Wildlife gardening

The ideas and practicalities behind gardening in harmony with nature are gaining popularity. People are beginning to recognise the damage that the use of artificial chemicals and fertilisers is having on the environment. They also feel the need, more and more, to re-create some of the natural beauty of our hedges, meadow areas, heath and wetland, lost to intensive agriculture and development, in their own environment. Our own gardens - however large or small - can themselves be nature reserves.

Burnet moth

Gardening for wildlife is about maximising the value your garden has to wildlife - and this, to me, means maximising your enjoyment of your garden! It does require careful and considered management, but does not mean sacrificing the way you want to use your garden - you can choose how much or how little you can set aside. You are in essence creating your own self-sustaining ecosystem in which you play your own part. From providing food, shelter and nesting sites for birds to planting nectar-rich flowers for butterflies - the possibilities are endless! Aside from the obvious enjoyment of observing the wildlife you encourage, there can be considerable practical benefits. Natural pest control is one advantage: frogs, slow-worms and hedgehogs all love to feast on slugs. Ladybirds, lacewings and hover-fly larvae will be glad to strip lettuces and roses of aphids. An experiment I did of hanging my peanut feeder above my rose patch paid off - the blue tits feeding on peanuts through the winter were quick to notice aphids on my roses when it came to feeding their young in the spring. Encouraging bees and butterflies will help the pollination of fruit trees and vegetables, while increasing the chances of survival of the insects themselves. Many species of bumble-bee, for example, are fast disappearing due to a lack of suitable habitats - both for shelter and breeding - and the excessive use of chemical pesticides.

Bank Vole

A certain degree of tolerance is required when wildlife has priority. In the autumn this can be particularly hard, when every inclination is towards "tidying up" the garden. If pruning perennials or uprooting annuals can wait until early spring, then let it be for winter. You will be providing food and shelter for a host of animals, birds and insects. Species such as teasel Dipsacus fullonum, wild goldenrod Solidago virgaurea, groundsel Senecio vulgaris and many herbs provide seed for birds and small mammals. There is of course the matter of hedgehogs hibernating in bonfire piles. If you set another sheltered log pile aside, or even provide a hedgehog nesting box, you may find the hedgehog will prefer that to your bonfire.

Try, if you can, to create a compost heap in your garden. A high percentage of the waste we throw away into landfill sites can be composted. Your own compost heap is a free, organic alternative to chemical fertilisers and a warm, active compost heap provides homes for wildlife - in particular cold-blooded slow-worms.

• The wildflower meadow
• Butterfly borders
• Pond and wetland areas
• Woodland

Cornwall's Nature Introduction Marine life Mammals .. Bats .. Bottlenose dolphins .. Grey seals .. Hedgehogs .. Otters .. Watervoles Wildlife gardening Invertebrates Herptofauna .. Reptiles .. Amphibians Geology Slugs and snails SEARCH . . . . . . . . .