Whether you have an endless lawn or a small patio, there are lots of ways you can attract wildlife into your garden and help it thrive.
Many wildlife species are sadly declining, such as hedgehogs and thrushes, so now it’s more important than ever to create a habitat where these animals can flourish and seek refuge.
Luckily, The Woodland Trust has some handy tips on ways you can turn your garden, whatever the size, into a haven for wildlife. Read on to find out how...
5 easy ways to attract wildlife to your garden
1. Let the grass grow
This doesn’t mean you have to completely abandon your lawn and let it develop into a jungle, but allowing a small area of grass to really flourish will be more attractive to wildlife species. Avoid chemicals on these areas as it will stop plants, like buttercups and daisies, from being able to grow which offer shelter, food and a breeding ground for insects, which will in turn become food for birds and hedgehogs.
2. Buy a ready-made home
Bird boxes, hedgehog houses and bug hotelsare a brilliant way to encourage specific wildlife species into your garden - what bird could resist flying past a cosy bird box perched on your ledge? They’re fun and relatively easy to make too, using lots of household items that you probably already have, if you fancy a new project.
3. Provide a water source
We all know how important water is for survival and it’s no different when it comes to wildlife. Whether it’s a bird bath or you simply fill up a small dish, making water available in your garden could be a lifeline for many animals, especially in harsh weather conditions.
4. Feed them food
No animal is ever going to refuse a free meal. For birds, try buying a bird feeder, making one out of a teacupor simply leaving some nuts and seeds on a wall for them. If you’re looking to attract a more specific type of animal, like a hedgehog, you could leave out wet cat food, or mealworms for badgers. Try and avoid putting out food all the time though, as while it may be tempting, animals shouldn’t become dependent on humans as their main food source.
5. Plant trees
Research has shown that gardens with trees attract more wildlife. Many tree species are a great source of food for insects and birds, such as silver birch; while the flower, fruits and leaves of wild cherry feed on many insects, birds and small mammals. If you have a smaller space, dogwood and dog rose are a good choice and also help feed lots of wildlife.
How to attract butterflies to your garden
Did you know there’s 59 butterfly species in the UK? Sadly, a lot of these are declining due to pollution, weather changes and loss of habitat. Here’s how you can encourage them to continue to flutter…
Plant butterfly-friendly plants - butterflies feed on nectar-rich flowers and love species like bluebells, lavender, red campion, cornflower, primrose, clover and bird's-foot-trefoil. Grow them in a sunny, sheltered spot or a window box or large plant pot if you don’t have lots of space.
Make a butterfly feeder - this is particularly useful during the autumn months when plants finish flowering. Simply add a quarter cup of sugar to two cups of water and then heat in a saucepan until the sugar has dissolved. Leave it to cool for a minimum of 30 minutes then soak a bright coloured cloth in the water and pop it near some flowers.
Create a puddling pool - butterflies drink from muddy patches of the ground and puddles. Make your own by mixing some soil and water together in a shallow dish and pop it in a shady area close to some flowers.
How to attract wrens to my garden
These small, chubby birds are always on the hunt for food and like good shelter.
Give them lots of food - wrens are a tiny bird with a big appetite, who like to eat insects and berries. Try planting some berry producing shrubs, such as blackthorn or low scape mound, in your garden and leaving some leaf litter to encourage insects. They’re also partial to mealworms, peanut butter and suet too, so if you have a bird platform try tempting them with these.
Water - wrens are thirsty little birds, so making sure they have access to a drink is key if you want this bird to make home in your garden. Don’t have a bird bath? A shallow dish with some water will do perfectly.
Provide lots of nesting materials - wrens will build their homes from twigs, feathers, leaves and shrubbery, so try not to clear all of your garden waste, as this will encourage male wrens to build one of their many nests nearby.
How can I attract woodpeckers to my garden
Great spotted woodpeckers are common visitors to many gardens all over the British Isles. Like many birds, they favour food, water and shelter.
Fill feeders with sunflower seeds, peanuts and fat - woodpeckers enjoy all of these and suet balls. You can also discard apple cores in your garden as woodpeckers like to peck at these to see if they can find any bugs inside.
Buy a birdhouse - this will encourage woodpeckers to set up home in your garden, if not to build their own nest, so that they can stay safe from predators.
Leave dead trees in your garden - while you may want to get rid of them they’ll have lots of bugs foraging inside that woodpeckers love, so try cutting it down to a safe height instead. They also like to nest inside tree stumps too.
How to attract goldfinches to my garden
Goldfinches are pretty little birds, with brown, yellow, red, blue and black feathers. They also make a pleasing tinkling sound.
Grow teasels - these plants may not look attractive in the colder months, but goldfinches love them when they’ve gone brown and prickly as they like to pick out the tiny seeds between the spikes. If you’re not keen on teasels, then they also love the seeds from dandelions and groundsel too.
Buy a nyjer feeder - nyjer seeds are one of goldfinches favourites. The seeds are extremely small, which is why you need a special feeder for it, otherwise they’ll just fall out and blow away.
How to attract hedgehogs to my garden
These spiky mammals regularly visit lots of gardens. During the summer months they're very active, but in the winter they go into hibernation.
Add a hedgehog house - giving hedgehogs a safe home to protect themselves from predators and harsh weather conditions, will encourage them to house themselves in your garden. If you don’t fancy spending lots of money, you can try making your own here.
Give them food and water - this is particularly useful during difficult weather conditions where food may become more scarce. Hedgehogs love juicy creepy crawlies, such as worms, caterpillars, but you can buy hedgehog food or leave out some wet cat or dog food for them, which they also like. Never feed them bread or milk as this upsets their stomachs.
Leave a gap around the garden - if your garden is enclosed by a fence or wall, try to leave a small opening big enough for a hedgehog to fit through, as they like to venture from garden to garden.
How to attract bullfinches to my garden
Bullfinches don’t tend to use bird houses or nest in people’s gardens, as they’re quite shy, but there’s no reason why you can’t add a few things to try and encourage them to set up home.
Plant a fruit tree - bullfinches enjoy the buds on fruit trees in early spring and then the fruit and berries in the later year, so planting one could entice them into your garden. If you don’t have room for a new tree, then they are partial to a few sunflower seeds. Try hanging a feeder near a hedge or some shrubbery, as this is the type of environment they like and could encourage them to be brave and fly into your garden.
Plant hedgerows - bullfinches usually live in woodlands or areas with plenty of shrubbery so that they can hide (we told you they’re shy) so planting a big bushy hedge could encourage them to pay a visit to your garden. Cherry laurel and beech grow fast and are an ideal roosting spot for bullfinches.