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...