The wildlife garden at Frampton Marsh is located next to visitor centre on entrance to the reserve. It has been designed to provide food, water and shelter for all types of wildlife, not just birds! There are lots of ways to provide diverse habitats that offer a wide choice of healthy food and shelter, creating a wildlife refuge in your garden is like managing a nature reserve at your doorstep. Have you ever thought of making your own wildlife garden? Have a look around ours for some ideas! Below are some gardening tips and a list of features to look out for when visiting Frampton’s wildlife garden.
Jimmy Shaw - Frampton Marsh Wildlife Garden (Summer 2013)
Frampton’s Plant list– Trees, shrubs and flowering plants provide vital year-round habitat for many species. Although native plants are used, non – natives are also present (although non-invasive!). They provide habitat for insects to breed, feed, shelter and hibernate. Regular maintenance such as pruning is carried out, although overly tidy gardens are not good for wildlife. Let some plants die back naturally! A detailed list of Frampton’s garden plants can be found in the visitor centre. There are further plans to introduce more native hedgerow species into the garden; this will be done over the next few months. I have also recently planted wildflower natives yellow rattle and field scabious, these are species that will keep perennial grasses down and provide a good source of pollen and nectar for our butterflies.
Homes for wildlife – There is a bug hotel located at the back of the garden. Insects such as ladybirds, lacewings and solitary bees need somewhere to breed and hibernate. The presence of insects in your garden not only serves as food for birds and mammals, but also plays a vital roll in pollinating plants and controlling garden pests such as aphids (greenflies). Make a hedgehog house for your resident hibernating hedgehog; look at our example at Frampton. Hedgehogs like thick dense undergrowth and a variety of lengths of grass. You can also give other mammals and birds a home by installing bat and bird boxes in your garden, this will provide roost and breeding sites at your doorstep.
Ponds for wildlife – There is a pond located behind the garden. Almost any water body will have wildlife value, although a well-designed pond can be very beneficial for your wildlife garden. Make the pond as big as possible and put it somewhere sunny and away from trees. You can stock it with a range of native plants; these are available from garden centres. Do not introduce goldfish into your pond as they eat frog and toad spawn!
Willow structures: Willow structures are a nice feature for your garden; they prove very popular with visitors at Frampton. Willow is very flexible and can be manipulated into almost any shape. We have constructed a living willow dome, tunnel and a fedge fence. Native willow species’ provide food and shelter for a wide variety of insects, making good foraging sites for birds during the warmer months.
Create a log pile and compost heap – We have a log pile at the back of the garden. Dead and decaying wood is of great importance to insects, mosses, fungi and lichens. Damp areas behind bark provide good conditions for beetles, spiders and woodlice. Other insects such as ladybirds can use drier parts of dead wood to hibernate and shelter. A compost heap will attract insects and birds that probe them for food. Rotting vegetation generates heat; this entices visiting and hibernating insects, reptiles and amphibians.
Grasses: Most of the grass in the garden is mowed throughout the spring and summer to be kept as a neat lawn. Lawns provide important space for many animals. Naturally cut grass gives home to a good numbers of insects; we avoid the use of any weed killers or artificial fertilisers. Plants such as annual meadow grass and plantain are considered as weeds in conventional gardens, grasses like these provide nutritious seeds for birds. There are also various patches of un-mown grass in the garden, let some areas grow wild and see what grows there! Providing different lengths of grass gives shelter to egg-laying insects on which many animals feed on.
Lets Give Nature a Home!
The UK has an estimated 15 million gardens! Each garden may be small, but together they can form a diverse variety of habitats that can benefit our threatened wildlife. There are lots of other ways to create wildlife-friendly space; for more tips and advice visit http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/wildlifegarden/.