wildlife friendly garden

hi

our garden is fairly long with lawn for much of it and some bigger trees at the bottom of the garden. a couple of these trees are no longer safe so are being cut down and cleared. I would like to use this space to be a wildlife friendly area and attract creepy crawlies, bees, butterflies etc. Due to small children we don't want water features or ponds or anything. I plan to scatter some wildflower seeds and want to get some longer grasses to leave to grow down there too but have no idea about the sort of grasses I should be looking for. looking at ornamental grasses I am guessing they aren't very native british plants and i don't want ones with sharp edges.

most of the area will be fairly unlimited sunshine with some in shade of trees. we live on the south coast only about 15 minutes walk from the beach so with luck most things would grow round here.

I also hope to make a bit of a rockery because there has already been one in a different part of the garden and we have the nice rocks which it makes sense to use.

Any ideas of plants to use, especially for year round interest would be gratefully received. I was brought up in a village and love the cornfield/meadow/wildflower field look and want my children to enjoy similar.

thanks

 

thanks for that info and the websites. Hadn't thought about asking them to leave some of the wood. We are keeping the treestumps I think for that reason but yes some little logs would be great. next door have a pond so we do get frogs occassionally so they would probably like some places like that.

 

Our first house was in the city, surrounded by roads so there was no wildlife corridor to it.

Dug a pond, let the lawn grass flower & stuck some wild flowers in, just kept a few paths mown & an area around the pond to sit.

It was like sitting in a country meadow in the summer.

Then the newts came.

 

The rockery you want to build will also serve as a bug hotel if you leave some nooks and crannies in between the rocks, as opposed to packing every tiny gap with soil like some that I've seen.

Also, if space allows, why not chuck in a buddleja, it is sometimes known as butterfly bush but its not just the butterflies that like it, all sorts of nectar hungry insects like it.

Another plant that the bumble bees seem to love is golden rod. I put some in my last garden and it was a magnet for the bees. It grows about 3 or 4 ft tall and forms clumps, and is very low maintenance.

 

thank you. we have fences and a wall round our garden and are in a town really so not sure HOW much wildlife there is but at least we can try to attract some. I hope to attract some of the smaller birds too as I am sick of seagulls...

 

I bet you'll find that there's more wildlife in your garden by the end of summer than there is in the countryside. Garden's are the new nature reserve these days. When you consider that your garden alone will provide a range of different habitats, and then there's all your neighbours also providing some diversity, where as the countryside is full of vast areas of monoculture, with farms that get routinely sprayed regularly. The creatures aren't daft, their all moving to the towns for an easier life.

 

thanks - will look into golden rod, esp if low maintenance! buddleja is also now on the list, it would help cover the very unattractive wall at the bottom of the garden and no doubt some little creatures might like the gaps between it and the wall too.

I think we will end up with 2 rockeries, there seem to have been LOTS of rocks used in the garden so I thought about sticking some of them at the bottom down in the wildlife thing and then some in the front garden with herbs and trailing flowers in. hadn't really worked out what to grow in the wildlife one. I LOVE lavenders so I suppose some of them could go in and I know heathers are good in them. there are some much smaller stones too so I will leave some small gaps and just put soil where it needs to be.

now watch me end up with 2 children who are terrified of creepy crawlies or something!


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thats very true, we aren't using any chemicals or intervening (or plan to intervene as little as possible - more for teaching the girls about different creatures and plants than cutting things down or anything). they have very rare lizards and things in this area on the cliff sides so who knows what might turn up. so long as it isn't poisonous and anything with 8 legs stays a long way from the house then I don't mind. looking round our neighbours gardens a couple have ponds, some are traditional grass and flowerbeds and a couple are more arid style ones (which is more what our front garden will be). One day I would LOVE to get a palm tree too but that will have to wait a while, perhaps an olive tree this year

 

Hello Keinnaf ,

I am creating a wildlife area in my garden too. I want to create a meadow & have as many wild flowers as I can to create a wonderful habitat for wildlife. I really want to encourage more bee's & butterflies & will be introducing as many nectar loving plants as I can.

In regards to your meadow, may I suggest these sites:

http://www.reallywildflowers.co.uk/
http://www.wildflowers.co.uk/

These web sites are full of information on creating a meadow & planting wildflowers. The best methods to use, what types of wildflower & seeds are best for your type of soil & whats best for shade/part shade & full sun sites.
I'm just waiting to do a soil test to check my PH & then I will be ordering wildflowers & seeds to suit my soil & site. I am also trying to stick with the wildflowers that are found in my area.

As for shrubs for wildlife :- Aucuba, Berberis, Buddleia, Cotoneaster, Daphne, Hebe, Fuchsia, Lavender, Mahonia, Pernettya, Skimmia, Syringa, Pyracantha, Escallonia, Ribes odoratum, Rhus, Symphoricarpos, Ligustrum, Holly, Callicarpa Profusion, Hawthorne & many more!!

Flowers: Helenium, Echinacea, Foxgloves (poisonous), Delphiniums, Agastache, Red Hot Poker, Salvia Nemerosa, Hydrangea, Gladioli, Salvia & many many more!! Flowers with single petals seem to attract more bee's that flowers with double petals.

May I suggest that you put some logs in the ground upright, but with half in the ground. This is good for beetles such as Lesser Stag Beetle, when the wood begins to rot. Also log piles around your garden & drill some holes in too for the solitary bee's. Also leave a patch of nettles for the butterflies to lay their eggs on. They say its always best to leave a patch of ground to grow wild on its own. Long grass is great for moths!!

How about building a Wildlife stack.....great fun & it uses up lots of odds & ends & waste material found in your garden or shed. Check out this website for ideas:
http://www.rspb.org.uk/advice/gardening/insects/wildlifestack.aspx

I can't wait to get going with my wildlife garden. Just need some good weather. Good luck with yours!! Maybe you could take some pictures showing us your progress.:D

Bigbird

 

thank you Big Bird. lots of really useful ideas there.

I will take some photos once we really get started with it. heres hoping for some good weather!