So you want to make your garden more hedgehog friendly, or maybe just more wildlife friendly in general?! You're in the right place! Since gaining a garden I've spent the last couple of years trying to make it as wildlife friendly as possible and, having discovered we have visiting hedgehogs, as hedgehog friendly as possible! I feel like I've used the word "possible" and "friendly" too many times for one paragraph...
It's not hard to make a garden more wildlife friendly - in fact a lot of the time it actually involves LESS EFFORT than keeping your garden super neat and tidy! You don't need a big garden, any size garden can be a haven for wildlife! You can find some really easy examples below:
1 - Leave some long areas of grass - this is such an easy one! Choose some areas of your lawn that you will leave to grow - you can be creative! Think mowed paths through long grassy meadows, or shapes, or a patch of longer grass at the back. These areas of long grass will attract invertebrates, which will in turn attract birds and other animals. They also provide a safe space to hide and rest for small mammals, such as shrews and voles, as well as amphibians such as frogs and newts.
2 - Let some weeds grow - you might have heard the phrase "a weed is just a flower in the wrong place" but if you want a wildlife friendly garden then it is a flower in the RIGHT place. Although often overlooked, weeds provide nutrients and habitats for many native species and are an important part of nature friendly gardens. For example, peacock butterfly caterpillars thrive on common nettles and cinnabar moth caterpillars live on ragwort! You don't have to let weeds grow all over your garden but you could allow some to grow in patches of your garden which are dedicated to wildlife. Amphibians love foraging amongst the weeds!
3 - Leave fallen leaves - another easy one, it gives you permission to be lazy and not rake! Fallen leaves will degrade naturally and add nutrients back into the soil. They also make an excellent place for invertebrates and other animals to hide and live under. Consider leaving some in situ and collecting some up and putting them into piles for larger animals such as hedgehogs to make use of!
4 - Let dead wood lie - don't take old wood or hedge trimmings to the tip - pile them up in a quiet corner of the garden instead and provide a lovely habitat for hedgehogs, frogs, newts and lots of invertebrates! Not only is this easy to do but saves you a trip out and the back of your car from getting dirty!
5 - Trim hedges and trees in the winter - let them grow in the spring & summer, creating great nesting spaces for birds. This also saves you a summer job! Sit back, relax and enjoy the birdsong!
Hopefully some of these tips have inspired you to make changes in your own gardens, especially as doing these things is actually EASIER than the alternative! Another important thing to remember is not to use pesticides, insecticides or slug pellets in your garden where possible, as these are not good for wildlife. Organic growing may mean that some of your plants are subject to a little nibbling here and there but try to find joy in sharing your plants and veggie plot with the wildlife in your garden!
Now for some more wildlife friendly gardening tips with a little more effort....
6 - Create a pond - Or adapt it if you already have one! There are many ways to make a pond wildlife friendly but at the bare minimum you want to have entry and exits routes (think ramps or slabs into and out of the pond in case wildlife falls in), no fish (fish can eat other wildlife and frogspawn etc, they also increase nutrient levels creating more algae), no pumps or filters (wildlife can get caught inside - a true wildlife pond doesn't need a filter), and plants (go for a variety of native, wildlife friendly plants).
7 - Water bowls - Leave bowls of water out for wildlife, especially in warm weather. They prefer rain water to tap water where possible!
8 - Grow a wild flower meadow - or
create flower borders. Try to go for native plants where possible and choose flowers which are good for pollinators!
9 - Create a compost heap - If you have space for an open sided one then even better! Compost heaps provide food for invertebrates, which in turn provide food for mammals and amphibians. They also make nice nesting areas for amphibians, reptiles, small mammals and hedgehogs - be careful when turning your compost, ideally don't use a garden fork and check for nesting wildlife first!
10 - Install nest boxes - bird boxes, insect houses and hedgehog homes make great additions to any wildlife friendly garden! These provide even more resting and nesting spaces for wildlife and if positioned correctly can be very successful!
These are just ten ways of creating a more wildlife friendly garden and there are loads more things you can do! At the bottom of this blog I have put a list of links for more wildlife friendly ideas and more detail on creating ponds, wildflower meadows and installing nesting boxes!
If you follow me on social media you may have seen that I recently built a nesting box for my visiting hedgehogs! You can buy hedgehog boxes online or you can have a go yourself by following some simple guidelines (below these photos). The most important thing is making sure the box is a good size and that the entrance tunnel is big enough for hedgehogs but small enough to keep predators out!
If you've been inspired to make your garden more wildlife friendly then please do have a go and share the results with me on social media! I love to see what people are doing for nature and love getting inspirations for my own wildlife garden! If you've enjoyed this blog then why not check out some of my art, which has been inspired by our amazing British wildlife! www.silverpasta.co.uk/shop
Links for more information on making your garden wildlife friendly:
Royal Horticultural Society - Making a wildlife pond https://www.rhs.org.uk/ponds/wildlife-ponds
Royal Horticultural Society - Creating wildflower meadows https://www.rhs.org.uk/lawns/creating-wildflower-meadows
British Hedgehog Society - Making a Hedgehog Nest Box https://www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk/hedgehog-homes/
People's Trust for Endangered Species - Hedgehog Street https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/
RSPB - Creating a wildlife friendly garden https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/advice/gardening-for-wildlife/creating-a-wildlife-friendly-garden/
The Wildlife Trusts - building a wildlife friendly pond https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/actions/how-build-pond
British Trust for Ornithology - Installing bird boxes https://www.bto.org/how-you-can-help/providing-birds/putting-nest-boxes-birds
Hello from the other side of the pond in rural Ottawa, Ontario, Canada! I have been a fan of your artwork for quite a while and always love to see what you're creating. You are such a creative and talented soul! I admire your conservation efforts, too, and commend you. I enjoyed reading your blog post today about creating an oasis for wildlife. Wouldn't I love having hedgehogs? Or Kangaroos and Koalas, too! But our wildlife is of the North American variety in the Northern part of the continent so I am happy with the animals I do get here such as Blue Jays, Cardinals, Nuthatches, Chickadees, Goldfinches, Sparrows, Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers, sometimes the huge Pileated Woodpecker and other birds…