Did you know that even the most manicured of lawns is a welcome habitat for some creatures. But what if you wanted to attract even more wildlife to your garden? What kind of spaces do you have to create in order to encourage creatures to feed, rest and reproduce in your garden? What habitats do you already have that you can make even more appealing for new beasts and birds? The size of space that you have is obviously the limiting factor to what you can create, but even the smallest of spaces can make someone very happy. Let’s look at a couple of options that are very easy to erect or create.

Most gardens have a lawn, but fear not, you don’t have to let it all go in order to create a mecca for small beings. You can keep your lovely well-maintained space, consider letting just one small section grow up a bit in order provide food and shelter to certain animals. Maybe you could create a wild flower meadow instead by haphazardly throwing around seed bombs or if you have green fingers you could cultivate your own wild flowers from seeds in pots and then plant them out. Either way, remember to never use chemicals on wild flowers as the animals you are trying to encourage to frequent your new meadow could be harmed. Continue reading →

You want to add nesting boxes to your garden but you don’t know much about it. Fear not, we have you covered, read on to find out more. Many different types of birds use nesting boxes and the type of box that you put up depends on the type of bird that frequents your garden. Smaller birds tend to go for boxes with a small hole in the front of it that they can just about squeeze through. This helps them feel safe and secure from any predators that might be lurking about. Other birds like robins or blackbirds want boxes that have open fronts. You can’t please them all!

You don’t need to put anything in the boxes to attract occupants, but you should remember at the end of the summer to clean all old nests out of the boxes as some bird species won’t use the box again if it still has last season’s nest in it. You can, if you want, purchase camera kits that fit inside nest boxes which allow you to witness the normally very private event of chicks being reared. Continue reading →

You have set up the bird feeder in front of your kitchen window; you have sourced the best anti-rodent devices money can buy; you have painstakingly filled the feeders with a plethora of different types of seeds that the shop assistant assured you ALL birds would love, and you have strung up fat balls that now just resemble dodgy-looking Chinese lanterns.  You’re sitting quietly, drinking your morning cup of coffee and yet there are no colourful, feathery little birdies flapping round, enjoying your offerings. Chances are you have fallen foul of the most common mistakes that novices make when trying to attract wild birds to their garden feeders. We will address these simple errors below and before you know it you will have more bird poop to clean up than you ever thought possible. Continue reading →