Gardening for Wildlife: Proven Strategies for Success
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- Опубликовано: 7 фев 2025
- While Wildlife Gardening and Rewilding are increasing in popularity in the UK it's become important to remind people of the scientific study that exists for gardens. They're a repeatedly undervalued resource and most of the information suggests recreating fake bits of countryside. Given that gardens contain more species than these bits of countryside people try to recreate it seems a little bit of a flawed strategy. It's possible to garden in whichever way you enjoy save for a few small changes.
Resources:
WLGF.org - This website has so much information and myth busting on wildlife gardening. It has lot of information about all of the studies so far conducted and a gold mine for information about wildlife friendly gardening in the UK
Links
amzn.to/3IOvIwP - No Nettles Required: The Reassuring Truth About Wildlife Gardening - Ken Thompson
amzn.to/3Kxu0B5 - RHS Companion to Wildlife Gardening - Chris Baines
I get a commission if you decide to buy these via the links. It costs you nothing extra and I don't recommend anything unless I actually use it.
I used to prune my apple trees and bring the wood to the community collection center. Now I leave the wood in my garden and let it rot. I did that because I am lazy, but then a huge black wood bee (xylocopa) came and made a nest in it, and now I know that I will get bugs too. I am curious.
I couldn’t agree more on the point of turning yr garden into a nature reserve . Personally I’m very passionate about nature and our wildlife but also enjoy a showy garden .
By incorporating lots of flowering shrubs and plants but moving away from the “traditional “ manicured maintenance I have able to get the best of both worlds. My plants are chosen on pollination power firstly and if they provide berries or seed beneficial for wildlife all the better . Garden waste is kept in the garden and a pond of any size is a must .
Lovely! Gardening is pure joy and when it starts to get cold less is more...leaving herbaceous stuff over winter gives a warm home to all sorts of life,I love the odd sunny day during winter when the gnats hatch and dance around in the sun,it's magical! It's a small suburban Scottish garden here which I've planted with native trees,shrubs and underplanted with anything that will grow in clay really....the fallen leaves are left to hopefully improve the soil but mainly as feeding ground for the many species of birds as they love to root around for slugs,snails etc.which means I have no problem with slugs. I have a problem with visiting sparrowhawks who'll pick up a wood pigeon,pluck and eat it in a second so I spread food around the lawn,under hedges and in amongst trees so everyone is happy. I would say tho when starting a new garden,plant mixed hedging rather than a fence,it's such a privilege to see wrens early in the morning,and wake up to so many enthustiastic birds all shouting for their breakfast of dry porridge!
Dunnocks,robins and wrens like to feed under shrubs here but the blue tits are really tame,they like fatballs placed in trees near to the house and warn me if the sparrowhawk's in the garden...when the rest of the garden is weirdly silent! I did try to scare a sparrowhawk away once which was really scary heh and I came out worst but it hasn't put off my birds,a success story for any size of garden is how much life and joy it brings....not a posh outdoor room which is designer rubbish,rather have a happy space for all sorts to enjoy!
Good to see someone giving a straightforward run down of the big hitting features you can add to a garden. I always notice birds in my garden prefer to approach the bird feeders from the nearby bushes where they feel safe.
Yes me too. I notice them doing their acrobatics between the hedges and trees next to the feeder. It’s a real joy. Thanks for the kind words, I really appreciate it
"We're not here to judge lifestyles." This reminds me of a children's book about a lion, a wolf and a shark who say "We're not bad, we're carnivores." I liked it because storybooks often teach kids that certain animals are good or bad, when they're really all part of a healthy ecosystem.
Exactly! It’s quite strange when you attempt to moralise nature. I love the comparison with the lion 😊 Thank you
Interesting thank. You.
Well done. Thank you for helping the rewilding movement grow!
I heard a lecture by Fergus Garrett, the master gardener of Great Dixter about this very topic.... and this was their experience also... they now have more diversity in Dixter than in the surrounding farm land, copses, and hedges.
That makes a lot of sense. Especially at Dixter where they have a particular emphasis on a wildlife friendly approach
@@tecmow4399I haven’t been for a long time but I consider Dixter to be one of the transformative experiences of my life.
Thank you for this informative video! This is just perfect as I’m trying to restore the garden in my school as part of a group project :)
You’re going to get so much joy out of it 🫶 good luck
Good tips. I'd add one more - plant things native to your area. That is what wildlife really wants.
I specifically didn’t include this because lots of alien species are also great for wildlife. It’s a brilliant idea to find out what your native flora is and include it. But there are hundreds of examples of larval food sources, nectar, pollen, shelter and anything else native fauna get from non native plants
If you look at what Americans wildlife garden are discovering and divulgating in the recent years, alien wildfliwers could be food source of pollen but often help alien insects much more than native ones. I think it world be better to stick to native species, native in a broda sense, not just British but euro-mediterranean, avoifing americano, rade adian and south-africans. Just recently it was discovered, for exanple, that Oenothera speciosa, a common garden flower, is a deadly trap for hummingbird-moth.
So I’m still pretty ignorant even when it comes to basic gardening, but your passion for it always comes across so clearly in these videos that I can’t help but to hang on every word and actually learn something new (plus your voice is very soothing). I would definitely watch a gardening/nature programme hosted by you.
You’re so generous with your compliments and I love it! Thank you 😊
@@tecmow4399 You’re genuinely deserving of the praise 💚
Thank you for your insight! 🌱
You are so welcome! 🫶
Lovely video! One thing to consider is that many ecologists now think it's likely that Britain was predominantly 'parkland' about 5000 years ago. (It probably was 'forest' like you said, but in the original Norman sense of the word, not necessarily woodland!) The sort of deadwood that saproxylic invertebrates really like is the type that you find in deer parks - open-grown trees (i.e. really thick trunks with lots of heartwood). Only commenting this as in the previous video you were talking about misconceptions that get thrown around so much they're treated as fact, and that's basically what happened with the closed canopy view of European landscapes/ecology
I loved evidence based advice. Great info, thanks.
