Kokova Magazine

It is lovely to look out into your garden and spot creatures of all shapes and sizes but have you thought about making a few changes to ensure your green space is completely wildlife friendly?

Not only to ensure they keep coming back but to provide much needed support and a safe haven, that birds, mammals and insects can make use of throughout the year. Ensuring your garden is wildlife friendly doesn't have to mean making huge changes to your outdoor area! But if you don't know where to start then here are a few tips to help:

Shelter
A bird box or two in your outdoor space will provide a safe place for birds to protect their chicks across spring/summer and shelter from the harsh conditions of the winter months.

Ensure you place it at least two to five metres above the ground, to keep birds safe from garden predators. Don't forget about insects, they may be small, but they need somewhere safe to call home as well. An insect hotel is great fun to build with the kids, but simply putting together a pile of rocks, bricks, logs, leaves and twigs will be just as good.

Food
Your garden creatures will appreciate the easy access to food, when the winter, and sometimes even summer, makes it hard to come by. For birds the ideal treat is sunflower hearts, like the variety found at Kennedy Wild Bird Food*. With high energy and calorie content, birds don’t need to eat as much to fill them up.

When looking for new plants at the garden centre, think about whether the ones you choose will have any benefits for wildlife. For example, blackberry, gooseberry and redcurrant plants will feed you as well as pollinators, such as butterflies, bees and hoverflies. Trees, flowers and even weeds, can be a great source of food for garden creatures as well as offering shelter at the same time.

Water
It is essential to provide a source of fresh water, for garden wildlife to drink and bathe in. Remember to top it up daily, keep it clean and place it away from bushes, where predators could be hiding.

A birdbath is ideal, but a pond is even better. A pond will not only provide a source of water, it will also offer living space for wildlife, attracting a variety you may otherwise not have seen.

Compost bin
A compost bin will feed your soil, keeping plants healthier and will also provide a habitat for all sorts of wildlife from worms to frogs. Put raw food waste in and turn it each week with a fork, when it is ready you can spread it across your beds.

Allow for easy access
You garden may be the perfect place for creatures great and small to find shelter, food and water but they need to be able to get to it.

Obviously your fence is there for privacy, so to allow them access without having to sacrifice this you could create tiny holes at the bottom.

Making these few small changes to your garden, could make a big difference to the wildlife that passes through it.

*Kennedy's is a UK-based family run business, which has been trading for over 30 years. They pride themselves on having ethical, premium products that are the best that you can buy. For more information on wild bird food visit www.kennedywildbirdfood.co.uk