How to Establish a Wildlife Garden

As with all gardens, in a wildlife garden you are not attempting to recreate nature itself, but designing a garden in which native species of plants, birds and animals will flourish. It can look well designed and modern without losing any of its attraction to small creatures, who don't mind whether it looks rural and natural and just want the plants and habitats they can feel at home.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Wildlife can be enticed into the garden by providing a variety of habitats and sources of food. Ideally, the garden should contain a woodland area, a wild flower meadow and a pond--all features that can be adapted to fit into a small garden successfully.

2. Make the most of the conditions that prevail in your garden. For example, a poor soil is ideal for growing a wild flower meadow, while a damp, shady area will suit many woodland plants.

3. Choosing the plants to cultivate. The best garden for wildlife is one with the most variety of plants. A bit of grass, some herbaceous plants, some roses, some vegetables, a tree or two, even a few weeds such as nettles and a privet that some caterpillars need to feed on will make a good start. The garden borders should be wide enough to take several layers of vegetation.

4. Make sure there are some evergreen shrubs for winter cover, as well as winter interest, and some deciduous trees and shrubs to let some light through in the spring. Each layer of vegetation provides a habitat for different creatures.

5. Build close to woodlands. A woodland edge provides a rich natural habitat for wildlife and may attract hedgehogs, bats and a range of other creatures. You can recreate this sort of environment even on a small scale to bring a great diversity of creatures into the garden. A woodland area should consist of several layers of vegetation, including tall trees, smaller trees and a lower tier of shrubs. Under these can be planted ground cover plants and early bulbs.

6. Put in a water source. Every wildlife garden needs a pond as a home for all sorts of animal, bird and insect life. It should be in the most open area of the garden. Boggy and marginal plants will make a natural-looking surround and offer cover for little creatures.

7. Add a windbreak. Fences provide inexpensive instant windbreaks. They can be of woven willow or hazel, or wattle in medieval style. They are all good at gently filtering the wind. Since this is an organic garden, you will want to dedicate an area to composting, hidden by shrubs or a hedge or fencing to match that used in the rest of the garden.

8. Establish a hedge. Hedges provide food, shelter, nesting sites and a safe, sheltered corridor for traveling creatures. Choose a flowering hedge to attract birds and insects. Conifers do not mix well with other evergreen shrubs and do not make the best wildlife hedges on their own.

Tips & Warnings

• Remember when attempting to attract wildlife to a garden, you cannot chose what creatures make it home.