Sunday 14 February 2016

Planning for Wildlife in the Garden


Willow Warbler (From last April)
On 'Seynt Valentynes Day', according to Chaucer in 'the Parlement of Foules (written about 1381) all the birds find their mates for the coming spring. It's a lovely image, isn't it? I thought about the birds and their preparations for spring this afternoon when I wandered around the smallholding in some rare winter sunshine. I wondered if I'm doing enough for them. I always like to think that I am, but at this time of year, when I'm ordering my seeds and plug plants (and I'm generally planning this year's garden), I think it's good to review how well the wildlife is doing here, too.


I must be doing something right, because I have lots of birds on the smallholding, not only visiting the bird feeders, but also coming here to find wild food.  This is true of the goldfinches.  Right next to the feeders full of niger seed, I have a small patch of teasels and other wild seeds that they love...

Teasels have a habit of spreading everywhere, but fortunately the sheep graze around this patch, and are seemingly keeping them under control.

I like to let flowers go to seed, though, where I can, because they provide food for the birds. I've even created a bed especially for bullfinches full of the seeds they like...

A bed of flowers and plants that will go to seed for the bullfinches
The bullfinch is one of my favourite birds and there is a pair of bullfinches in the lane (where I've often seen them).  But do they visit this bed?  No, they don't!  I've planted honesty and let it go to seed and I've also planted an unknown plant which I know bullfinches love, (I know this because my neighbour grows it by her front gate and the bullfinches are often spotted on it. I've taken cuttings of it for my own garden). For some reason, the bullfinches just won't come over our front hedge (unless they sneak over when I'm not looking, of course...)

In the orchard I'm leaving windfalls as the apples are a good source of food for winter thrushes (redwings and fieldfares).  Here they are in the field next door with a flock of starlings...


The blossom in the orchard, of course, is perfect for my bees. I've written a lot about planting for bees and - on the whole - I'm really pleased with my range of bee-friendly flowers at the moment. This is one of the areas of bee-flowers I created last year...


It's dominated by aquilegias (early spring), then poppies, helenium moerheim beauty, japanese anemones, dahlias, and erysimum. In front of the border there are early spring grape hyacinths followed by late spring limnanthes douglasii. Throughout the summer and into autumn annual cosmos is always attracting bees and butterflies, so every year I remember to sow some more of this essential flower...

The last butterfly I saw last year - a small copper on the cosmos
I'm encouraging wildflowers, too, such as bird's foot trefoil and Jack by the Hedge (loved by butterflies) which are spreading beautifully...


Finally we've planted new mixed hedges of, for example, hawthorn, hazel and hornbeam as well as protecting our mature hedges and trees.  All these will, of course, provide cover for nests and fledglings as well as autumn food (hips and haws). I might even discover the bullfinches nesting here. I live in hope...



26 comments:

  1. I can't express enough how lovely it is to be able to enjoy your lovely wildlife photos again.
    We have two pairs of bullfinches that frequent our garden, but they only come to feast on our seed and nut holders. I let my Honesty go to seed, but have never seen any birds feeding on them. I shall watch more keenly next autumn now you have mentioned it.

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    1. Dear Rosemary. Thank you for your kind words! I remember your lovely post on honesty - I've only recently started encouraging it to grow here. I wish I could even tempt the bullfinches onto the feeders, but I've no luck there either.

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  2. A very interesting post Wendy with some great photos. It sounds an excellent wildlife friendly garden to me :)

    We discovered Cosmos several years ago and we now grow and plant it in as many places as possible - it really does attract so many insects. I've never grown Japanese Anemone although I've admired it in my friend's garden - will look into growing some this year :) Planted some Jack by the Hedge seeds here - sadly only one plant ever came up and disappeared after the first year - I must sew some more.

    Good Luck with the bullfinches :)

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    1. Hello Caroline. I am thinking about the wildlife I haven't seen here such as frogs, toads and hedgehogs (no one around here has seen any hedgehogs for years). Still, I'll do my best to bring them in!
      Good luck with your Jack by the Hedge!

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  3. I've only ever seen two bullfinches here, one of which met a sticky end having flown into the greenhouse much to my distress. I'm encouraged by your plant list, most of which I have too. It's good to see a greater variety of birds and insects making their way into the garden.

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    1. Hello Jessica. I had been tempted to clear out the teasels but since the goldfinches have flocked down on them I make sure I keep them. And since keeping bees, most of my plant-purchases are made with bees, butterflies and other 'friendly' insects in mind!

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  4. It all sounds very lovely and I look forward to seeing what you get over the summer months. This year I hope to plant flowers with bees and moths in mind. Last year I put up three bug houses as we had Mason bees in the wall, they filled up the holes quite quickly so will need plenty of flowers in the front for them tofeed on.
    Amanda xx

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    1. Hello Amanda. That is interesting about your mason bees. I would like to encourage a whole range of bees to my garden, so I think I should put up more bug houses, too. I don't suppose you can have too many!

