We all love spending time in our gardens, and enjoying the wildlife it brings to them. Research has revealed that engaging with wildlife can lower stress and lead to better overall mental health.  Encouraging biodiversity is good for the ecological balance in the garden. The wildlife you attract will also be carrying out a useful function in keeping your garden healthy – whether that’s by pollinating plants or by eating pesky plant pests.
 
Some of these most recognisable British animals and insects are in decline and so anything we can do to help them is very important.  Our gardens can be safe habitats for wildlife and even small steps, like introducing homes create shelter and food can make a big difference. Here we explore how you can take steps to make even the smallest of gardens into a wildlife-friendly zone.

Bees
Bumblebees are by far are the most well-known pollinators and without these little buzzing creatures there would be far fewer flowers, fruits and vegetables growing around us.  According to a BBC report, bees pollinate approximately 70 of 100 crop species that feed 90% of the world, with honey bees alone being responsible for $30billion a year worth of food.
 
However, research by Friends of the Earth has revealed that nearly one in 10 of Europe’s wild bee species are facing extinction while 13 species of bee have been lost since 1900 due to having lost much of their natural habitat due to urban development, change of land use and intensive farming.   Wildlife gardening has now become high on our agenda with people placing wildlife-friendly products and plants in their gardens and spreading the word about just how important it is to help save Britain’s bees.

Gardenesque has launched a new range of insect hotels to help bees thrive in our gardens and outdoor spaces.  Bee hotels are a great way to help our solitary bees, such as mason bees and leaf cutter bees by providing much-needed shelter - unlike bumblebees and honey bees, who live in colonies.   
Our Diamond Wooden Insect Hotel (RRP £34.99) provides a safe haven for the bees in your garden and allows them to “check in” to the bamboo tubes and wooden block tunnels.  The tubes or reeds are will allow solitary bees to lay their eggs safely and will be protected from predators by a wire mesh. The young bees will emerge the following year.
 
If you have a smaller garden or balcony, our Three Floor Wooden Insect House with Metal Roof (RRP £29.99) is ideal to fix to a wall or post so bees can rest, build nests and lay eggs in the tunnels.

We recommend you place your bee hotel in a sunny spot, preferably south or south-east facing and hung securely from a wall or fence using a nail or screw.   You can encourage the bees to your hotel by planting bee-friendly flowers from March to September underneath to give them a nearby food source.
 
Your hotel will need to cleaned at the end of the summer months with a pipe-cleaner, a small brush to ensure no fungus or mould has built up and making the hotel ready for next Spring.

Butterflies
 
Butterflies are one of nature’s most enchanting and delicate insects and an important pollinator in our gardens.  There are about 60 types of butterflies in the UK but they are declining more rapidly in urban areas.  A major scientific report from Butterfly Conservation shows that almost three quarters of the UK’s butterfly species in the UK have suffered population declines over the last 10 years. A loss of habitat is cited as a major factor, as well the combined intensification of land use and climate change.
For those that want to help the plight of the UK’s butterfly population, you can support many species of butterfly by encouraging them into your garden with our highly decorative Wooden Butterfly Hotel (RRP £34.99).   With three vertical openings at the front, the butterflies can easily access and their home.   Hang near nectar-rich flowers or place a sugar solution-soaked sponge inside the butterfly house which will act as a good food source for visitors.
Aside from planting butterfly plants in your garden, if you have fruit trees or old fruit in your house, you could help feed butterflies by placing on a plate on the ground or table.   Provide them with a safe and relaxing space to drink too by filling a saucer with water and place some stones at the bottom for them to rest their weary wings.  They also like someone to perch so planting a container and placing on a balcony or patio in a sunny position will help them greatly.

Insects
There are a number of other insects that play a vital role in helping your healthy garden thrive.  Ladybirds are one of the popular amongst the UK gardener and can consume up to around 50 aphids a day, meaning that are not only just attractive, but a biological pest control method.  Hoverflies are often mistaken for wasps or bees due to their similar appearance.  They help with the fight against aphids, thrips and caterpillars so are a welcome sight in the garden.
 
Lacewings are also loved by gardeners due to their consumption of aphids and their larvae that can damage ornamental plants and allotment produce.  Creepy crawlies such as beetles can also be beneficial to the garden, are predatory and will feed at ground level and will rid of your garden of pests like slugs and snails.
 
Both our Natural Insect House with Bark Roof (RRP £34.99) and Five Floor Wooden Insect House with Metal Roof (RRP £36.99) offer multiple chambers for different kinds of insects. Made up of different materials such as bamboo hollow tubes, fir wood, pine cones and wood shavings, the hotels provide the perfect accommodation to various insects from lacewings to ladybirds and bees and butterflies.
 
Birds
Attracting garden birds to your outdoor space is both hugely enjoyable and very rewarding.   Just watching them flit from tree to tree and feed helps to regulate our moods and behaviour, perfect for when life is stressful and busy as it helps us reconnect with nature.
 
