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Wildlife ideas for gardens


Wildlife garden ideas: turn a backyard into a natural haven

(Image credit: Jo Thompson Garden Design)

Wildlife garden ideas can bring innumerable benefits to us, our gardens and the environment, as well as wildlife. 

With many of us spending more time in our backyards, it only adds to the enjoyment when we can observe bees, butterflies, birds and other creatures enjoying  our outdoor spaces, too. 

All gardeners have an important part to play in providing valuable shelter, habitats, food and water for wildlife, no matter how small or large your plot. There are endless easy ways you can do this, so add some of the ideas below to your garden ideas and welcome creatures great and small into your backyard.

(Image credit: Annaick Guitteny / Future)

Wildlife garden ideas

From building miniature ponds to providing hedgehogs with homes and growing plants for pollinators, there’s a whole range of wildlife garden ideas. A few simple changes in the way you manage your garden can help provide habitats to support a rich variety of species.

Even if you have the tiniest plot, add some of these tips to your other small garden ideas, and you'll soon see the benefits. Your beds and borders will flourish, while creating a food chain that manages the ecosystem of your garden. 

These ideas can be used in any style of garden, from a sleek and contemporary urban plot, to a traditional country garden. ‘There is a perception that a wildlife garden means mess and that’s simply not the case – you can create many different aesthetics that can be beautiful, functional and teeming with life,’ explains garden designer Jo Thompson .

1. Grow plants for pollinators

(Image credit: Unsplash)

Plants are the single most important factor when it comes to creating a wildlife garden. Naturalistic planting design involves using a wide variety of the best performing flowers which require minimal maintenance, leaving them for wildlife to enjoy.

'Pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, hoverflies and moths rely on flowers that are rich in nectar and pollen for food,' says Simon Toomer, National Trust’s Plant Specialist. 'As they move from flower to flower they help to spread pollen and fertilize your plants, so it’s well worth looking after them – even in a small garden.'

‘As a general rule, the best plants for pollinators are single-flowering, open varieties, and not highly bred cultivars or multi-petalled varieties,’ explains Mick Lavelle, garden writer and author of The Illustrated Practical Guide to Wildlife Gardening .

To give the best chance, when planning your flower bed ideas, grow different types of pollinator-friendly plants so that there’s something in bloom for them all year round. 

'The bigger the diversity of flowering plants the greater the number of insects will benefit and the more birds will come in to eat them,' explains garden designer Cheryl Cummings . 

If you want to know how to attract butterflies, in particular, them tube-shaped flowers, such as foxgloves, are ideal for  their long tongues as well as for long-tongued bees such as the garden bumblebee.

2. Build a bee house 

(Image credit: Mandy Buckland/ Greencube Design)

All wildlife needs a place to shelter and one of the best wildlife garden ideas is to provide safe spaces where they can hide, nest and overwinter. This can range from simply leaving a pile of logs in a quiet corner or the garden to building your own bespoke bee house 

‘Incorporate a bee house for overwintering pollinators, which can become a focal point in itself,’ suggests garden designer Mandy Buckland of Greencube Design . 

You might think of bees as living in hives in large colonies, serving a queen and producing honey – but actually only about 10% of the bee species do this. The other 90% are solitary bees and don’t produce honey, although they are still very important as pollinators.

You can give solitary bees a hand by installing a bee house in your garden – which is where the females will lay their eggs – and then ‘plug’ the ends of the tubes with mud, plant hairs or leaves (depending on the species of bee).

3. Add a wildlife pond

(Image credit: Cheryl Cummings Garden Design)

Water is essential to all life and garden pond ideas attract a wide variety of insects and animals, and are valuable habitats for a multitude of aquatic species, so are wonderful wildlife garden ideas.

‘Birds will come to ponds and other water features to drink and bathe right through the year; in spring the frogs will lay eggs, while in summer you might see swimming newts, or damselflies and dragonflies zooming over the water,’ says Cheryl Cummings.

It doesn't have to be a big pond, but for best results, position it in a sunny location, away from overhanging trees, plant at least two thirds of its perimeter to enhance its wildlife value, and pond plants to oxygenate the water. 

If your backyard doesn’t have space for a pond, 'a bird bath is a good alternative, just make sure that the water is full and clean,’ explains Jo Thompson.

