Wildlife Gardening Top Tips

Our gardens provide a vital habitat for hundreds of species. They create a green network across the landscape helping wildlife to move around. Surrey Wildlife Trust wanted to show you how you can do your bit for wildlife. We've created our five top tips to help you discover how you can turn your garden into a haven for insects, birds and mammals. Probably the most important tip is to build a pond. It doesn't have to be a huge one like this. It could be smaller like this one or you could just get a basin or a bathtub sunk into the ground. No garden is too small for a pond and it will soon attract birds, amphibians, insects, mammals and lots of mini beasts. Remember to include a shallow area and some rocks so creatures can come and go and take a drink. Include oxygenating plants like hornwort, something to cover the surface like a small water lily and emerging plants like marsh marigold. If you get the plants right you won't need a pump which can suck up tadpoles. Top up with rainwater as tap water can turn your pond green and don't put fish in as they will eat the water creatures. Remember to feed the birds. Not only are they good fun to watch but for declining species like the house sparrow our gardens represent vital habitat. Grow plants with fruit, berries, hips and seeds to provide natural food. Use bird feeders and bird tables with a variety of food to attract a good mix of species. Remember don't put out salty food or dry bread as these can be harmful and put your bird feeder out of reach of cats and keep bird feeders clean so they don't spread disease. Include lots of colourful flowering plants, shrubs and fruit trees in your garden to provide nectar for bees. We need bees for pollination but their habitats are disappearing and pesticides and disease are also killing great numbers. Bees love lavender, foxgloves, honeysuckle and ceanotus. Remember to include plants that flower through the seasons to keep bees and other pollinators from going hungry. Every wildlife garden should have a compost heap. It's a cheap and environmentally friendly way of recycling your garden and kitchen waste into compost that can feed the soil in your garden. Compost heaps attract slugs, worms and beetles which provide food for hedgehogs, reptiles and amphibians. Remember to include a mix of green waste like grass cuttings and plant prunings and brown waste like twigs and small pieces of cardboard. Turn the compost during the summer to avoid disturbing hibernating animals. Build a bug hotel using wooden pallets and a variety of sticks, logs and pots to give insects and invertebrates a home. You can attract beneficial insects to your garden like bees, ladybirds and lacewings which are good for pollination, pest control and provide food for other wildlife. Remember to include holes for solitary bees, some loose bark for beetles and spiders and dead wood for stag beetles. Ladybirds like to hibernate in dry sticks and leaves. If we all do a little bit, it will make a massive difference. So remember to make space for wildlife in your garden. Surrey Wildlife Trust, working with you for wildlife in Surrey. Enter our wildlife gardening competition. Go to our website and find out how your garden shapes up for wildlife.