Wildlife Gardening
Weeds of Mass Domination
It’s 4th July, American Independence Day,
so an appropriate date to be mentioning the American water fern. Perhaps
the conflict celebrated today is also appropriate - victory of the
American people against the domination of us Brits, foreigners in their
land. In the natural world the battle between native plants and foreign
invaders - alien species if you like - is an increasingly
common one, but one which our own native plants don’t always come
out of well.
Over the last few million years many plant species have evolved with the
a single objective, which is to colonise and become dominant. In natural
habitats this is held in check by the equal demands of neighbouring plants,
but natural stability is very rare in the average garden. We visit garden
centres and are seduced by highly cultivated and ‘alien’ plant
species which look exotic and wonderful but, once they’re planted
in the garden, can cause unlimited problems.
Pond plants are a prime area of concern, which is where the American water
fern comes in. We’ve talked about ‘pond pests’ before,
but alien varieties are such a threat it’s worth repeating. New
Zealand pygmy weed (Crassula helmsii) and American water fern (Azola filiculoides)
are two of the non-native (or alien) pond plants of particular concern.
Thousands of miles from their own natural homes, they are thriving with
no natural predators or competitors to curb their ability to colonise.
Their vigorous growth quickly cloaks the water surface and stops light
from reaching the bottom of the water-body, resulting in de-oxygenation
which has a direct impact on newts and frogs as well as insects such as
water beetles and dragonflies.
Establishing a pond using native species will give a much-needed boost
to a seemingly dwindling population of insects that visit the garden.
This is also true for border plants and shrubs. Native plants occupy an
important position in the armoury of wildlife gardening techniques and
if you can accommodate some native plants into your garden, you will find
that attracting wildlife is easier. Our native trees and shrubs attract
far more invertebrates than their alien counterparts because our native
wildlife and the plants have co-evolved together over thousands or years.
Clearly its easier to incorporate native plants into a naturalistic garden
design, but it should not be impossible to use some native species in
almost any garden, even those which feature a formal design. In fact,
there’s great fun to be had with the idea of putting native plants
in formal situations - endless possibilities for the juxtaposition
of these two 'worlds'.
Alternatively, most people have an awkward corner where nothing seems
to want to grow, but nature will show you if you let it. It’s often
difficult for gardeners to let nature take its course, but if you see
it as your partner and allow plants to colonise under their own steam,
you may end up with something that is actually rather attractive and would
work in your garden - or it might suggest to you one of its cultivated
cousins.
At the garden centre ask for UK native species and chose those which come
from a source of local provenance. And whilst there may still be a desire
to plant the exotic and wonderful, remember that a scattering of ox-eyed
daisies and evening primrose, or the draping of honeysuckle across fences
or pergolas will result in natural beauty, wonderful scents and above
all a sense of satisfaction that you have made a vast contribution to
local wildlife.
There’s a close connection between America and modern nature conservation,
namely John Muir, who was born in the UK but has become revered in the
USA as the father of the modern nature conservation movement..
In America John Muir is something of a national hero, and every environmentalist
and nature-lover knows about his inspirational and epic struggles to protect
that country’s wild places. Today there are two hundred sites in
the USA named after him, including Muir Woods, Muir Beach, Muir Glacier
and the John Muir Trail through the High Sierra.
John Muir was born in East Lothian, Scotland, in 1838, where his love
for wild places began. In 1849 he emigrated with his family to America.
By his mid 30s he had become a respected botanist, geologist and glaciologist,
and pioneered the science that we know today as ecology .
During his explorations of the High Sierra in California and in Alaska
between 1870 and 1890, Muir became aware of increasing threats to these
wonderful, wild places and was the first to call for their conservation.
He led the campaign to protect Yosemite from development (and influenced
President Roosevelt deeply. Roosevelt invited Muir to tell him about the
importance of the wilderness to the human spirit and the nation as a whole
and, as a result, by the time he left office in 1909 Roosevelt had designated
100,000 acres as forest reserves, created six new National Parks and 53
new wildlife refuges. It’s an example his modern counterpart, George
W. Bush, would do well to review this Independence Day weekend!
Muir was one of the first to realise that all species are interconnected
- a truth that is only now, more than 150 years later, beginning
to be understood. The principles of wildlife gardening are firmly based
on this connectivity, as is the work of all the Wildlife Trusts and other
organisations that exist to protect our natural heritage.
“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves. When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe”. - John Muir.
You can find out more about John Muir by contacting the John Muir Trust at 41 Commercial Street, Edinburgh, EH6 6JD or log on to www.jmt.org
