While we all have our minds set on the summer vacations, Vilnius is implementing a series of very interesting initiatives throughout the city. Let’s see what is cooking in the Lithuanian capital city!
Insect hotels: the Municipal company VASA (Vilnius Waste System Administrator) has built 11 insect hotels in public areas of the city. The initiative is part of the city’s educational campaign to raise awareness and encourage citizens to take an interest in their surrounding nature, while contributing to the preservation of a sustainable urban ecosystem. The “hotels” are made of natural materials and designed to accommodate various types of insects.
Bees on the roof of City Hall: experts have installed 2 beehives on the roof of the City Hall and expect to collect approximately 30kg of honey this year, which will be of exceptional quality as tests have revealed that Vilnius honey is free of heavy metals.
Sustainable mowing of the lawns: the city will adhere to the provisions of smart and sustainable mowing of the city lawns and meadows as part of the city green policy. Mowing will take place only where and when needed in order to maintain biodiversity and protect green areas in the event of drought. Experts sustain that biodiversity means that “each plant and animal has its own narrow niche and pushes strongly other neighbours with the shoulders so no one enters the niche”. Last year, in fact, Vilnius was praised for the its natural lawns that give life to the city: flowers are visited by various insects, the meadows provide perfect hiding spaces for the representatives of small fauna, flowers ripen the seeds and scatter them to bloom the following year.
