I have just finished reading the latest edition of Chris Baines Wildlife Gardening book. I highly recommend it - so informative with plenty of ideas to try out in our garden to attract more birds, butterflies and bees. Some useful information on ponds too.
You could plant a small mixed native hedge as RHS gardener Chris Baines suggests (see mention above): hawthorn, field maple, holly, wild privet, dogwood, guelder rose, and dog rose. This will provide habitat, blossom and berries. Best to buy 2 year old saplings or "whips" and plant in November/December.
I have just finished reading the latest edition of Chris Baines Wildlife Gardening book. I highly recommend it - so informative with plenty of ideas to try out in our garden to attract more birds, butterflies and bees. Some useful information on ponds too.
It's a great book. Got it recently. Also his smaller book A Guide to Habitat Creation is good. And very much worth reading with very good descriptions of plants is John Stevens' National Trust book of Wildflower Gardening.
I'm quite into photography too so would like to attract some things I can photograph hopefully. :-)
Try to think outside the box a bit if you want to make interesting photos. Bees on flowers are fine but there's a lot of interesting behaviour beyond pollination. See what kind of creature you want to photograph and think about it's broader life cycle.
Think about adding interesting structure for birds and things to land on, birds like lookout perches and setting something like a tall thin stone against a good backdrop when viewed from a window at the same level will give you good photo ops. I've got standing stones and dead branches around my pond and dotted about the garden which work well. Closer to the windows the better unless you have a good long lens. Birds sat on feeders never looks great in photos but the ones waiting their turn perched on interesting plants can be much more natural.
Plants like stachys lambs ear are used by carder bees as they collect the fuzz from the leaves for their nests. if you provide the plants and nesting opportunity then you can get some interesting pictures of them doing their nesting stuff.
Think about plants like teasel that have good structure in the winter and attract wildlife. Goldfinches on seed heads in the snow make great shots. Loads of options like that.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
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