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    2. They are on the front of the house that gets the sun in the morning, moves round to back for rest of day, did put some in the back but no bees visited them. They need to be in as much sun as possible on the house as that's were the bees got their name.. they first lot had found a little hole in-between the brick work, so I just put the bug homes next to the hole, they moved in straight away . We also had tree bees nesting in the roof, getting in through a old overflow water pipe, they didn't get in to the attic so that was fine, they are quite common now and quite a few of us (people we follow) had a nest last year. The bug houses are from Morrison's for just £3.00 and they are back in..
      Amanda xx

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    3. Thanks so much for all of this Amanda and for the Morrison's tip. I've realised from what you say that none of my bug houses are in full sun so I'll move them to make sure they are. I know a bit about tree bumblebees because, as you probably know, beekeepers are being called out to deal with them. So many people aren't clear what kind of bee they have and the local councils just direct all calls to the local beekeeping associations (even if the bees aren't honeybees). I wish people would live with them more, like you are, but so many people just want them removed whatever.

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  5. How delightful to see your lovely wildlife garden Wendy, and it's paying you back a thousand fold :o)
    Rose H
    xx

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    1. Hello Rose. It is a real delight to plant and manage for wildlife and then see it come into the garden isn't it?

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  6. I think you see less hedgehogs in rural areas than in towns these days - although overall they seem to be struggling. We had the occasional hedgehog in our semi-suburban Surrey garden bit I've seen none here in Somerset. Could that be down to the badgers I wonder. Bullfinches are sparse here too - only seen very infrequently. Stunning photographs.

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    1. Hello Sue. Thanks - I'm sure you're right about hedgehogs being seen more in towns. It's an obvious point, but they must have been named because they were seen by and under hedges, and our local farmer has either cut back or pulled up most of the hedges in the fields. Plus because of spraying, there will be fewer insects for them to eat.

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  7. Had trouble commenting as your comment box kept disappearing! I try like you to encourage all forms of wildlife into the garden and always plant for bees and butterflies. Unlike you we have regular visits on the seed feeders of bullfinch they are always lovely to see. It will be interesting to compare notes on what has arrived in the garden during the coming year. We also have wildlife indoors too - this lunchtime I had a black two spot ladybird clambering over my sandwiches - I can't recall seeing a black one before.

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    1. Hello Elaine. I'm sorry about the comment box - I must look into that. Yes I did love your photo of the bullfinch - I expect my local bullfinches have found a food source that's better than anything I can offer them!

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  8. What a wonderful post and photos Wendy. Never seen a bullfinch in our garden, plenty of chaffinches, goldfinches, the odd greenfinch though. We're doing out bit for wildlife here.. although frogs and toads haven't visited for years now, we used to get hundreds but not any more..
    We had 3 hedgehogs (2 adults and a baby) visit for a short time last year but then vanished.. I'm hoping they'll re-appear again in Spring/Summer. Plenty of flowers for bees etc. I so looking forward to Spring :o)

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    1. Hello Julie. That is lovely that you had a family of hedgehogs. There is absolutely no sign of them at all in this area. That is interesting that you don't have frogs and toads either. I did see a grass snake here a couple of years ago but that can't account for all the missing frogs/toads.

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  9. I love hearing about your wildlife garden, Wendy. It all looks fab. I bet those BFs are coming in when you don't see them- we have the same thing here. It's just luck of the draw catching sight of them x

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    1. Hello CT. It would be just my luck that the bullfinches are visiting when I'm looking the other way! They're certainly in the lane, and I've laid out a banquet for them with this bed, so I would be surprised if they never find it.

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  10. Oh, I do hope you get the bull finches this year. I've only ever seen them once, after years of admiring them in books. It's lovely to see the goldfinches feeding on the teasels. Like you, we have lots of bee-friendly plants here, and this year I'm adding cosmos after seeing the bees enjoying them at Ness Gardens on the Wirral. I hope I can get the seeds to germinate!

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    1. Hello Helen. I always plant cosmos and it's always a success. I can't say that for all the flowers I plant! Hope your cosmos flowers well, too.

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  11. What excellent ideas. We leave seedheads for the birds, bluetits love the poppies and finding insects hiding in the hollyhocks. We have bullfinches too, but usually see them on the fruit trees where they peck the flower buds! But I'm happy to share as fruit production isn't my livelihood, unlike my grandparents who saw bullfinches as vermin that destroyed the potential crop.

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    1. Hello Celia. Bullfinches were considered a pest on the farm next door a generation or two ago because of the fruit trees. It's so sad to think of it. Like you, I'm happy to share my fruit trees, too.

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  12. Ungrateful bullfinches! Very lucky wildlife. Your flower patch with the helenium and cosmos looks lovely.

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    1. Hello Janet. I was very pleased with how that flower patch turned out last year, it had something to interest the bees and butterflies throughout the summer. But there's a flower patch the other side of the hedge that needs some work!

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Thank you for taking the time to leave any comments. I do love to read them.