Leaving out a tray of water that you refresh regularly even will be of great help to local wildlife – especially if you put some pebbles in it to give insects like bees a dry place to perch while they drink.

4. Avoid using chemical pesticides 

(Image credit: Jo Thompson Garden Design)

Insects are the essential backbone of life in the garden, so one of the most important wildlife garden ideas is to avoid using pesticides, which can be highly toxic to beneficial insects. 

‘Removing chemicals from your garden will ensure that our finely tuned eco-system will have the opportunity to find its natural equilibrium,’ adds Jo Thompson.

By creating a delicate balance between bugs, pests and their predators, you can improve the health and vitality of your garden, too.

The number one threat to pollinators are neonicotinoids – a type of pesticide which is highly toxic to bees, butterflies and other insects. When applied they spread throughout the entire plant – including to the pollen and nectar, and they can also persist in soil for years. Using pesticides to get rid of insects can also have a knock-on effect on birds and other wildlife, which rely on these for food.

5. Use natural pest control 

(Image credit: Amateur Gardening)

Instead of using pesticides, there are a number of ways you can garden more organically and control pests in a natural way that are also wonderful ways to create an eco-friendly garden.

Here are a few alternative methods of pest control that are good wildlife garden ideas:

Hand picking

Although somewhat tedious, removing infestations by hand is a simple and effective method of pest control. Although not always practical where you have hundreds of tiny pests (like aphids), it works well for larger insects, slugs and snails. Unfortunately you’ll need to dispatch the pests after removing them, otherwise they’ll soon be back eating your plants.

Companion planting

Companion planting involves growing plants close together where one or both have beneficial effects on the other. For example, French marigolds emit a strong odor that deters whitefly and blackfly, so can be used to keep these bugs away from your tomato plants. Garlic, chives and alliums have a similar effect on aphids, so pop a few in among your roses to keep them safe.

Natural predation

Nurture an environment for natural pest control, create habitats for garden wildlife and they’ll often repay the favor by preying on pests. Birds, frogs, toads, slow worms, and hedgehogs will all make a meal out of your local slug population, while insects like ladybirds and hoverflies will take care of the likes of aphids, mites and mealybugs.

6. Create a hedgehog house 

(Image credit: Photo by Alexas Fotos on Unsplash)

Hedgehogs are the gardener's friend, consuming huge amounts of pests, so why not build a hedgehog house in a far corner of your backyard? 

Stack some old logs leaving a gap in the middle and cover them with leafy branches in a place where they won't be disturbed. Next spring, you may be lucky enough to have a whole family living in your garden, complete with a litter of hoglets.

If you're planning a bonfire, too, leave building it until the very last minute, as piles of wood and leaves are extremely appealing shelters to small creatures.  

7. Feed the birds

(Image credit: Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on Unsplash)

Bird feeders are great garden wildlife ideas as a way to encourage birds into your garden, and they also provide them with vital support over winter when food is scarce. 

If you’re feeling crafty, why not make an up-cycled bird feeder from materials you probably have lying around at home?

Early fall is a vital time for feeding birds as they need help to them get through the coming winter, and there are things to consider when feeding birds in winter. High energy foods such as fat balls are ideal but always remove the mesh bags, as these can trap tiny feet. 

Don't forget that a ready supply of fresh water is even more important than food – especially in winter. Top up bird baths daily and you could be saving lots of lives. 

8. Plant the right flowers

(Image credit: RHS)

The great news is that often what is attractive to wildlife – bright berries, a lovely fragrance or abundant blooms – is also extremely attractive to gardeners.

Sunflowers

Find out how to grow sunflowers to fill the garden with these cheery, yellow flowers. Look out for the branching options that make great temporary hedges. Plant at the back of borders where the seedheads can be allowed to ripen, attracting masses of wild birds including tits and finches.

Viper's bugloss 

Also known as echium, this attractive native plant has 60cm tall spikes of bright blue flowers. Easily grown from seed, it blooms from June to September and is ideal planted at the back of a herb garden. The multiple flower heads are thick with nectar and attract a huge range of different butterflies.

Pyracantha 

Ideal for wildlife gardens this shrub has glossy dark green leaves, pretty flowers in spring and is covered in stunning red, orange or yellow berries in fall. Hedgehogs love this evergreen shrub as it has thorny branches that arch to the ground, providing a year-round source of shelter.