You have made some very good points in regard to an individual’s approach to wildlife gardening.
Great video, fab channel. Please keep creating.
Any tips for enticing wildlife in a small 'urban' back yard - concrete, small, container gardening.
Best,
Ben
I am very greedy about that. I have a garden when a lot of things can die, and I do not judge lifestyles. So I subscribed.
Just found your channel today and I really enjoy your content :D it's very informative and inspiring and you are really good at keeping one's attention by clipping between different angles and locations and keeping "eye-contact" - I was wondering if you (at some point) might make a video on "hotels" for other animals like hedgehogs or butterflies? I've seen alot of ideas on pinterest, but I have no idea weather they are actually good ideas in practice or not. I would love to get some knowledge/science behind what actually works well for the animals, and not just what looks cool. and maybe see how to make it? If that makes sense? :)
Thank for the lovely words! I’m not used to receiving such high praise 😅. From what I’ve read and my experience very few “hotels” or wildlife homes work specifically for their intended purpose with the exception of solitary bee holes. As far as I know the best thing for hedgehogs is piles of leaves but I’ve never been lucky enough to see any myself in my garden. With the tips I gave in the video though there is a lot more invertebrate life supported that can provide any potential hedgehogs with a rich food supply if they do turn up. Is that any help or is it just disappointing news?
@Tec Mow no no it's helpful 😊 I mean it is sad if all the bug hotels which are mass produced and sold everywhere (at least here in Denmark they are) are pretty much useless and people don't know and think they are doing good.. I currently don't have a garden (really want one in the future) but a tiny balcony, and right now we haven't had any rain in 20 or something days. Is there anything you would recommend I do to maybe help bugs in the heat?
Also thank you for your answer and keep up the good work 😊
@katr4530, you could leave some shallow water with places for bugs to land (so they don't drown) and they will come for a drink (at least it's what works with honeybees)
Beautiful! I’m doing the same thing now on an old farm
Oh wow that sounds incredible!
Great tips in this video. However, I'd suggest planting native aquatic species in your pond rather than Canadian pondweed, as that's an invasive non-native species. Also you could get Daphne from pretty much any local pond. Better to get it from there than from an aquatic centre.
Nice that you can put out feeders without attracting bears where you live
🤣 yeah I haven’t ever had to consider that. Bear snacks 🧸🍟
Bird baths seem to be very effective for my garden. So are the different seed mixes that I have made a certain area in my garden for and I just don't cut it until it dies in winter. I'm not 100% sure about bird feeders and what a season of increased rainfall would do with mould etc because I am a bit lazy. I have heard bee hotels eventually get a bit mouldy if you don't clean them. I love your videos!
I cleaned out my bird feeder this winter but yeah I know what you mean. It’s another job to get around to 😅 it’s so nice seeing birds bathing. They bathe on the rocks in my tiny little pond. Thanks so much for the kind words 😊
Thank you for your very informative and measured videos. I’m particularly grateful for you signposting me to the books by Ken Thompson. He is a fascinating and lively writer and it’s easy to pick up his books second hand on eBay.
Yes ive done the same! I love a book with worn corners. So glad you’ve enjoyed the recommendation 😊
Fascinating! 🥰
I’m glad you enjoyed it 😊
Suffice it to say I enjoyed this video
That’s sufficient for me to smile 😊 thank you
I am pleased I have got most of these. I need to watch your video on what plants I should have
That’s great! I’m sure you probably have a lot of good plants already but yeah the video should be useful to you too 😊
I caught one of the box turtles eating a mushroom the other day.Hes like a old friend that stops in 5 or 6 times a year.
Hey! I just found your channel doing research for my own. I'd like to partner with you as the American counterpart to showcase native wildlife over here. I'd love to figure out a way to help each other grow
A lot of people need to learn that a garden full of just honey bees buzzing around is not a wild life garden 😅
That may be true but it would be an incredibly unlikely situation. If something is popular with honey bees it doesn’t mean it’s detrimental to a garden. The vast majority of people are not entomologists and they couldn’t accurately record the insects in their garden. If they could, they’d know that there’s a diversity of insects in their garden. Probably the same diversity that exists in the gardens of people who think they know what an “ideal” wildlife garden is
I’ve done none of that intentionally and I have lizards, snakes, toads, frogs, every bird and every bug. I don’t have squirrels or chipmunks because my neighbor has a dozen feral cats. And it take some doing to keep the cats away from the birds.
That’s amazing! And I agree, keeping the cats away is a tough task
That 5 second TikTok 😂
I love the prospect of installing a pond but don't they breed mosquitoes?
yes but a healthy pond also has a lot of things in it that eat the mosquitoes and their larva which controls their population
im trying to encourage more wildlife but recently we had problems with rats, we have a fish pond and were feeding the birds, the rats were attracted to both so stopped feeding the birds unfortunatly.
how do i help them without it happening again
What were you feeding the birds? And from feeders or just putting food out on the ground?
I had this problem too, my bird food is in feeders but some still falls to the floor, plus the rats were nimble enough to get into the feeders.
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I would love to see a ban on slug pellets and weedkiller sales. I don't think they have a place in a garden. There are non-chemical methods to cope with slug damage and weeds.
I agree. There is so much shelf space dedicated to it and most people have no idea how to use it.
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