Birds are also a natural way to control pests in our gardens as they eat slugs, snails and other unwanted critters. According to the most recent RSPB garden bird survey, a number of common species are in a steady decline but there are ways in which you can help them.  The past year has either started or reignited a love of nature for many people, right on their doorsteps and our new range of bird boxes and feeders will help our wild birds by providing some food and shelter all year round.

The most obvious thing you can is provide food and our Hanging Wooden Bird Feeder (RRP £34.99) is designed to make watching your favourite garden birds both easy and enjoyable. With a highly ornamental design, this feeder can be filled with seeds or seed mixes with an opening roof to enable easy re-filling and cleaning.  The acrylic windows allow the birds to be offered a constant amount of feed as it flows into the bottom tray.
 
A traditional high bird feeder like our Natural Standing Wooden Bird Feeding Table (RRP £54.99) will be popular, allowing multiple birds to feed at once away from predators and sheltered from bad weather.
 
Birds are also susceptible to cold weather exposure so ensuring they have somewhere warm to next is vital.  Our Colourful Bird House (RRP £34.99) and Wooden Bird House (RRP £29.99) can be hung in trees or on walls and lined with leaves, grass, bark, twigs or wood chippings to create a cosy home through winter.
 
Hedgehogs
These prickly mammals are a firm favourite and evoke images of woodland and the British countryside.  One of the greatest challenges facing hedgehogs is a lack of connected habitat and unfortunately, numbers in the UK have fallen by around 50% since the start of the century, due to intensive farming disturbing their natural resting and nesting sites, such as hedgerows and field margins. 
 
And with awareness of our spiky friends’ plight growing, there's no better time to do our bit to make sure our gardens are hedgehog-friendly.   They like to eat beetles, caterpillars, worms, slugs and snails so creating a friendly and accessible outdoor space will give a hog a home.
 
Our hedgehog houses provide shelter and food and can also act as a lovely design feature and focal point in your garden.  The Wooden Hedgehog House (RRP £49.99) or Wooden Hedgehog House with Bark Roof (RRP £39.99) will help to create a safe habitat for them, whilst giving a helping hand to hibernate during the long, cold winter months.   Designed with a small entrance tunnel, the house also has a slanted waterproof asphalt roof to protect against the elements and allow water runoff.
 
Gardens are crucial for hedgehogs and other ways you can help include leaving part of your lawn to grow wild as they love hiding in long grass, as well as making a hole in your fence or hedging so they can travel between gardens at night.
Planting for Wildlife
 
Plants are important to wildlife and our advice is to grow a wide range of plants that offer nectar, food and shelter.
 
Make sure you add bee-friendly flowers to your patch to create a garden buzzing with activity all summer long.  Why not plant rich blooms to help bees find the food they need and create a “nectar café”?

We recommend primroses crocus, bluebells, lavender, sunflowers, foxgloves, echinacea, salvia, chives, rosemary to provide nectar all through the seasons.  For butterflies, we recommend large groups of nectar-rich varieties which flower at the same time in vivid colours such red, orange, purple, pink and yellow flowers with short flower tubes or flat tops.
 
Ladybirds will feed on plants they like pollen rich plants and golden flowered plants that include angelica, calendula, caraway, marigolds and sweet alyssum to name a few!  Plants that attract aphids include nasturtiums, lavender, chamomile and geraniums so plant these nearby to attract lacewings, beetles and hoverflies.
 
Birds love pyracantha which is a thorny evergreen shrub that flowers in June and produces red or orange berries in autumn.  Plant roses in your garden also as not only do the rosehips provide a good source of food, the thorns protect from predators such as cats and birds of prey  

A hedgehog’s favourite foods are beetles and caterpillars so growing plants to attract these insects will help them. Recommended garden plants for include ornamental grasses erigeron, sedum, salvia and herbs.
 
And what garden is complete without a sunflower, which not only provides a nectar rich feast for pollinating insects, but fresh seeds to give your garden birds a nutritious treat.
 
Our new wildlife range brings you exciting new products so you can feed and care for your friendly garden visitors. From bird tables, baths and boxes to hedgehog houses and insect hotels, we've got a wide portfolio of products to help you get closer to nature.
 
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Notes to Editors:
Following the principles of the historic gardenesque movement, our gardenware products encompass style and practicality, designed to accentuate the natural beauty of any outdoor space.  Gardenesque is based on three key values: discovery, showcasing and naturalism, to provide gardeners with the simplest extraction of new ideas combined with traditional concepts, to bring horticultural beauty into homes and gardens, regardless of size and location.
 
For more information or images, please contact the Gardenesque PR team:
 
Contacts
Cassie King
PR & Content Executive
Tel: 07917 425962
Email: cassieking@gardenesque.com