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The street where tiny wildflower meadows bloom

Oli Constable/BBC Purple flowers along with yellow and white daisiesOli Constable/BBC
Several neighbours had joined in with planting outside their homes

A guerrilla gardener transformed her street from a "neglected patch of urban land" into a sea of colourful wildflowers thanks to a sprinkling of seeds.

Grace Hills replanted the area outside her home with trees and native species of wildflowers which have bloomed into a sea of colour on the Leeds estate.

Her neighbours on Eden Crescent joined in, creating "wildlife corridors" with pollinators such as bees and butterflies benefitting, she said.

Leeds City Council, which owns the land, said for safety reasons it would urge people to get in touch about similar initiatives for "help, support and guidance on what is appropriate".

Grace Hills/@sparkingcommunity A street where the verges are packed with colourful flowers and trees rather than grassGrace Hills/@sparkingcommunity
Pollinators such as bees and butterflies have benefitted from the flowers, Ms Hills said

Asked why she wanted to undertake the scheme, she said: "We care deeply about the environment, about the climate and ecological emergency that's happening right now."

Local children helped her sprinkle seeds and water the trees outside their homes nearby.

Over five years, neighbours joined in with the annual jobs, including a seed and plant swap.

Oli Constable/BBC Yellow flowers by the roadsideOli Constable/BBC
The verges are at their best during the start of the summer
Oli Constable/BBC Yellow flowers by the road sideOli Constable/BBC
A seed and plant swap had been set up on a neighbour's wall

"The overall impression was that it made the place look colourful, it brought a smile to people's faces," Ms Hills said.

"We have planted fruit trees in the verges, and we have planted wildflowers and created wildflower corridors."

By getting children involved, it helped them learn about nature and how they could help protect it when they grew up, she added.

"If they don't know how to identify a blue tit or know what an nasturtium is, they're not going to recognise it when it's gone."

Oli Constable/BBC A woman hands out water to childrenOli Constable/BBC
Grace Hills has been working with children in her area to teach them about nature

"Flowers are much better for pollinators like bees, butterflies, moths, that kind of thing, so we have taken up the monoculture which is just the grass that was there before and planted a variety of native wildflowers," Ms Hills said.

Fruit trees which found a new home on the verges have already produced crops.

Google/Oli Constable A composite image shows a section of the street with plain grass verges while the image on the right shows the verges packed with blooming flowers supplying a riot of colourGoogle/Oli Constable
The planting has changed the street dramatically over the past few years

The land outside her home, between the pavement and road, is owned by Leeds City Council, she admitted.

However, she hoped officials would allow her to continue and understand her local scheme.

A Leeds City Council spokesperson it understood the sentiments behind the initiative and was "in many ways" in line with the council's work to help address the effects of the climate emergency.

However, working by the road could be "highly dangerous" and even experienced contractors hit underground services, they added.

"We would urge anyone wishing to pursue such initiatives to contact the council at the earliest opportunity to seek help, support and guidance on what is appropriate.”

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