Wildlife Gardener

Gardening for wildlife has become quite a passion for me, although I only have a small urban garden I have still managed to fit a fair amount of bird and insect friendly flowers and plants in. Since reading an article about the decline in popular species of birds such as sparrows, blackbirds and thrushes I decided to do my bit to help my local bird population by purchasing two seed feeders, a nut feeder, a bird table and a small bird bath I was ready and waiting for my new feathered visitors, which up to that point was few and far between. After a couple of weeks of patiently waiting and watching I was beginning to loose hope, only the odd sparrow turned up every other day, though still I waited. After the fourth week success, it seemed that word had spread and dozens of sparrows flocked to my garden, amongst them birds that I had never seen in my garden such as Blue Tits, Great Tits and Green Finches. I have found Blackbirds are a lot more common now, along with two grey squirrels which constantly argue over the feeders! The success inspired my enthusiasm and I browsed on the internet to find some plants and shrubs that I could use in my garden which would be beneficial to wildlife with a little help I started to redesign my garden. As I only have a small space trees and large shrubs were out of the question, though there seemed plenty of information to help choose the right plant for the right position, which believe me being a complete amateur gardener I needed all the help I could get! I chose a Conester which is great for attracting butterflies and bees in the summer and supply red berries for the birds in autumn and early winter, Globe thistles which attract Blue Tits and finches when the turn to seed, several sorts of Cranesbill, Tickseed, Rudbeckia and Golden Marguerite which are also good for attracting a variety of insects, Clematis and honeysuckle which provide shelter and nesting sites once matured. Over the last couple of years I have really begun to enjoy gardening, being able to watch all my efforts come to life and benefit the birds in a small way, which if more and more people put wildlife friendly plants, a birdfeeder or two and perhaps a pond if room permits then this would help to make up for some of their decline and help rebuild their numbers. Even if you have no garden you could hang a bird feeder on the balcony or attach a feeder to a window, you can always make room for at least one! Make a difference to your local feathered friends: you can get a lot pleasure watching all types of birds without even leaving your home.