Sow the City

Sow the City Growing life in the community Sow the City is a not-for-profit company working to improve the quality and accessibility of greenspace in Manchester.

We want people of all ages and backgrounds to be connected to nature in their everyday lives. As a social enterprise we invest our profits back into the community and believe strongly in sourcing materials responsibly to minimise the environmental impact of our projects. There are various ways to get involved with Sow the City:

- Attend one of our gardening volunteer days. We often work on large

school gardens so we're always grateful of help digging, planting and doing general garden maintenance. No prior experience of gardening necessary.
- Help out running Sow the City on as a volunteer. We're currently looking for landscape gardeners to help design our gardens, chicken experts for our chicken training days, teachers for life skills classes and gardening clubs, and ecologists/ conservationists for our wildlide gardens projects. Working as a volunteer for the Sow the City is fun but it is also be valuable work experience in the community/ environmental sector.

Something is quietly taking shape at Piccadilly Station. A small corner of the station at the top of the Piccadilly appr...
06/03/2026

Something is quietly taking shape at Piccadilly Station. A small corner of the station at the top of the Piccadilly approach is about to look and feel very different. We’re creating a new place to rest and meet. Opening Spring 2026.

Privileged to be invited as guest lecturers at MMU School of Art today to run a biosonification workshop. Students creat...
12/02/2026

Privileged to be invited as guest lecturers at MMU School of Art today to run a biosonification workshop. Students created soundscapes with us that were inspired and created by plants and fungi. Brill to be working with so many creative people and connecting with nature in new ways.

Yesterday we hosted the third Social Therapeutic Horticulture Practioner training session with members of at .goodneigh...
04/02/2026

Yesterday we hosted the third Social Therapeutic Horticulture Practioner training session with members of at .goodneighbours's community garden.

We really value teaching these Social Therapeutic Horticulture training sessions so that more people can run benefit from the healing power of nature.

Social Therapeutic Horticulture is a goal-oriented processes which uses gardening to achieve specific therapeutic outcomes. These outcomes include particular areas of need e.g. building confidence, improving physical motor skills, or reducing anxiety. The beneficial outcomes are planned, intended, and often recorded, making it different from casual or community gardening where the focus might be more on the garden's needs or general recreation.

The focus is specifically on horticulture and the benefits derived from interacting with plants and the natural environment in a deliberate way. In yesterday’s session we used Moss and primrose to create Japanese Kokodamas.

Do get in touch if you would want to train to become a social therapeutic horticulture practioner. 🌿🌻🌱

Through our funded project, re-wild Moss Side, we have been running sessions with PINC collage, learning about the impo...
12/12/2025

Through our funded project, re-wild Moss Side, we have been running sessions with PINC collage, learning about the importance of moss as a habitat and its rich historical presence around Moss Side.

This session focused on the structure of moss, using microscopes to have a close look at their individual thin leaves (which are often just one cell thick!) and their leafy stems that are anchored by thread-like rhizoids. 🌱🌿

So next time you see moss on a wall or tree, pause and take a closer look, its miniature world is amazing.

Yesterday, we hosted the biggest-ever Greater Manchester Green and Blue Spaces Action Network (GBSAN) at the remarkable ...
21/11/2025

Yesterday, we hosted the biggest-ever Greater Manchester Green and Blue Spaces Action Network (GBSAN) at the remarkable We were delighted to welcome 117 people and organisations from across Greater Manchester.

GBSAN is a collaborative, action-focused network dedicated to protecting and enhancing our city-region’s green and blue spaces. It brings together the energy of grassroots groups with local stakeholders, decision-makers, businesses, and organisations working in the sector.

A huge thank you to our panel members: Andy Burnham, Claire from , Dave Bell from , Viv Andrews from , Charlotte Leonhardsen from the , and Natalie Daring from the . And of course, a special shout-out to Orlando , the Monastery’s resident ginger cat, who made a surprise guest appearance.

The panel explored the vital link between green and blue spaces, health, and wellbeing within the wider agenda. It was inspiring to hear real-life examples of how nature-based activities are helping people live healthier, happier lives. Discussions also highlighted how Live Well Centres can integrate green and blue spaces to tackle health, social, and economic inequalities. As well as how we can ensure green and blue spaces are valued as highly as other developments around the city.

It was fantastic to host a range of participants across Greater Manchester and from a variety of sectors, demonstrating community power and co-design. We’re building reach and momentum with every event!

Thank you again to everyone who joined us at the Monastery. It was great to see the community power and determination around Manchester’s environment and hear the conversations about how we can link this with the new live well agenda.

We’re grateful for the support from , , , Macc and MACC for making this event possible.

Stay tuned, the next GBSAN event will take place in the new year!

We are incredibly proud to launch the GM NHS Green Spaces and Biodiversity Toolkit, developed in partnership with the Gr...
11/11/2025

We are incredibly proud to launch the GM NHS Green Spaces and Biodiversity Toolkit, developed in partnership with the Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership ( ).

