Wildlife Gardening Team Wilder | Avon Wildlife Trust

Grass Seed Heads Meadow Stephanie Chadwick

Wildlife Gardening

Do your bit for Nature at home

Wildlife gardening is a way of encouraging and helping wildlife to thrive. You don't need masses of space - containers and window boxes count, so does leaving just a small patch in your garden to go wild. It is creating a haven for you and for wildlife. There are many sustainable practices and natural solutions to choose from and try out.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and wildlife gardens can be stunning! Even the Chelsea Flower Show thinks so. They're full of life, they're practical and sustainable and best of all – low maintenance!

Although every species has its own specialist requirements, a good first step is to ensure you provide four key resources:
food, water, shelter and breeding space.

Wildlife gardening competition stories — Hannah Bunn

Stephanie Chadwick

Blooming Whiteway

Stephanie Chadwick

Tom Wilmott Robin

wild_garden_revival_Holly_Blue_Butterfly

Tom Wilmott Holly Blue Butterfly

Blooming Whiteway

Claire Loder, BA2

Blooming Whiteway

Rhiannon Doherty

Melanie Doherty

Stephanie Chadwick

Food

This can be for you and wildlife!

Forest garden – fruit trees, berries
Pollinator friendly plants, nectar rich plants, butterfly garden
Bird Feeders
Leave food out for hedgehogs
Vegetable patch or containers
Wild patch – grasses, nettles, dandelions, daisies, native wild flowers
Go pesticide free

TIP: Avoid pesticides, with a healthy wildlife garden, nature does pest control for you.

LEARN MORE:

Wildflower Suggestions from Grow Wilder Nectar rich plants

Wildlife Friendly Vegetable Gardening Tips Companion Planting

Local Mini Meadows

Rosewarn Close Street Garden

Nimble_Bees Rachel Brown

Nimble_bees Rachel Brown

WildNet - Gillian Day

Sophie Bancroft, Tom Wilmott

Water

One of the best things you can do to support wildlife is by adding a pond

Mini Pond
Pond with no fish
Bog garden
Leave a water dish out at ground level to support smaller visiting mammals
Bird bath

TIP: Grow Wilder has a wildflower nursery with plenty of pond and blog plants for sale and also growing on display around the site.
TIP: You can add water to your garden with old bowls, pots etc

LEARN MORE:
Our experience of Creating & Maintaining Ponds Provide water for wildlife

Bird Bath Wild Garden Sophie Bancroft

Sophie Bancroft photo of Tom Wilmott's pond

T Lapis2380 Pond Shutterstock

Pond Tom Wilmott

Pond Tom Wilmott, Grow Wilder purchases

#pondgoals

Tom Wilmott Pond Snail Eggs

Beautiful Mini Pond by Anna Williams

Shelter

Consider the following options when providing shelter for wildlife:

Log pile or tree stumps, rock/stone pile, bug hotel
Deadhedges and natural barriers including hedges and climbing plants on walls/fences
Wildflower area or container, leaving the grass to grow long in some areas
Bird box or bat box
Bee hotel
Hedgehog house
Mature trees

TIP: Ensure you have shelters placed in both sunny and shaded spots to cater for different species

LEARN MORE:

Natural barriers: native & dead hedges Bee Hotel examples

Log Shelters Container Gardens Local Mini Meadow

Sophie Bancroft Bird Box Tom Wilmott

Sophie Bancroft photo of bird friendly hedge Tom Wilmott

Bee Hotels at Grow Wilder

Kevin Conway

Sophie Bancroft photo of Tom Wilmott's Bird Box and Swift Box

Sophie Bancroft photo of Tom Wilmott's bee hotel

Stephanie Chadwick

Be Sustainable

Sustainable, sensible gardening has to be the way forward.

Use peat free compost or make your own
Don't use pesticides as nature finds a way
A water butt will save on resources
Recycling garden materials allows you to create things like deadhedges.

LEARN MORE:

How to Compost Use Peat Free Compost

Chemical-free gardening ideas

Install a Water Butt Recycle & Reuse

We’re in this together…

Literally from a birds eye view, all gardens are connected to each other and also to the surrounding open spaces. Wildlife needs connected areas to evolve and survive - this can be done on large and small scale areas.

Consider mixed native hedges for boarders, instead of fences and walls for wildlife to move and feed more freely.
Where fences exist, hedgehog highways can be created with small holes.
Create corridors on your street to connect nature.
Speak to neighbours about swapping seeds, plants, advice and encouragement for wildlife gardening, join a local group or set one up.
By noticing wildlife in local open spaces and sharing sightings, you will encourage interest in the importance of local wildlife and habitats.

Resources

See below for resources and how to's related to wildlife gardening, including a video from Esther, the Team Wilder Community Ecologist.
The Team Wilder Ecological Advisory Service (TWEAS) is free to residents and community groups in Avon - find out more and book a slot.