Habitat improvement

Hello again Lewis

I am certainly not an expert but this link to the BBC may be of some help.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/design/plant_recipes/wildlife_index.shtml

One of my favourite shrubs is berberis darwinii and we have a small tree in our garden. It has gorgeous orange flowers all through May and dark berries which the tits and blackbirds in my garden love. I have seen the treecreeper travelling up and down the trunk and many birds seem to use it to hunt for insects, including one year a goldcrest. It is a really hardy plant and easy to grow.

Mountain ash or Rowan tree are another good plant to grow. Hardy native deciduous tree tolerant of most situations. White flower heads in June, large bunches of orange-red berries in autumn, which are irresistible to birds. The berries can be made into a delicious rowan jelly. Leaves typically have 15 leaflets, green in summer turning orange in autumn.
TREE 20ft x 10ft (6m x 3m) in 20 years, ultimate height 40ft (12m).

Both these grow locally with rhododendron, although we have now removed the rhododendron from our garden. 

You say you already grow hawthorne which is another excellent shrub or tree. I hope these suggestions help for now and i am sure other people will come along with others.

Kind regards

Jane.   

Hi Lewis

If you have good drainage you might want to try birch trees - I've got a huge old silver birch and a weeping birch and both are always covered in tits of all sizes, they love the catkins.

Dough Mummy

my take on this they'll use whats there.

As here willow is very popular with tits, finch, nuthatch and treecreeper

Yes its useful if its fruit/seed/nut productive, but  more than anything I think sticking with native is prudent.

phytophthora ramorum jumped to japanese larch last year and is more virulent than ever , who knows what else it will adapt to use.

Hi lewis bates

A warm welcome to the Community from me too. I hope you enjoy being a part of the Community. :-)

Silver birch trees are 'trailblazers' in that they would normally be the first trees to populate an area of woodland, but might not last forever. They have catkins and attract insects, and in turn they attract members of the tit family.

Obviously Oak trees and Horse Chestnut trees are standard English deciduous woodland fare, and attract birds that like to nest in trees, but you might also consider Rowan as they have brightly coloured berries that attract waxwings.

Most woodland areas that have a build up of natural leaf mould over several years will be slightly acidic, but the Rhodos won't have made too much of a difference.

I wish you much luck in your endeavours. :-)

P.S. I love the nuthatch, I get them in my garden and am always pleased to see them. :-)

Brilliant, thanks for that.

We have Willow but have been removing it to encourage the reed beds which have been neglected over the years.

This link might be of interest as it shows the different vegetation levels of a woodland and what species you would expect to find there.

You might also be interested in the RSPB's handbook called Woodland Management for birds, available via this link.

I am no where near an expert but my advice on our LNR was to see what is there already and add to that.  Be wary of bringing in other species that may not like the conditions.    I wouldn't worry about adding in Elder that will find its own way in like a weed.