9. Introduce fragrance and color with lavender 

(Image credit: Future / James Robinson)

This classic favorite among cottage garden plants has pretty blue-green foliage covered in masses of fragrant lilac blooms from June to August. 

Once you get to grips with how to grow lavender, you'll be wanting to dot the fragrant plants all over the garden and is an addition to your wildlife garden ideas that has numerous benefits and uses.

Plant in full sun and prune after flowering to keep in shape. Lavender attracts a huge variety of honey bees and bumble bees. Plant a few different varieties to extend the flowering period.

10. Add a balcony bird feeder

(Image credit: Future / Holly Jolliffe)

If you have no backyard but a balcony garden, you can still enjoy watching all manner of colorful wild birds, simply by investing in a bird feeder. 

Fill it with peanuts or hulled sunflower seeds for a high-energy, low-mess treat that will attract a wide range of different species including blue tits and robins. Clean feeders regularly with hot soapy water and dry thoroughly before refilling.

11. Delay garden maintenance

(Image credit: Mandy Buckland/ Greencube Design)

A few simple changes in the way you manage your garden can help provide habitats to support a rich variety of species.

‘Avoid being over zealous in deadheading some of your garden edging or border plants in fall and wait until spring, with the obvious exception of those that are likely to self seed and become a nuisance,’ advises Mick Lavelle. 

Leaving seed heads on plants provides food for birds and insects during the leaner months, or allow nettles, one of the best sources of food for caterpillars and some butterfly species, to grow in unseen areas, suggests Jo Thompson. 

‘Also leave the lawn to grow, allow its weeds to flower and insects will feast on the banquet they provide,’ adds Cheryl Cummings.

Simply leave the mower in the shed until the end of June, or at least reduce the frequency of mowing to once every four weeks. This will allow all sorts of flowers such as red and white clovers, daisy, self-heal and dandelion to spring up in your lawn, which the bees and butterflies will love.

12. Plant purple flowers

(Image credit: Polly Eltes / Future)

It’s worth bearing in mind that among the best flowers that attract bees are purple blooms, as bees can see the color purple more clearly than any other color.

They are often attracted to the purple or blue flowers often seen in a sensory garden, and if you are looking into beekeeping for beginners, then nectar rich purple lilac, lavender, salvias and perovskia are among the many pollinator friendly plants to plan near to your bee hives.

13. Instal a bird box

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Garden birds are great at slug and snail control, plus there’s nothing more relaxing and enjoyable than sitting outside on a sunny day, listening to a chorus of birdsong and watching winged visitors alighting on branches.

If you have the room, install a bird box to give your local feathered friends somewhere to raise their young. Bird boxes are best installed in late February before the nesting season gets going, but you could always put one up now for next year.

November is also the perfect time to clear out existing bird boxes and position new ones.

14. Make a bug hotel

(Image credit: Mandy Buckland/ Greencube Design)

There are many kinds of bugs that can help you keep pests at bay in the garden – such as ladybirds, which eat aphids, and centipedes that prey on soil-dwelling pests such as mites, baby snails, and slugs. The rewilding garden trend has seen many gardeners put the control of pests back in the hands of nature.

‘You can get creative about how you reuse other natural materials to create dry spaces for bugs and other wildlife,’ suggests Jo Thompson.

Learning how to make a bug hotel will provide plenty of hidey-holes for useful bugs, and it’s a great way to use up materials you might have lying around. An old wooden pallet makes a great base, and you can then fill it with various materials such as cardboard tubes, old flowerpots, straw, pinecones, bits of bark and bundles of twigs. Top it off with old roof tiles, turf, logs or a pile of leaves.

15. Include native trees and shrubs

(Image credit: Getty Images)

‘Native hedges can provide important wildlife habitats,’ explains John Wyer, CEO of Bowles & Wyer .

If space permits, large trees and shrubs will provide perches and nesting sites for many birds. ‘Those that produce seeds or fruit are often a valuable source of food for many birds in fall or winter, too,’ explains Mick Lavelle. 

If you are after quick results, you can plant some of the best fast growing shrubs to provide food and habitats for wildlife, or evergreen shrubs to give them a place to shelter throughout the year 

16. Plant a wildflower meadow

(Image credit: The Garden Design Company/ Mark Lord)

A wildflower meadow is a wonderful garden wildlife idea.  

