30 Days Wild Day 7: Gardening for bugs

30 Days Wild Day 7: Gardening for bugs

Thank you Buglife

Wildlife gardening – make your garden buzz with bees and bugs

Our insects are losing their habitat to urbanisation and agriculture, but a big part of the solution lies just outside your back door.

Britain is a nation of gardeners, and between us we have an incredible 16 million gardens covering two million acres. It doesn’t take a lot to make your little plot of green a vital refuge for our invertebrate friends, and the potential for all those millions of gardens is massive.

Whether you have a couple of acres or just a balcony garden, think of your space as a pit stop for pollinators and other insects. Pockets of the right plant life in our towns, cities and villages can be used by insects as they navigate our built environments.

It doesn’t matter whether you have a whole allotment or a hanging basket, it can all help.

The good news is that gardening for insects is one of those activities in which less really is more. The best environments for British insects are those that are closest to our native natural habitats. In many cases, that means that the best thing you can do is not very much.

We’ve outlined some of the things you can do to help our invertebrate friends, ranging from just letting parts of your garden do their own thing to building special habitats. All of them can be done without any special skills or knowledge and none of them will take too much time or effort.