Big Garden, Small Garden or a Field You CAN Create a Wildlife Habitat

 People often say that they own land or have a large garden and would like to turn it into a wildlife area but "It's too daunting trying to work out what to do". I can tell you that it is not difficult. 

Mind you I have been doing this since the 1970s.

What do you want to attract is the question. Just bees and butterflies? Birds -and please remember that if you attract small birds then you must (as unpleasant as it may seem) expect to attract hawks. It is the Prey-Predator balance that you find in nature. 

I have read comments by two people on wildlife groups that they called in "magpie catchers" as magpies had raided a bird nest for chicks. "Magpie catcher" is not an occupation and it's simply someone willing to trap/kill magpies. If that is your solution then concrete over your garden as you get counted amongst the "only the wildlife I want".  All I can say is shame on those people. 

The same applies to people who go chasing off hawks after they have made a kill. Firstly, hawks have young and also need to eat. The fact that you chase a hawk off a kill does two things: firstly, that bird died for nothing and the hawk will now need to kill a second bird as, secondly, it needs to eat and live.

I have had pigeons and collared doves killed right outside my window. Nothing I can do and I feel sad for the bird killed.

So, if you never want to have that happen in your garden do not feed birds and I have tried many things over the decades and nothing stopped the prey-predator scenario.

Do you just want insects and butterflies/bees?  Easy enough. Buy wild flower seeds and even better buy some buddleja bushes (aka "Butterfly bushes"). There are a number of varieties and you will find some noted in my old posts -cones of tiny flowers of various colours or even ball shaped flowers -mini oranges that all attract bees and butterflies.

If you want you could turn a whole garden over to insect friendly plants and bushes.

But do you want a garden for wildlife where everything is allowed to get on with its own life while helping the environment?

The above map is a little basic but it can be applied to a large garden, a field or a larger area if you have it. First start off with a pond and some plants. There are various types of pond and people even use old baths, sinks or other watertight containers place in the ground. You can also use old plastic bin lids or even (new) cat litter trays -again, best to bury to just under the rim. You would be surprised at how fast life gets to a pond/pondlet.

Do you have enough room for a couple or even one fast growing conifer -if in a terraced garden one you can maintain at a height of 8ft or so just so neighbours do not get annoyed! Willow wands you can buy and you simply stick them in the ground, water regularly and they do grow quite fast. Maybe the odd smaller tree or some fruit trees? 

Wild grasses are also well worth getting and some can get ornamental flowers so a plus. 

Next some wildlife friendly plants. Wildlife can self medicate -most people have seen how pet cats and dogs will eat grass and in the wild foxes and other animals will look for plants that they instinctively know will help a health problem. I'm currently looking at a list of such plants.

The pond, I ought to point out, needs to be in a central spot. The reason for this is the predator problem. Wildlife from mammals to birds like to see all around them and shrubs, etc too close to a pond could hold a predator or attacker -it's why I once had to move water bowls to an open area as cats kept creeping up on foxes!

For people living in tower blocks with a balcony a mini garden can be created -I once had a mini fish pond, various flowers and mini bushes on one that attracted far more birds, insects and butterflies than I expected.

You make use of the space you have so look at the diagram above and see how you can adapt it. We can all do our bit for the environment.

Vale Wildlife Group (1994)

 

The Vale Wildlife Group (covering specifically Ashton Vale in the BS3 area) was set up in 1994 after I discovered that Avon wildlife trust had declared it a "wildlife deprivation area".

On my first night I was face-to-face with the largest hedgehog I had ever seen and while watching it two barn owls flew so low overhead I could see all the face and feather details. Returning into the house I looked out to see a pair of foxes strolling up the road. There were so many butterflies, moths and beetles and other insects that I lost count and when I saw the woodpecker as well as all the other local birds including sparrow hawks and buzzards I said to myself "This is the kind of wildlife deprivation area I can live with"!

Remember this was all within a day of moving in. I kept local records and found frogs, toads, newts wall lizards and much much more. Avon Wildlife told me that as I was not a member my records were of no interest (it was that blunt). Oh, bats of course and otters not to mention deer and badgers.

I was called in to remove an adder (they are still in the area) from a garden and various other things. The biggest problem was that locals were decidedly anti wildlife. I just could not understand it and a few efforts to re-invigorate wildlife were damaged by local residents.

 When Yanley Quarry was going to be turned into a park area for locals I was asked to set up a wildlife area complete with pond and received a copy of the wildlife survey team report to help me work things out.

The Quarry company  had nothing but negativity from locals (to create a park and wildlife area??) and I endured three years of harassment and more just for being involved (unpaid I might add).

When I sought permission to "re-wild" the old coal-pit area in South Liberty Lane the word spread -as did local anger.  Willow wands were planted to create a small wooded area but these were pulled up by locals and some were thrown into my garden -a warning I suppose?

Thankfully those people either moved on or passed away and I would hope that the younger, newer locals would be far more happy to re-wild the area or at least encourage more wildlife and help educate youngsters -they are after all going to be the ones looking after our environment in the future.

For 2023 if I can get council cooperation, I want to carry out a survey of the old coal yard and see whether a plan to plant willows and some fast growing conifers can be formulated -but that really requires local help.

Badger Cull