Regular readers of my blog will know that I’m utterly obsessed with bees, butterflies, frogs, toads etc. Indeed finding three frogs in my pond last week was an absolute highlight of my week! That’s why, when Tristan Carlyle, Senior Ecologist at Ecology by Design agreed to share his top advice on how to attract wildlife into the garden, I was absolutely chuffed.
So if you are looking for ways to make your garden even more of a wildlife magnet, here’s Tristan’s advice…
Keep the mower in the shed
Mowing your lawn less frequently will give plants the space to flower and provide a valuable source of nectar for a whole host of pollinators. According to UK charity Plantlife, you can maximise the production of flowers and nectar by cutting your lawn once a month to a height of one or two inches. However, some species grow taller before flowering, so to increase the diversity in your garden leave some patches unmown altogether.
Cut out the chemicals
Plants traditionally thought of as weeds can be beneficial for wildlife. For instance, dandelion and lesser celandine, while pernicious, provide early sources of nectar for pollinators emerging from hibernation. However, if you do need to keep them under control, or you are dealing with a species such as the dreaded couch grass, use organic methods in favour of chemical weedkillers where possible. Repeated cultivation and careful forking out of weeds can be effective, albeit laborious.
Be messier
There is always a temptation to tidy in the garden; cutting back dead plants, picking up fallen leaves and the like. Avoid this if you can, as they can provide valuable sheltering and foraging resources for invertebrates. In particular, moths will use old stems and leaves to hide from predators and bear down for the winter. The Butterfly Conservation Trust advises we delay cutting back old plants until the spring if possible.
Choose the right plants
As a general rule native is best, however plenty of amenity species can be rich sources of nectar, including the popular lavender. Be conscious of when your plants will flower; if you are able to incorporate species that flower in the spring and early autumn you will keep wildlife coming back to your garden all year round.
Sow a wildflower meadow
Autumn is a great time of year to sow wildflower seeds in part of your garden, whether it is an individual species or meadow mixtures. Preparing the ground in advance is key to successful growth; be sure to remove established species that could outcompete those in the seed mix. Then close mowing followed by hard harrowing or raking will be needed, exposing up to 50% bare ground. You can then broadcast the seeds, with the best results usually achieved in August/September and March/April. Mow regularly for the first year of establishment, to a height of roughly two inches, before reducing mowing to a yearly ‘hay cut’ thereafter.
Back away from the nettles
Heavy ground cover from nettles, bramble or even Ivy can be viewed as a sign of an unmanaged garden. But all three species are valuable for wildlife. Nettles are a food supply for many caterpillars, bramble is used by nesting birds, while both bramble and ivy provide food for a range of species throughout the year. You may not want these species taking over your garden but leaving patches at the edges can be a big benefit.
Dig a pond
Ponds are great for supporting colourful aquatic or marginal plants, attracting dragonflies, frogs, toads and newts. Ideally, they should be located in a sunny, warm part of your garden. When digging the pond, incorporate a range of depths and be sure to provide easy access for creatures to crawl in and out. Remove all rocks and sharp objects before lining it, and make sure the liner is secure. Plant a range of aquatic species in the water and more emergent species at the edges to maximise biodiversity.
Build bug hotels and bee homes
A good way of getting more invertebrate interest in your garden is to install a bug hotel – either by building one yourself or buying a ready-made one from a wildlife charity or garden centre. If you want to go the DIY route, there are plenty of guides available online. It is common to build the main structure out of pallets, bricks and bamboo, with dead wood, stones, leaves and cardboard used to fill the gaps.
Create hedgehog highways
Hedgehogs roam widely, up to 2km in a night, and creating holes in your fences can help them get around. Making a gap of around 13cm x 13cm will mean they can pass through your garden at will, giving them more space to thrive. Putting out water and suitable food (specially-made hedgehog food, meat-based cat or dog food or cat biscuits) will help attract them as well.
Keep it clean
How to attract wildlife into the garden doesn’t end here. Once you have wildlife in your garden, it is important to make sure you keep them in good health. The RSPB offers great advice in this regard. Two key points are that water containers should be rinsed out daily and allowed to dry before fresh water is added. While bird feeders and tables should be cleaned regularly, ideally using a 5% disinfectant solution.
How to attract wildlife into the garden – what next?
Well that’s Tristan’s list of top tips, and to me they are not only brilliant but very do-able. I think all of us could do many of these and just imagine the combined benefit to the UK’s wildlife if we did!
I’m certainly going to try to apply all of them in the year ahead. I’ve made a bit of a start this year…
- I’ve completely cut out the chemicals in 2020 and am deploying natural methods instead. I do have some bad blackspot and possibly some rust on my roses, and recurring mildew on one clematis, but I feel good for not resorting to chemicals. Not having the ‘crutch’ of sprays is forcing me to look at other things such as overcrowding in beds, my watering regime, mulching and feeding etc.
- I have put in a little pond. It’s really small but was quickly inhabited by three frogs – hurrah!
- Mr F-W has constructed three bee hotels which have had guests – another hurrah!
- I’m already quite a messy gardener! I happily resist cutting back dead foliage on plants until the Spring! While it’s great for wildlife, I think it also gives the plants some protection over winter.
- I also hope my planting is pretty good at offering pollen and nectar over a long period.
However, there’s much more I could do
- Another small pond.
- More bee hotels.
- Definitely don’t weaken on the chemical front.
- We mow too much.
- Don’t have a wildflower meadow. Not sure we have the right space for it, but there must be something I can do.
- I don’t clean the water bowls every day.
- Never thought about creating escape routes for hedgehogs. Who knew they walked so far each day!! Mind you our dog, Bunty, escapes from the garden most days – surely the hedgehogs could follow her? Seriously though, I’m definitely going to plan more for hedgehogs.
- Also, while we have a lot of ivy, I have resisted having nettle patches. I will ‘get over myself.’ I may even try to create a beautiful container combining nettles with something else…I wonder if that’s possible? I’m going to give it a go.
Thinking about how to attract wildlife into the garden has really made me reflect on what I do now, and what more I could be doing. With this in mind, I’m going to make a concerted effort to ‘try harder’ as my school report used to say!
If you too are having a go at any of these tips, do let me know how you get on.
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