Designing for wildlife
Wildlife needs help more than ever before, and your garden can play a crucial role in helping to support it.
A wildlife garden can be elegant and beautiful and designed to attract both human beings and wildlife alike. Sharing our gardens with the natural world brings positive changes to our planet and also improves our mental health and well-being.
Many of our common garden visitors including hedgehogs, house sparrows and starlings are increasingly under threat. By restoring and enhancing existing spaces, large or small, we can encourage the widest possible range of wildlife into our gardens, collectively making a huge difference.
If you would like to know more about my work, please visit my Instagram page for regular updates.
"Think of your garden as nature's bed and breakfast...
you can't provide one without the other."
Rewilding...not just a 'buzz' word!
In my experience as a garden designer and nature enthusiast, I have come to realise that the term 'rewilding' has been used more frequently in recent years. Quite often I believe this term has been misunderstood.
Many people believe that rewilding a garden can be achieved by leaving their own garden to grow wild. Sadly, this is not always the case and has little or no benefit to wildlife at all. They are often missing the right conditions needed for a healthy ecosystem, such as a diversity of habitats and planting.
A wildlife garden can be achieved in any sized plot, as long as a little forethought and preparation has gone into it from the start, allowing us to kick-start those ecological processes that naturally occur in the wild.
Once the garden is established, very little intervention should be needed because the sustainable nature of the design means your maintenance regime will be minimal, allowing you to sit back and immerse yourself in nature.
Plants for Wildlife
"Variety is the spice of life!"
It's true....at least for the natural world. Adding a variety of different substrates means we can grow a variety of different plants. This means more biodiversity! Extending the flowering season right through winter will also support resident wildlife too.
Wildflower and clover lawns
Drought-resistant clover lawns create a low maintenance bee-friendly alternative to a traditional lawn. They are much more beautiful too!
"Several studies have found that clovers found in wildflower lawns are one of the most frequently visited flowers by bumblebees".
Wildflower meadows
Wildflower meadows are an attractive element to any garden, however big or small. They offer breeding sites and shelter for a variety of species.
"The UK has lost over 97% of it's wildflower meadows since the 1930's".
Native species
Native species have many benefits to our environment, providing essential food and shelter for our native wildlife, many of which are currently in decline.
"It's been found that exotic plants support fewer invertebrates than native species".
Charity initiatives
As a registered volunteer for the
Bumblebee Conservation Trust, I visit local primary schools and conservation charities in my spare time, to raise awareness about the importance of bumblebees.
These projects help to educate and inspire the younger generation to think about ways of protecting our wild bees, which are fundamental to our wellbeing.
Please contact me if this is something you would be interested in for your local school or community conservation project.