Preparation of wildflower meadows is key, explains Rob Jones, director of The Garden Design Company . 

‘You need to consider whether it will be annual or perennial, and different wildflower mixes will suit different soil conditions and aspects,' he adds.

There is the option to use wildflower seeds, plug plants or wildflower turf. You could also learn how to make wildflower seed bombs.

Wildflower meadows are best sown in fall, or early spring as a second best, Rob advises. 

How do you plan a wildlife garden?

Diversity is one of the key things to consider in a successful wildlife garden. Plant a range of flowers, trees, climbers and shrubs that bloom at different times, and ensure you include plenty of evergreen plants for cover.

Hedge your bets and plant a mixture of shrubs along the edges of all your boundaries where possible. Hedgerows provide food and nesting sites for birds, shelter for small mammals, green corridors to allow wildlife to move safely from garden to garden and a host of other benefits.

Avoid pesticides as these can kill many of the beneficial insects, birds and hedgehogs that will help you to create a natural balance on your plot. Instead, rely on permaculture gardening, which will help you easily create a garden that operates like nature does, relying little on extra resources you need to buy, bring in or add – such as fertilizers and watering systems.

Finally, recycle kitchen and garden waste on your compost heap. As well as creating useful food for your plants, compost heaps can shelter a variety of interesting animals – including slow worms that get rid of slugs.

What are good wildlife flowers?

There is an endless choice of flowers that are good for a wildlife garden. Include some of the following to provide food for essential pollinators, as well as habitats for some beneficial insects:

This only brushes the surface of the range of plants ideal for a wildlife garden and the more diverse the mix in your backyard, the better for a healthy garden, and healthy wiidlife.

Rachel is senior content editor, and writes and commissions gardening content for homesandgardens.com, Homes & Gardens magazine, and its sister titles Period Living Magazine and Country Homes & Interiors. She has written for lifestyle magazines for many years, with a particular focus on gardening, historic houses and arts and crafts, but started out her journalism career in BBC radio, where she enjoyed reporting on and writing programme scripts for all manner of stories. Rachel then moved into regional lifestyle magazines, where the topics she wrote about, and people she interviewed, were as varied and eclectic as they were on radio. Always harboring a passion for homes and gardens, she jumped at the opportunity to work on The English Home and The English Garden magazines for a number of years, before joining the Period Living team, then the wider Homes & Gardens team, specializing in gardens.

Wildlife garden ideas – 17 ways to turn gardens into a haven for wildlife

Welcome wildlife into your garden to embrace a deeper appreciation for nature. However big or small your outdoor space our wildlife garden ideas can inspire your planting to provide a plentiful refuge for wildlife.

With some thoughtful planning you could soon find your outdoor space teaming with insects, birds, small mammals and more.

Whether you live in the countryside or in an urban area, you can still create a wildlife haven in your garden by making a few small adjustments that will make your patch irresistible to natures good guys. As well as being a real spirit-lifter, this will have the advantage of cutting down on undesirables such as slugs, snails and aphids. From brewing your own compost to building a pond, here's how to make nature go wild for your garden idea.

Wildlife garden ideas

'The longer I garden, the more important the multifaceted quality of a plant is' says renowned  gardening expert Sarah Raven, on the ‘Grow, Cook, Eat, Arrange’ Podcast series.

'A plant is not just there to deliver incredible pleasure to us, which is very, very important and what gardens are primarily for in a way, but they do have a bigger, wider role too. Just sit and watch a plant. If you've got bees and butterflies visiting, it's almost certain they're not visiting an empty bar, they're finding something in there.'

1. Forget about perfection

(Image credit: Grass Seed Online)

The fewer chemicals you use the more attractive your garden will become to wildlife. Use organic seed and fertilisers. Allow long grass to grow in certain areas where flora and fauna will thrive.

An overly manicured garden will look immaculate but it will certainly lose much of the dynamism wildlife brings to a garden.

2. Hang a squirrel picnic table

(Image credit: Etsy)

Give your garden's furry friends a great place to snack for lunch with a Squirrel picnic table hung from a garden fence. Just add some nuts and seeds or even a bowl of water and watch them frolic to rest their weary paws.

