wildlife gardening
Last post 08-06-2012 1:19 PM by Helen Philip. 3 replies.
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05/06/2012 02:29 PM
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I have an area under a cherry and apple tree that is quite sheltered, soil not brilliant, that i thought i would use as a wild area of the garden for wildflowers, a log pile etc. Lots of blue bells grow underneath and are quite established and spreading as are what i think are geraniums and acquilegia, i have a couple of main clumps and then what appear to be seedings, i'm guessing that as the leaves appearing are very similar to the parent plants. Thing is i'm not sure if i'm missing the point about wildlife gardening as i've just been having a tidy up clearing the dead bluebell stems and leaves and some grasses that had seeded as a result of birds chucking out seed from the feeders that were there. A few months ago my local garden centre had an offer on wildflower plants so i purchased some of those and planted in my wild area and they seem perfectly at home growing bushy and even in flower already. Now i've had a tidy i have also scattered a packet of woodland wild flower seeds. I also have 3 vincas, a hellebore and some primroses, some look healthy, some not so much. I also planted a honeysuckle to grow up at the back against some fence and trellis and i hope to plant a climbing rose and i also saw a scottish yellow rose that took my fancy when i was at the david austin centre last week. I guess the main thing is, am i going about this the right way or should i really leave it to its own devises a bit more?
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07/06/2012 03:25 PM
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Hi Helen, Your selection of plants sounds great. The thing to do with bulbs is wait until the leaves turn yellow before tidying, that way the plant has all the nutrients that the leaves have gained in the growing period. The rose will need a good planting hole and plenty of nutrients to get a good start. Where you plant will be down to the size of the tree, as if it is already established, as it sounds from the piece you wrote, you may have problems getting a rose to grow successfully near the base of the trunk. Planting further away and supporting the stem until it can reach the branches and scramble through them would be the best thing in this case. manure in the planting hole and as a top dressing would be ideal, failing that you can use a granulated rose feed. Bees love roses so if it is not too tight a flower this is a good choice. Hellebores are just great for wildlife the early spring flowers help insects and the cover given by the leaves is great for small creatures such as mice and voles. geraniums are also open flowers, except for the new one in this months The Garden, I don't think I have seen a sterile double. They are also good for bees and hoverflies, slugs do not like them so its win win for the wildlife and the gardener. The main thing is to enjoy what you plant because that way you will keep going. To avoid the problem of grass and oats seeding make sure you only buy a seed mix that has been chopped, they are generally more expensive but save a lot of work, that is unless you have an area where you could hang the feeder and not worry about the grass seeding like from a shrub or tree over a lawn that gets mown regularly in the growing season. Have a great time.
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08/06/2012 10:09 AM
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- miranda
- Oxfordshire
- 17 Nov 2004
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4,072
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Nice selection of plants, but if the area is shady the rose might not thrive as well as it would do in a sunny spot. From what I've learned, the main thing for encouraging wildlife isn't to have everything native, but to use a wide selection of plants that provide food and shelter - they will make use of what is there and if there is plentiful nectar, pollen, hiding and nesting places, then it will be attractive to a lot of species. One of the main attractants is water - if you can, put in a raised bird bath and another dish of water at ground level. Keep them clean and topped up and the birds and small mammals (hedgehogs, field mice etc) will find them and visit more often.
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08/06/2012 01:19 PM
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thanks for the advice, i haven't planted any roses yet but hope they do well as i actually removed a couple of roses that had been doing ok but just not really in the best place for doing anything with. I do have a bird bath and a whisky barrel pond in other parts of the garden. I'm looking forward to it all starting to grow.
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