This toolkit provides a 'how-to' guide for transforming and maintaining green spaces in healthcare settings, with examples from across Greater Manchester. Whether you're a clinician, a facilities manager, a volunteer, or a community group, or just interested in greening healthcare settings do give the toolkit a read – the link is in our bio.

This toolkit covers:

🍃 How to boost biodiversity in healthcare settings: from bug hotels, wildflower meadows, planting native species, and connecting existing green spaces to create habitat corridors.

🌳 How to implement 'Green Social Prescribing' activities to connect patients and staff with nature.

🌱Practical tips, including food growing, suggested costs and potential funding streams for green space projects!

Natural environments are incredibly important for many reasons, and especially in health-care settings, as demonstrated by the growing body of evidence that shows how green and blue spaces positively impact physical and mental health.

Re-wilding playgrounds to boost children’s health. A radical experiment in Finland proves the power of 're-wilding' play...
04/11/2025

Re-wilding playgrounds to boost children’s health.

A radical experiment in Finland proves the power of 're-wilding' playgrounds. Children exposed to diverse natural elements (soil, moss, wild plants) for just 90 minutes a day saw dramatic health changes within 28 days:
🌱Boost for their microbiome: Increased healthy bacteria diversity in their gut and on their skin.
🌱Immune Defence: A significant rise in T regulatory cells, helping protect against autoimmune diseases.

The secret? Exposing children to nature's microscopic biodiversity 🌳🍂🪻

We're bringing this evidence-based solution to Manchester, by transforming concrete play areas into natural soft play and deliver Forest School programmes.

Do get in touch if you would like to learn more!

Raised ponds: blue oasis in grey spaces! 🦋💧🐠🦆Raised ponds are a brilliant way to bring biodiversity into urban spaces, y...
28/10/2025

Raised ponds: blue oasis in grey spaces! 🦋💧🐠🦆

Raised ponds are a brilliant way to bring biodiversity into urban spaces, you can put a raised pond practically anywhere to enhance, school grounds, community gardens or even roof-top gardens.

They are easier to maintain, safer for children, and perfect for small spaces. Adding a raised pond to your garden is not just beautiful but is great for the environment.

Frogs, dragonflies, birds, and pollinators flock to water. Even a small pond creates a vital habitat in the concrete jungle. We love hosting pond dipping sessions to see what sort of tiny aquatic creatures are living beneath the water - check out the videos in the pictures attached.

Ponds also help regulate temperature by absorbing heat and releasing moisture, reducing the urban heat island effect.

Do get in touch if you want to know more, email us at [email protected]

It is great to see the green roof bike shelter in use and thriving at Manley Park Primary School. The shelter holds up t...
13/10/2025

It is great to see the green roof bike shelter in use and thriving at Manley Park Primary School. The shelter holds up to 40 bicycles and aims to encourage more pupils to cycle to school, promoting healthier lifestyles and reducing air pollution from traffic.

The sedum roof on the bike shelter delivers multiple benefits including:

🦋Biodiversity: provides habitats for pollinators including bees and butterflies

🌞Climate resilience: reduces the urban heat island effect through evapotranspiration

💧Water management: absorbs rainfall and slows runoff, reducing pressure on local drainage systems

To support drainage, we integrated rain chains to channel water from roof to ground to prevent waterlogging on the roof.

This project shows how green infrastructure can be embedded into school grounds, creating spaces that are functional, educational, and benefit the environment. 🌱

We are thrilled to that our Green Health Walk at Prestwich site was awarded highly commended in the Ciria Biodiversity C...
06/10/2025

We are thrilled to that our Green Health Walk at Prestwich site was awarded highly commended in the Ciria Biodiversity Challenge Awards 2025, in the Placemaking for Nature Award, Mixed Land Use and Ownership category. 🌱

We worked with Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Trust to create The Green Health Walk at Prestwich site to encourage staff, service users and visitors to enjoy the site grounds, and promote the physical and mental health benefits of nature.

The Green Health Walk consists of a 20-minute stroll through the hospital grounds, with seven new ‘stations’: a heritage orchard, allotment, herb bed, natural sculpture, bird and bat habitat boxes, and native woodland. These stations help to improve the local biodiversity while providing sites of interest to encourage people to walk around the hospital site and connect with nature.

Thank you Ciria for recognising the innovation and impact of our project and congratulations to the rest of the Biodiversity Challenge Award winners! 👏

Journeys & Connections 🛤🫶🦋This week we worked with at to develop creative ideas for a very exciting 👀 project for Manc...
01/08/2025

Journeys & Connections 🛤🫶🦋

This week we worked with at to develop creative ideas for a very exciting 👀 project for Manchester Piccadilly Station 🌱🌱🌱!

Using 'journey sticks' the group created visual stories of the viaduct landscape and also met a few little creatures along the way like this cinnabar moth caterpillar 🐛🟨⬛️🟨⬛️



Address

Moss Side
FY8 4

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Sow the City posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Sow the City:

Shortcuts

Share