Buy now: Squirrel Picnic table, £14.00, Etsy

3. Serve up a feast for feathered friends

(Image credit: Future PLC/David Giles )

Put out additional bird food during the spring breeding season to encourage birds to flock to your garden. If you have cats in the household ensure the bird feeders are placed out of immediately danger, because birds won't settle if they feel threatened.

During the spring and summer, when birds are feeding their young, put out foods high in protein, such as sunflower seeds and soaked raisins and sultanas. In autumn and winter, switch to high-energy foods with more fat, such as kitchen scraps.

The RSPB has a great range including bird seed and bird food mix feeders, peanut and suet nibble feeders, suet feeders for cakes and balls for the wild birds in your garden

4. Plant insect-friendly flowers

(Image credit: Future PLC/Mark Bolton)

Nature’s prize pollinators will make an, um, beeline for your garden if you plant a pretty mix of flowers – think alliums, lavender and catmint – and cultivate a fragrant herb garden with rosemary, sage, mint and chives.

You can also get your garden buzzing by packing in as many pollinator-friendly flowers, such as marigolds, cornflowers and geraniums (the RHS has a full list here ), as possible. Avoid plants with double or multi-petalled flowers as they may lack nectar and pollen and insects may have difficulty in gaining access.

5. Leave your garden to grow

(Image credit: Future PLC/Mark Bolton)

Cutting back on cutting back is possibly the easiest way to bring wildlife into your garden. If you have a lawn, resist the urge to mow it, as long grass is important for butterflies to lay their eggs in. Leave tidying up borders and shrubs until late winter or early spring, to provide shelter for insects throughout winter.

Climbers such as ivy will provide a protective habitat all year round and a late source of autumn nectar for insects, and late winter fruit.

6. Open a bee hotel

(Image credit: Curpinol)

In addition to the flowers to attract bees, welcome them to stay for longer with the addition of a bee hotel. A simple DIY garden hack you can make a bee hotel for your own backyard – fill it with fruits and natural filler and they'll be so comfortable, they’ll never want to check out.

Read more: How to make your own bee hotel – the best way to welcome bees to gardens

7. Plant specifically for bees

(Image credit: Future PLC/Alun Callender)

The plight of the bee has been greatly acknowledged in recent years, and for good reason! Bees play a crucial role in our eco system, producing a third of the food we eat – we'd be lost without the humble bumble bee. Our own gardens can play an importance role in nurturing the bee population, so how can we encourage bees to enjoy our gardens? Colourful planting, that's how. Because bees see flowers in ultra-violet, a key way to incite them into your garden is by planting more blue and violet flowers.

8. Entice the butterflies

(Image credit: Future PLC/Colin Poole)

These fluttery characters just love to drink down nectar-rich flowers in sunny spots. Plant out your garden with a pretty mix of flowers such as buddleja, wallflower and lavender – not only will this give your patch a colour boost, but the butterflies will soon flock over to yours. And be sure to leave some fallen fruit at the bottom of trees as the butterflies will feast on over-ripe plums, apples and pears.

9. Make a watery world for wildlife

(Image credit: Future PLC/Polly Eltes)

A pond, or even just a container of water, will attract wildlife such as frogs and newts to your garden. If you're overwhelmed with slimy slugs and snails, enlisting the services of Frogs and Toads is a great way to keep them at bay. These hungry amphibians are spectacular at keeping down the slug population, meaning no more chewed-up home-grown fruit and veg and no decimated plants.

Ensure that you keep the pond clean and control algae – you can do this without harmful chemicals with barley straw pond cleaners. Give it a sloping edge so animals can access the water easily.

10. Create a compost heap

(Image credit: Future PLC/Mark Bolton)

By recycling kitchen scraps – always uncooked unless you want a bunch of unsavoury rats to show up – you’re doing your bit for the environment by helping to cut down on landfill use and pollution, as well as providing a yummy meal for hedgehogs, toads and slow worms.

You don’t need anything fancy to get going – a heap of vegetable peelings, grass cuttings, old teabags and coffee grounds covered with an old rug will soon rot down to a lovely nutrient-rich mix you can use to power up your garden. You can also buy pre-made wooden composter boxes or fashion something from anything you have lying around in the garden shed.

Here's how to make compost to feed your garden for free.

