During the summer months our gardens are a great place for us to spend time in.  Whether we're tending to the garden itself, relaxing in the shade or entertaining our friends, we're simply enjoying this little piece of nature we've carved out for ourselves.  But, we really need to understand one very important thing:  this property doesn't belong to just us, it belongs to the wildlife around us as well.  With a few easy touches to our yards, we can do a lot to help our local wildlife thrive throughout the season. If you enjoy visits from your local wildlife as much as we do (and we're not talking trash pandas here), we have a few great ways for you to attract more local wildlife to the garden this summer. 

How To Attract Local Wildlife Into Your Garden

Hang Bird Feeders

The most common wildlife you'll see in the garden pretty much all year round are birds. Birds love to be in and around gardens, and they will frequently feed on plant-damaging insects. To help encourage visits from your feathered friends, hang a few bird feeders here and there around your property.  You can even hang species-specific feeders (along with the appropriate feed) to attract all sorts of birds. You can hang seed feeders, peanut feeders and even fat blocks to allow your birds to thrive.

Here's a super simple DIY for creating your own backyard bird feeder (a great project for the kiddos, too!)

Install A Bird Bath

Another feature in your garden which can be invaluable to birds is a bird bath.  Even though birds tend get a lot of moisture from their food, they do like to drink every day.  A bird bath helps them to bathe as well (duh), helping to remove dirt and parasites from their feathers, and helps them to cool off during hot summer months.  A bird bath can be a great visual addition to the garden and one which will make an impact on your bird population.

While you can certainly purchase affordable bird baths to add to your garden, we found a great DIY on how to make your own: 

Look After Your Plants

The plants are the stars of the show in your garden and if you want wildlife to thrive, you need to have a healthy garden. Make sure that during warm months you water trim and weed your plants and plant beds to keep them healthy and attractive.   You can use slimline water tanks to collect rainwater for use in the garden, saving you money and the environment! 

Wondering what to plant, and what flowers attract what animal?  Here's a few ideas:
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• Russian Sage:  Attracts bees and butterflies, is deer-resistant.
• ​Oaks & Maple Trees:  Attracts squirrels and chipmunks.

• Winterberry:  A winter berry plant sure to attract jays, robins, even duck and wild turkeys. 
• Chokeberry:  Another winter berry plant that wildlife love, including birds like grouse and thrashers.

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Plant A Butterfly Garden

If you want to create a super colorful yet low-maintenance garden, consider planting a butterfly garden.   Much like other local wildlife, butterflies have lost a lot of their natural habitat to urban landscapes, so creating a butterfly garden will ensure you'll have plenty of beautiful butterflies fluttering about during the season. 

Learn about what sorts of butterflies are native to your area in order to find out what kind of flowers and plants you should grow.  For more info, check out the ultimate guide to butterflies from diygarden.co.uk.  It's chock full of everything you ever needed to know about these beauties, including what they can do for you and your garden.

infographic courtesy of tabletopwhale.com

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Leave A Gap In Your Fence

If you have fencing around your property, consider leaving a small gap on the bottom of the fence to allow hedgehogs and other small critters to access the space.

Hedgehogs are notorious for garden hopping, and will travel 1-2 miles each night in search of food.  Having the gap in your fence (aka a "hedgehog highway") ensures they can travel from place to place easily and without injury.

By the way, hedgehogs are nocturnal creatures that mostly make their presence known at night. If you do happen upon a hoglet during the day, check out this handy baby hedgehog guide to see how to proceed. If the animal is larger and appears to be an adult, follow the advice given here. 

Help The Bee Population

Bees are facing all sorts of threats to their existence, and their numbers are consequently dwindling. You’ve probably noticed that there are far fewer bees about than usual (unlike wasps, ew). Considering that the main threat to bees is habitat destruction, you can lend them a helping hand by making your garden a space where they can thrive. Consider planting plenty of bee-friendly flowers to give them a source of pollen and nectar from which they can feed. Great options include Annual Scabious, Bee Sage, Rosemary, Sage, and Sea Holly. You could also add native plants such as the Common Poppy, Goldenrod, and Lesser Snapdragon, which will interact with local biosystems and help the greater area outside of your garden too! You can then make small bee houses yourself where they can find shelter if need be!

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