Something I’m really proud of and hope many others around Devon (and UK) will have a look at to get too, was getting the Wildlife Friendly Award from the Devon Wildlife Trust back in 2022. There’s still plenty left for me to do to make it an optimal wildlife zone but the groundwork – or Cornerstone – has been laid. Here’s to green belts throughout towns, cities and villages alike!

🌳🌳🦔🍄🍁🪺🐝🪱🐞🐌🦋🌳🌳

From the Devon Wild Life website;

“How do I qualify for the wildlife gardening award?
To attract wildlife to your garden you need to provide opportunities for wildlife to get food, water and shelter. You may also need to manage your garden a little differently. To enter the scheme you must have at least 10 of the features below, with at least two from each area (food, water, shelter, management and connectivity) . In return you will receive an award plaque to proudly display on your gate, wall or door, and a wildlife garden themed booklet packed with hints and tips for inspiration. Please note, as we are a local, county Wildlife Trust we can only send packs to Devon residents.”

To qualify for the award you must have a minimum of 10 of the wildlife-friendly garden features listed below, with at least two boxes ticked from each category. Please tell us how you have created a wildlife haven in your outdoor space:

Food – tick all that apply
Bird feeders, Fruit trees, Nectar rich flowers, Berry bearing shrubs and plants, Food left for hedgehogs, Vegetable or herb patch or containers (using no pesticides), Wild patch of naturally-growing wildflowers (nettles, dandelions, daisies, brambles, etc.), Early Spring flowers, Late Autumn flowers.

Shelter – tick all that apply
Dead wood, log pile or tree stumps, Rock or stone pile, Nesting box for birds and bats, Climbing plants on wall or trellis, Hedgehog house, Solitary bee home, Insect or bug hotel, Amphibian or reptile hibernaculum, Patches of lawn/grass left to grow long, A mature tree.

Water – tick all that apply
Wildlife pond (no fish), Shallow water dish or ground level water sources for insects and hedgehogs to drink, Bucket or container pond, Bird bath, Bog or permanently wet area, Drought-resistant plants,

Management – tick all that apply
Peat-free compost, No pesticides (includes herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, slug pellets, etc.), Compost area or bin, Wormery, Water butt, Recycling materials e.g. old boots as plant containers, Seed heads and stems left uncut overwinter, Leaf pile in a quiet corner, Swapping seeds and cuttings with neighbours.

Connectivity – tick all that apply
Mixed native hedge along boundaries, Rows of trees or shrubs, Strips of long grass, Gaps in fences for hedgehogs and other wildlife, Collaboration with your neighbours to improve connectivity for wildlife, Being part of a wildlife group in your street, community or local area for sharing ideas, Telling at least 5 other people about what you do in your garden for wildlife.

Tell us about your garden:
Are there any other features or actions you have taken for wildlife in your garden? Have you seen an increase in wildlife visiting your garden as a result of your actions? Tell us about the wildlife you have seen in your garden.

Which category does your outdoor space fit into? (tick all that apply)
Small: including balconies and courtyards, Medium: up to the size of a tennis court, Large: bigger than a tennis court but smaller than a football pitch, Extra large: Bigger than a football pitch, Rented property: structure of garden not under your control. Community garden or shared space: accessible to 10 or more people, Allotment, Business premises, School grounds, Place of faith.

Include 4 photographs of your garden.

Purposely leaving things for bugs to live in, I’m a firm believer of ‘nature tax’ they get a little & I get a little. I happily pay my nature tax, bugs get to eat some of my veggies and live on, and I get to eat some of my veggies too. Using mostly pollinator friendly flowers and plants. No nasties in the garden, any pest control is either relocating or a natural deterrent rather than poison. Plenty of spaces for wild life to live, eat, drink and shelter.

I have a big garden with several sections. There’s a kitchen garden with a greenhouse and it’s where I grow vegetables mixed in with flowering plants that are good for all pollinators – permaculture style, no neat rows to be found here. I’ve started a (small) Food Forest which will expand and see the addition of a new pond to replace the original in my Wild Perennial Garden section.

I’ve also added an native edible hedge too, comprised of elder, hazelnut, wild cherry, dogrose and cherry plum, there’s something for everyone. I’ll have a natural green border with my neighbour, creatures can move freely between gardens, and once the hedge is fully grown & established there will be nesting space, the plants will bear fruits and nuts for both us and a variety of animals like birds and hedgehogs.

It took me a while to get into growing and gardening, I’ve unintentionally killed so many plants to get where I am now. For me, gardening really took off during the first lockdown, after a few years of trial & plenty of errors, and I poured my heart & soul into it. Wanting to create a place of peace that was a riot of colour and life. Things for us to enjoy & eat and a place for wildlife to make their home.

I looked into Permaculture and No Dig methods and have grown my garden to house a plethora of wildlife and every year I find more, like the Swollen Thighed Beetle or the Flower Crab Spider. There are hedgehogs, slowworms, toads, frogs and newts, various birds (and seagulls), mice, shrews, bumblebees, wasps, bees, butterflies, crickets & grasshoppers, bats who come to feed, all the usual suspects like woodlice, slugs & snails, and I’ve even seen the Hummingbird Moth on several occasions.

Seeing Kingsbridge Climate Action share about the Devon Wildlife Trust Wildlife Friendly Award, I had to see if I could partake. I was so happy when I got my notification saying I’d won a plaque! I’m very proud to have a non chemical, bug loving (still don’t like slugs though) garden that I’m privileged to steward.  During the spring & summer months the garden is abuzz with countless of bees & bumble bees and it should be like that in every garden.

As we all know by now the natural world is in decline and since we are nature ourselves and therefore a part of it, it’s up to us to bring it back to health. We can all do our part even in the smallest of spaces like tiny courtyards (like Bex’ in Courtyard Diaries) or even a balcony high up (like Jason the Cloudgardener on the 18th floor in Manchester). We can all grow something in a pot or container, we can take some paving slabs up, leave parts of our lawns to go permanently wild and so so much more. We all have to do better and can do better.

With over 15 million gardens in the UK, this is an area bigger than all the national nature reserves put together, therefore making any changes in your garden matters! Your space will be a part of the larger patchwork of gardens that connect all surrounding wildlife areas with the countryside and even towns. Even little pockets of green like a verge along the road or a collection of pollen rich flowers on a balcony or patio can make the world of difference.

Ditch the fake grass lawns and fully paved gardens and swap it for plants that are beautiful and functional for both wildlife and you.

There are so many things you can do to help wildlife along. the list is long and a lot of the options do not have to be difficult or expensive. Small changes can be putting out a shallow water dish or ground level water sources for insects and hedgehogs to drink or hanging up a bird feeder. Flipping a few paving slabs and sowing a mix of wildflower seeds or leaving a section of lawn permanently long (so no mowing!). Leaving died off plants and flowers over winter as they provide shelter and housing for many insects. A bug and solitary bee hotel or even birdhouses and a bat box can do wonders. Plant some early spring bulbs in pots or your lawn for those first bits of much needed pollen, like crocuses, muscari, snowdrops and hellebore.

Other changes can be things like adding a bucket or bigger pond and fill it with various water plants. Planting night scented flowers to attract moths and as a result bats. Or planting a green hedge instead of a plain fence.

There are so many changes you can make to your garden or growing spaces, they can become a refuge that will make the world of difference to a lot of creatures that we so desperately need. Whether you’d like to explore a whole host of wild ideas, or just have space for something small, you’ll be making a huge difference for wildlife.