With the increasing intensification of farming and loss of land to new building developments, gardens are becoming an ever more important refuge for wildlife. The nation’s 15 million gardens are now thought to account for around 3% of the total land area of England and Wales and this is set to rise further. How we manage our gardens is therefore going to have an increasing effect on the survival of many species of British wildlife.

Our garden around Lower House Farm has been designed and is being managed with wildlife very much in mind. The garden is still in its infancy and has a long way to go before it's 'finished', but it already attracts a wealth of wildlife.

 

Explore our garden

The flower borders

Butterflies and insects are a delight in their own right, but will also act as a food source for creatures higher up the food chain such as birds and bats. They will benefit from the planting of nectar and pollen rich plants. Sadly, many of today’s exotic garden flowers are varieties of foreign plants that are not suited to our indigenous insect pollinators.

The flowers in our borders have been chosen because they attract butterflies, wild bees and other insects into the garden and provide them with the nectar and pollen that they need for their food. The plants have also been chosen because they need little maintenance or watering and also of course because of their attractive colours and scents.The beds have been designed to flower form early spring to late summer.

Plants include; lavenders, rosemary, sage, chives, sedum, marjoram, thyme, columbine, pulmonaria, catmint, foxgloves and poppies.

Bird Tables

Birds are probably the most conspicuous occupants of your garden and will be a very visible indicator of how friendly your garden is for wildlife. The quickest and easiest way to see more of them is to put food out for them during the winter when their natural food is harder to find. It's also a good idea to continue feeding through the spring and summer when garden birds are raising young.

We have two bird tables in the garden and a variety of feeders. By putting out a wide range of foods we attract about 20 species of birds.

» For all your bird feeding needs check out the Ernest Charles website.

Lower House Farm

Buildings can be of great value to garden wildlife. Bats and birds can find homes under eaves or in roof spaces; we have long-eared and pippistrelle bats roosting in the house, swallows nesting under the porch and starlings under the eaves. A small 'bee box' on the side of the house provides nesting sites for solitary bees.

If you are lucky enough to have bats roosting in your roof there is no need for concern, as bats do very little damage. They will use the smallest of crevices and may roost between the roof tiles and the felt or may use the whole loft space. It is illegal to disturb a bat colony or destroy their roost. You can still use your loft but try and cause as little disturbance as possible.

» For more information about bats contact your local Bat Group.

The Log Pile

Dead wood piles are a mini ecosystem in themselves. Organisms feed on the wood and then others feed on them. It is a very visible example of the process of natural recycling. If you have pruned a hedge or a tree you can stack the thicker branches in to a pile providing both a home and food for a wealth of wildlife.

Hedgehogs may hibernate under it, small mammals may live in it, invertebrates will make their homes there and then be a good source of food for birds. As the wood begins to rot you may see some amazing fungi appear on it helping to recycle the wood back into the ground to help new life grow.

The Lawn

The lawn has been planted with snowdrops, wild daffodils and cowslips. The grass is allowed to grow tall during spring and early summer allowing a succession of wild plants to flower; daisies, speedwell, cuckoo flower and dandelions.

By allowing areas of grass to grow tall (give the lawn mower, and you, a rest) you will be helping wildlife by creating food and shelter for insects, spiders, toads, frogs, slow worms and small mammals. If you can't bare to loose all your nice 'bowling green' lawn, why not designate a small area for wildlife.

The Compost Bins

94% of peat bogs have been lost or damaged over the last 50 years and they are now one of the UK’s most threatened habitats. They are home to a wide variety of wildlife species, including many rare ones. 70% of the peat sold in the UK is used by amateur gardeners. Don’t add to the problem, use an alternative!

Compost is a good alternative which you can easily make yourself from all your vegetable peelings, tea bags, grass cuttings, dead leaves, etc. In the wild when plants and animals die they are broken down by other organisms and their elements are recycled enabling something new to grow. Recreate this natural cycle by composting your waste. You can buy compost bins and wormerys, or build your own composter.

As well as providing compost for the garden and helping to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill, the compost heap provides a home for animals, big and small. Bumble bees, hedgehogs and slow worms are all resident in the compost heap.

» For more information about composting check out Wiggly Wigglers.

The Bee Box

There are lots of species of invertebrates using your garden (e.g. spiders, insects etc.) and being very useful to you in return. Insects will pollinate your plants, wasps will remove the plant-eating caterpillars and ladybirds and lacewings will gorge themselves on aphids.

Lots of insects like to live in small, round holes. Put out a bundle of drinking straws, dead hollow plant stems (e.g. cow parsley or cosmos) and corrugated cardboard all tied together and hung up somewhere sheltered and waterproof. Our bee box provides a nesting site for some of the solitary bees which inhabit our garden.

The Pond

Over the last 100 years Britain has lost 75% of its ponds and associated wildlife. If you can find room to fit in a pond, even a small one in a tub, you will be doing a huge favour for the country’s aquatic wildlife and helping to redress the balance.

Our pond is formal in construction, with straight sides and brick edges. Containers at either end provide marshy areas for pond edge plants, escape routes for animals and drinking/washing places for birds.

The pond attracts a wealth of wildlife; during the spring the water is full of frog spawn, while later in the year the air above the pond teams with dragonflies and damselflies.

Marginal plants; Ragged Robin, Greater Spearwort, Bog Bean, Water Mint, Brooklime and Flag Iris.
Submerged plants; Hornwort, Ivy-leaved Duckweed.
Floating plants; Frogbit and Common Duckweed.

REMEMBER: On no account should you use non native plant species.

Suggested reading

• 'Gardening for butterflies’ by Margaret Vickery. Butterfly Conservation (1998)
• ‘How to make a wildlife garden’ by Chris Baines. Frances Lincoln Ltd (2000)
• ‘How to make wildflower habitat gardens’. Landlife (2000)
• ‘Organic gardening’ by Pears & Stickland. Royal Horticultural Society (1999)
• ‘Pond heaven: how to create your own wildlife pond’ by Tom Langton. BBC Wildlife/Froglife (1997)
• ‘Wildlife Gardening’ by Fran Hill. Derbyshire Wildlife Trust (2000)
• ‘Where to buy peat-free products’, a free guide produced produced by the Wildlife Trusts. Send an SAE to: Peat Free, The Wildlife Trusts, The Kiln, Waterside, Mather Road, Newark, Nottinghamshire, NG24 1WT.

Learn more about wildlife gardening

• Why not call in at Lower House Farm and pick up a copy of Fran Hills excellent book 'Wildlife Gardening' (only £7.99).
• There many excellent web sites devoted to wildlife gardening. Go to our Links page for further details.
• Visit one of the gardens taking part in our Open Garden scheme.

Volunteering to help

The garden at Lower House Farm is maintained by a group of volunteers. Please contact the Trust for further details if you would like to help out.