 and what an opportunity to experience a great floral day out!

Enjoy expert advice, vibrant floral displays and lots of shopping opportunities!  And there's plenty of chances to sit and refresh yourself with refreshments! 

You can join in the National Dahlia Society Show's marquee - there are over 100 competition classes to see!  

And the National Association of Flower Arrangement Societies (NAFAS) Show is back, with the theme  ‘Wish you were here’.  The floral art display competition celebrates countries worldwide, with wonderful arrangements - don't miss it!  

Tradestands are aplenty at the show, selling garden and homeware.   The RHS asks that you please bring bags to take your goodies home with you!

There are fantastic displays, specialist nurseries, expert talks and of course the opportunity to do lots of shopping… and eating and drinking…

Browse a fantastic range of tradestands too, selling garden and homeware from pruning tools to garden art and outdoor ovens. Where possible please bring bags to take purchases home. 

Flowers, eating and drinking, and relaxing – what a perfect combination!   Enjoy!

Buy your tickets for the RHS Garden Wisley Show here.