In England the total gardens area is much larger than that of our Nature Reserves. This means that your and your neighbours’ gardens are an important resource for sustaining the biodiversity of our country.
In the Spring both nature and gardeners are becoming more active, so here’s some ideas that can help nature as you garden.
The Lawn
Consider allowing the grass to grow longer in some areas of your garden this spring and summer. This could allow buttercups, clover, dandelions and other plants to flower providing valuable nectar and pollen to bumblebees and other insects. It will also save you time with less areas to mow!
The longer grass can also provide cover for smaller creatures to hide from predators. Hedgehogs can be drawn to longer grass for nesting materials and food. Hedgehogs are a gardener’s friend keeping insect numbers and slugs and snails in balance, but the number of hedgehogs has dramatically declined over recent years. Always check long grass for any resident hedgehogs before mowing, and if your garden is fenced leave a small gap or two at the bottom to allow hedgehogs to travel between neighbouring gardens.
You don’t need to let your whole lawn go wild to help wildlife as some birds, such as blackbirds, thrushes and starlings, need short turf to probe for worms and other invertebrates.
If you have moss growing in your lawn then consider leaving some as it makes great nesting material for birds. If you rake moss out then you can use it to line your hanging baskets.
Hedges and shrubs
Many birds will be building nests in Spring so you should not trim hedges and shrubs where birds may be nesting at this time of year. If you see birds flitting among bushes with bits of twigs or other material in their beaks then try and give these areas a wide berth to avoid disturbing them.
If you have a suitable site in your garden you could put up nest boxes. Check out the best type of nest box and position for the birds visiting your garden on the RSPB website.
Carry on feeding birds during the Spring but always ensure that your bird feeders are kept clean to avoid spreading diseases.
Water
Having a water source in your garden is a great way to attract wildlife. This could be anything from shallow dishes of water for birds, insects and other animals to drink from to a pond.
If you have shallow water dishes ensure these are kept clean and consider putting in some pebbles for insects to rest on whilst drinking. For deeper water containers and ponds make sure there’s a way for creatures such as hedgehogs to safely get out of the water.
Spring often sees an increase in blanket weed in ponds. If you rake this out leave it on the side of the pond for 24 hours before disposing of it so that any small creatures in it can get back in the pond. If you haven’t already got one, consider installing a water butt to collect rainwater from your gutters. Not only is rainwater great for watering your plants and refilling ponds, it saves you money and also reduces the amount of water going into our overstretched sewer system.
Planting
When choosing new plants for your garden this Spring, try to include a variety of pollen and nectar rich flowering plants that not only look beautiful but also provide food for insects and birds.
We hope you have found this article interesting and useful. We intend to produce similar articles for each of the four seasons as part of the Parish Council’s Biodiversity Action Plan.
On behalf of Alpington with Yelverton Parish Council
Alpington and Yelverton 