Plants to attract Wildlife

Plants are the single most important factor when it comes to attracting wildlife into your garden.  The provide a food source and shelter for visiting bees, butterflies, moths and many other beneficial insects.  Even in the small garden, you can still introduce a selection of useful plants by planting tubs of brightly coloured and nectar-rich summer flowers and pots of sweet smelling herbs such as lavender and rosemary.

Choose plants that will provide the visitors with nectar from early spring to late autumn.  This will mean that your flower beds will be brimming with colour for most of the year.  Combine selected species of herbs, wild flowers and cottage garden plants in a herbaceous border to create a butterfly or bee border.  To encourage breeding insects, allow a few nettles and grasses to grow in a secluded corner of the garden or let ivy trail up your fence.  These will provide sites for female butterflies to lay eggs and a food source for caterpillars.

Wild or single-flowering varieties of plants are often best for wildlife.  You should not be too eager to dead-head plants in autumn.  Many birds feed on spent flower heads such as those of forget-me-nots and pansies.  Leave perennial flower stems in autumn, as birds will be attracted to them, searching for seeds and hidden insects.  Nesting birds need insects to raise their young, so try early flowering plants such as aubrietia that attracts aphids, and provide a source of food.

A hedge that is left relatively undisturbed by the gardener can prove a rich habitat for a diverse range of wildlife.  Dense hedges give birds protection from predators and provide windbreaks.  The thick undergrowth encourages many species of small bird to take shelter and unclipped hedges of all types have more chance of bearing flowers and fruit.  If your garden is large enough to have at least one large tree then this will provide perches and nesting sites for many birds.  Native trees are valuable to insects, birds and other animals as they provide good shelter and food.  The best trees are those that produce seeds or fruit, as these are often a valuable source of food for many birds in autumn or winter.

Shrubs provide shelter for birds, enabling them to nest safely.  Choose shrubs such as Pyracantha, Cotoneaster and Viburnum that produce a good crop of berries for the birds to feed on.  Climbers are attractive to birds, especially if they are late flowering or bear fruit and seeds for winter food.  Annual species, planted on vacant patches where quick reliable displays of colour are required, will produce an outstanding array of colour and their nectar and seeds provide valuable food for many types of insect.

Meadow plant species will provide colour while the foliage of naturalized bulbs withers down.  A fine early display can be created under deciduous trees before the soil becomes too dry and shaded, and grassy banks provide a marvellous opportunity for creating a mini meadow.  If you don't cut your lawn every week there are many species of flowers to be enjoyed by the birds and bees.

While shaded areas in the garden can often be problematic for gardeners, there are many varieties of woodland plants, often including some of the most beautiful wild flowers such as anemones and foxgloves (Digitalis) - that will thrive in these conditions.  A woodland area planted with native trees and shrubs is an ideal backdrop for bulbs and wild flowers.  This would provide a continual source of interest throughout the year and it would attract insects, birds and mammals.

Hedgerows, ponds and dry-stone walls are superb habitats for wildlife.  New hedgerows should be allowed to establish free of competition for two or three years, before introducing other plants.  Hedges provide corridors for wildlife and sources of interest throughout the year - attractive foliage in spring, flowers in summer, berries, hips and leaf colour in autumn and winter.  Plants that grow in or around ponds act as a magnet to surrounding wildlife.  Damp soil borders and marshy areas are the ideal habitat for many species of wild flower.

Dry-stone walls can be used by planting up nooks and crannies with wild flowers that will thrive in dry conditions.  You can also plant wild flowers in patio tubs, pots and hanging baskets as many will tolerate drought and have a spreading habit, making them ideal for low maintenance containers.