11. Swap your fence for a hedgerow

(Image credit: Future PLC/Polly Eltes)

If you’re keen to get more wildlife in your garden replace ordinary fences with cultivated hedgerows. Create a living hedge that will not only be a visual treat it will provide wildlife with food and shelter. Native plants such as blackthorn, hawthorn, field maple or hazel will provide nesting sites and berries, nuts and hips will encourage hungry wildlife in wintertime.

12. Introduce a bird box for nesting

(Image credit: Future PLC/Emma Mitchell)

Summer is the perfect time to put up a bird box. Make sure it’s in a sheltered spot, out of reach of predators, and attract a variety of species by using a range of feeding techniques. Even a small garden idea can welcome birds with a small box.

13. Pile up logs

(Image credit: Future PLC/Polly Eltes)

Stack logs and twigs from your spring clean to create a wildlife corner. Keep a pile of logs in an undisturbed spot in your garden to provide shelter for insects and mammals. If a hedgehog makes a home there, it will feed on all your slugs and snails. This is an added bonus if you're keen to keep them away from your new crop of plants.

14. Appeal to Hedgehogs

(Image credit: Garden Trading)

The humble hedgehog is another prize slug and snail muncher, who has the added plus of being super-cute. When it comes to encouraging one to set up home in your garden, be sure to keep areas wild, with copious amounts of leaf litter and a few logs, or treat your spiky visitors to a hedgehog house. They will also happily take up residence near a nutritious compost heap.

Feed hedgehogs by leaving any leftover dried fruit or cooked veg out in your garden for them to graze on. But the advice is make sure to avoid bread and milk, as these items can make hedgehogs ill.

15. Keep your guests hydrated

(Image credit: Future PLC/Holly Jolliffe)

While a pond will provide a source of water it's best to add less overwhelming source of water, for the insects and small mammals that can't swim – so may be fearful of a pond. For an inviting place to stay hydrated add a birdbath to your garden.

' Provide water for pollinators using a shallow dish filled with stones/marbles and water to provide a safe water source' advises Shannen Godwin from J Parker’s , Adding, 'A simple bird bath will give the birds somewhere to bathe as well as doubling as a water supply. '

16. Welcome nature in an urban setting

(Image credit: Future PLC/Colin Poole)

'The biggest thing for urban gardeners to do is to try and give cover back to birds' explained Arthur Parkinson, who trained at the Royal Botanical Gardens, on the ‘Grow, Cook, Eat, Arrange’ Podcast series. 'During my lifetime I've witnessed, particularly in my hometown, a complete massacre of hedges in gardens. Hedges provide birds shelter and a place to nest.'

17. Make a bat cave

(Image credit: Future PLC/Lucinda Symons)

They get a bad press but bats are super useful for our gardens. 'Did you know that attracting bats to your garden is one of the safest and most efficient methods for natural insect control?' asks Shannen Godwin. 'One little brown bat can eat 1,200 insects per hour! A great bat-attracting
method is to build a bat house to provide a warm cosy shelter for the creatures.'

Use a rough, nontoxic wood (such as plywood or cedar) to construct a box-cum-bat cave. The rough texture of these woods makes it easier for bats to climb in and out of the house.

Give your garden an update with 29 easy garden ideas – simple, low-maintenance updates to transform your outdoor space.

How do you make a wildlife friendly garden?

All the steps above are how you make a wildlife friendly garden. Providing shelter and food are the two crucial ways to make wildlife feel at home in your garden. Encouraging wildlife into your garden is a winner all-round. They can help out your garden plants and you would be doing a good deed for all those creatures in need of a home or food throughout the winter.

Birds, butterflies and bees are pretty to look at and help improve your garden’s production. Encouraging hedgehogs, bats and frogs is an ideal solution for pest control, reducing the need for pesticides.

'If you miss the heartbeat that is the bees, the butterflies and the birds, you’re missing the real status quo of what a garden should be' says Arthur Parkinson.

'If you grow a red millet, you'll get a goldfinch hopefully, or a house sparrow. Even if you grow a single dahlia, you may see a butterfly and a bee. For me, when I look out the window and see wildlife thriving off my garden, I do find a huge appetite to continue gardening.'

(Image credit: Future PLC/ Claire Lloyd Davies)

What plants are good for wildlife?

