A career as a countryside ranger is ever-changing, filled with conservation efforts, wildlife surveying, and community engagement. Each week brings a variety of tasks that contribute to protecting and enhancing Glasgow’s natural spaces.

Recently, I collected 3,000 plug plants from Pollok Country Park in preparation for a community-led planting session at Ruchill Park.

These nectar-rich wildflowers will boost biodiversity in the area, which is already home to kestrels, tawny owls, woodpeckers, frogs, and nesting moorhens. The meadow provides a thriving habitat for butterflies such as burnet moths, painted ladies, and small heath—demonstrating that nature can flourish in urban environments with the right care.

Interpretation boards have been installed across several parks, helping to educate visitors about newly developed meadow, woodland, and wetland habitats in Maryhill Park and Knightswood Park. These projects, led by the Biodiversity Team, aim to create essential refuges for wildlife while fostering a deeper connection between people and nature.

Outdoor education is also a key part of our role. A Forest School session in Kelvingrove Park gave pupils from St Patrick’s Primary the opportunity to build dens using natural materials, observe peregrine falcons perched above the University tower, and craft clay forest guardians on trees—exploring myths that spirits once lived within their bark.

Later that day, an eco-youth club session with LINKES community project in Knightswood focused on pollinators, with children painting rocks and sowing ox-eye daisy seeds to grow and plant near their flats. The group will continue outdoor learning, eventually planting hedgerow wildflowers in Wee Knightswood Park to further support pollinators across greenspaces.

Other recent initiatives included supporting my colleagues at the Peace Garden Project at the Botanic Gardens, where pupils from St Charles and North Kelvinside recited poems and songs as part of a community event. Alongside these hands-on projects, I also complete administrative tasks and prepare for upcoming volunteer sessions, such as wildflower planting at Ruchill Park and Knightswood Park. This initiative, funded by the Green Connector Project, is transforming previously short-cut grasslands into thriving natural habitats.

If your group, school, or community could benefit from Countryside Ranger support, feel free to get in touch.