Making a positive impact in the garden

Gardening these days is not just about choosing the right plant for the right place and creating the perfectly manicured lawn, but also about ensuring your garden makes a positive impact in the environment.
Below are the top 10 ways I work on gardens to make them more sustainable and to attract pollinators, and the beauty is that, anyone can do these!

1.  When planning a garden, I will always ensure that looking after the environment is the most important factor. I never use chemical weed killers and in-fact actively encourage an area of the garden to be left completely wild – weeds are only ‘plants in the wrong place’.  Most of them have some amazing health benefits to humans but also are adored by visiting garden wildlife. This might be the buzzing type, collecting nectar and pollinating, or endangered beetles like the Stag beetle. You might also find smaller, furrier mammals that need somewhere to hide and feel safe. 

2.  Bees and other pollinators are vital to our gardens. Honeybees, bumblebees and solitary bees all need our help to thrive. As well as providing some nooks and crannies for them to hide, in the form of bee or insect hotels or solitary bee hives, I will always add some bee friendly plants. Open, single petal flowers, mean the bees can easily access them for the nectar. Other plants they love include Eryngium, Yarrow, Lavender, Scabious, Verbena and Echinacea. 

3.  Add some wildflowers to your garden. I always recommend Beebombs which contain 18 species of native wildflowers perfect for bees. They are easily scattered in the garden with no digging required. 

4.  I am an advocate of no dig gardening and am always mindful to look after the soil. This could be from minimal digging to adding a good quality, organic mulch, to not adding any chemicals. This also extends to ensuring that any compost used in the garden or in pots does not contain peat. 

5.  I will also encourage everyone to compost, compost, compost. There is nothing better to add to the garden than the rotted down riches provided to us by nature. Even in a small garden you can create a small compost area or add a compost bin. Add leaves, grass clippings and green kitchen waste to a ratio of around 50 – 75% brown (shredded woody prunings, dry leaves, cardboard or waste) to 25 - 50% green (lawn clippings, faded flowers, leafy debris, annual weeds and veg peelings). 
Compost adds organic matter providing nutrients and food for mini beasts bit it also helps retain water for fast draining soils and adds drainage to heavy soils.  
 
If this is not an option, then make sure you take your garden waste to your local council refuse and recycling centre to be composted or use their kerb side collection service.
 
6.  Leave leaves – When it comes to clearing up leaves, especially in autumn, leave a few on the borders or a patch of garden. The leaves will provide a habitat for hibernating insects such as bumblebees and as well as hedgehogs, which will help the gardener by munching on slugs and snails. Be sure to leave the leaves which will eventually rot down and provide nutrients and organic material to improve your soil. 

7.  Collect rainwater. If you have room for a water butt or two, then it makes sense to use rainwater on the garden. Rainwater is cleaner, it contains no minerals compared to tap water and no chlorine, which can be harmful to plants. Using rainwater can also conserve water when times are drier. 

8.  Whilst talking about water, then you can also add a pond or small wildlife pond to your garden. It needn’t be huge. Just an old washing up bowl submerged into the soil with some aquatic friendly stones and plants and a stone ramp for creatures to get in and out will attract all sorts of wildlife. Be sure to fill it only with rainwater though. 

9.  Leave a patch of grass to grow wild. I am a firm believer of leaving part of a lawn or border around it to go completely wild. You will be amazed at how many wildflowers actually thrive when you let it and how much life this encourages to your garden. Don’t wait for ‘No Mow May’ do it now, and continue doing it. 

10.  Plant a tree. You can plant a tree anywhere, big or small. If there’s no room in your garden then plant a tree in a pot or in a family member or friend’s garden (with their permission of course). If this is not possible, then there are plenty of tree planting events around the country where you can plant trees all day long. 
More trees and woods are one of the best ways to tackle the climate crisis. Trees are amazing, in so many different ways. They take harmful Co2 out of the atmosphere and replace it with clean oxygen, they help reduce flooding and pollution and support people, wildlife and the environment as a whole. You might just want one or two trees for different reasons and they are all beneficial. So just go for it!
 
If you would like more information or assistance in planning your sustainable and bee friendly gardens then get in touch with me now. You can find my contact details are on the Home Page of this website.
 
 

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