What plants are good for wildlife in terms of encouraging them into the garden. To offer expert advice we asked J Parker’s Shannen Godwin, and she said the following:

Bee Friendly Plants

Ladybug Friendly Plants

'Ladybugs eat two things: insect pests and pollen, and there are several pollen plants that ladybugs like, including:'

(Image credit: Amateur Gardening)

Bird friendly plants

'You can plant different shrubs/trees/flowers that will either provide food for birds in the form of seeds, berries or nectar,' Shannen explains. 'Also giving shelter and warmth under dense foliage or they will attract insects which birds and other wildlife can feed off.'

Here are some of our top choices:

Frog Friendly Plants

'Toads and female frogs usually spend winter on land, under rockery stones or in a log pile' explains Shannen. Before going on to recommend the following rock plants:

5 trending ideas for decorating the garden in 2020

We collected all the stylish ideas in a short video. See if you don't have time to read

1 Abandoning strict flower bed shapes

The world's landscape designers and gardeners are moving away from sharply defined flower beds and strictly distributed areas for each flower. At exhibitions, you can increasingly find examples of garden design in a natural, natural style. As planned, the site should look neat and well-groomed, but at the same time, as if it was not planted on purpose, but simply maintained the original untouched natural beauty. nine0007

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2 Using wild plants

Another interesting trend of recent years is planting flowers and shrubs from the wild. They have several important benefits.

Try walking around and picking new plants for your garden. Professional gardeners often use ferns, bluebells, tansy, forget-me-nots, periwinkle, honeysuckle, wild grapes, lungwort, backache.

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3 Casual recreation areas

Massive sets of garden furniture, which were bought as a single set and placed in the middle of the garden with the addition of a barbecue and an inflatable rubber pool, are gradually fading into the past. It is worth paying attention to carpets carelessly thrown on the lawn, pillows, light canopies suspended from a tree branch, wicker swings. Such recreation areas are mobile, you can move them at your discretion, clean them in the house or, conversely, supplement them with something before the arrival of guests.

It is also worth looking at the Eastern tradition and creating a trestle bed. This is a wooden podium, sometimes with a canopy, on which a mattress and pillows are placed or a low table is set for serving tea. nine0007

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4 Unobtrusive decor

This year, you should give up tire swans, bright plastic flamingos or ceramic garden gnomes . Try to hide inconspicuous and interesting decorations in the garden. For example, in tall grass you can hide several lanterns that will beautifully illuminate it in the evening, among the branches of a large beautiful tree, hang several ribbons and bells, a do-it-yourself dream catcher. You can add bright accents: paint the stones on the garden path in different colors, drill small holes in the wooden fence and insert glass balls into them. nine0007

Instagram: @hhobby_landdesign

Instagram: @hhobby_landdesign

Instagram: @hhobby_landdesign

Instagram: @hhobby_landdesign

5 More free space

This year there is no need to carefully consider and plant every square meter. This significantly saves time and effort, allows you to enjoy the rest instead of continuous watering and weeding, and as a result you get a spacious sunny area. The only more or less obligatory plants are shrubs for decorating the borders of the site, a neat dense lawn and, possibly, decorations around the perimeter of the house. You can plant several trees that will bloom beautifully and provide shade, or make a flower clearing. nine0007

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Prepared by

Maria Revina

Dacha Plants

Plants for a corner of wildlife in the garden. How to create a wild corner of nature in the country. nine0001

Today, the culture of gardening has risen to such a level that the enthusiasm for more and more exotic plants cools down. We expect comfort and tranquility from the garden, enjoying native landscapes that we have loved since childhood.

Create a wilderness area in your garden. Grow plants that are almost lost in the surrounding landscape, they will delight you every day with their touching discreet beauty, give the garden transparency and fragrant moisture of forests and meadows.

To begin with, a few rules for the successful resettlement of "savages":

1. Bluebell

Can you imagine a meadow without this beloved flower? What about a forest clearing flooded with sun and transparent blue heads playing in the wind? Do not miss the opportunity to let them into the garden. Bluebells will bloom beautifully and grow in curtains. They can be planted in partial shade, but so that they are well lit for 5 hours. nine0007

2. Fern

So familiar in every forest, but never ceases to amaze with the luxurious beauty of its dark green carved wai. It will decorate a shady corner of the garden, make it mysterious and magical. Due to their height of 50-70 cm, ferns form a decorative screen covering a fence or wall; absolutely all wild plants look natural against their background.

Planting can be done in autumn in damp cool weather or in very early spring as soon as wai appear from the ground. Prepare the earth light, moisture-permeable, a mixture of peat, soddy soil and compost in equal proportions is ideal. Water ferns abundantly, especially in the first months after transplanting. nine0007

3. Lily-of-the-valley

Well, what forest corner would do without these porcelain bells that fill everything around with a delicate aroma! They are listed in the Red Book, so we will do a good deed by refusing to buy flowers plucked from the forest and multiplying their population in our garden.

They should be planted in autumn, in September-November. An ideal place for them would be a site with neutral rich soil under young trees or bushes. There will be moisture and enough light (lilies of the valley do not bloom in the shade). Over time, lilies of the valley occupy vast areas, so if you want to limit their range, take care of this when planting. nine0007

4. Primroses

The first heralds of warmth look natural both in flowerbeds and flowerpots, but in our garden they will grow in forest clearings, delighting the eye with multicolor. Plant bulbs of muscari, crocuses, blueberries, hazel grouses, snowdrops, botanical tulips and daffodils in the foreground of the compositions - their flowers will organically fit into the general view of the spring forest corner.

Plan planting in the autumn, having prepared in advance well-permeable soil, rich in organic matter, neutral or slightly acidic. Choose sunny places where there is no stagnation of melt and rain water. The planting depth of the bulbs is a multiple of three of its diameters - this rule is suitable for everyone. nine0007

5. Veronica

This shade-tolerant plant will make you bend down to the ground and admire its delicate blue flowers with a white center and long eyelashes for a long time. The flowers, collected in a miniature spikelet, bloom gradually, extending the blue glow of the garden from June to September.

It grows on any soil, tolerates drought, but responds gratefully to watering. Early in the spring or already on wet days in September, plant forest veronica or hybrid varieties - both of them will decorate the garden with natural discreet beauty. nine0007

You can continue this list with hellebore, and primrose, and lungwort - give free rein to your design preferences. But stay away from too large and bright colors, take a closer look at the natural forest, draw ideas from it - and your forest corner will be just as natural and cute.

Grassland plants

1. Chamomile

It is impossible to imagine a meadow without this flower, sung in verses, fairy tales and medical reference books! Delicate, cheerful, touching - all the epithets are not able to describe this flower familiar from childhood. Chamomile can be found literally everywhere - on the edge of the forest, and on the wasteland, and along the banks of the stream. Dig up a young bush in spring or autumn in September and transfer to the garden. Over time, it will give life to hundreds of new plants, making your summer cottage more and more like a flowering meadow. nine0007

2. Oregano (mother)

This plant is appreciated by gardeners, cooks and herbalists. The first - for her slender tall bushes with beautiful purple flowers, collected in an airy inflorescence. The second - for its genetic connection with the spice oregano and the same fragrant leaves that can be used as a seasoning for meat, fish, and pizza. Still others prepare medicinal teas and tinctures from it that can heal many diseases.

Oregano loves sunny places with any garden soil, propagates both by dividing the bush and by seeds. Plant the first plants in early spring, and then it will be sown throughout the meadow, filling it with an indescribable spicy aroma.

3. Meadow geranium

Natural meadow gives us bright blue flowers with a white eye, peeking out from below from tall grasses and plants, they make the palette multi-tiered and rich. This wild flower with carved deeply dissected leaves is an excellent partner for daisies, cornflowers, and poppies. If you transfer geraniums to a garden with richer soil than in nature, the bushes will grow lush and juicy, and the colors will become even brighter. She loves neutral soil, light, saturated with moisture. Take care of transplanting either in early spring or in autumn during the September rains. nine0007

4. Carnation grass

Its bright flowers with five carved dark pink petals cannot go unnoticed. In the people it is also called "watch" - if you turn its cup, the petals will turn, like clock hands.

In the fall, collect the pods of ripe seeds and scatter them on the lawn. Do not miss the moment - overripe boxes are already empty, so it is better to collect them a little earlier and dry them in the sun, then collecting the seeds.

5. Mouse Peas

Clusters of blue-violet flowers are a treat for bees and bumblebees, so your meadow will buzz like a real one. Seeds ripened in small pods are very fond of birds. But that's not all - the earth will also be grateful to this guest, because the growths on the roots of the plant become a refuge for a huge number of microorganisms. They are natural nitrogen generators that improve soil properties.

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