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GCSE design project research.
rdawelane
Posts: 2
hello,
I am a year 11 design student currently doing my design coursework. I am in the process of designing a garden planter with an incorporated animal hide with the aim of encouraging wildlife (mainly small rodents, hedgehogs etc) into the garden. Seeing as i am not overly knowledgeable on the topic of garden furniture manufacture and design, I have come to this forum in hope of receiving some advice on my project. Any information on the following (but not limited to) would be greatly appreciated:
I am a year 11 design student currently doing my design coursework. I am in the process of designing a garden planter with an incorporated animal hide with the aim of encouraging wildlife (mainly small rodents, hedgehogs etc) into the garden. Seeing as i am not overly knowledgeable on the topic of garden furniture manufacture and design, I have come to this forum in hope of receiving some advice on my project. Any information on the following (but not limited to) would be greatly appreciated:
- Materials you think would be suitable to use (for aesthetic value or durability).
- Overall aesthetic appeal - what you think would look best e.g woods, metal etc.
- What sorts of plants you would wish to plant in a similar product.
- Any opinions on size, shape etc.
- Any other relevant information related to garden wildlife and the design of a planter.
0
Posts
What about a bee hotel around the outside?
https://www.growwilduk.com/make-bug-house-planter
I would personally go for more natural materials such as wood. Metal can heat up and be unsuitable for wildlife. It's difficult to place planters where wildlife would use it and humans could see it, as has been said above, also the aesthetics of it are more for our purposes. Hedgehogs etc. couldn't care less what it looks like.
As regards planting, if you also want that to attract insects etc. then you will get plenty of advice!
As to your question, I think it will be difficult to design something that is good for a range of creatures. I think it better to choose one subset and focus on that. I would avoid trying to design something for small rodents; it’ll just be too attractive for the neighbourhood cats. That leaves you with providing a habitat for larger creatures such as hedgehogs, those that fly - the birds and the bats, and insects, usually referred to as a bug hotel.
For each of these the respective wildlife charities and conservation groups will have advice on providing habitat spaces. The quandary you face is whether to provide something that most suitable for the creature and that is likely to be something that replicates nature, is unostentatious, and discreetly positioned, or something targeted at the casual purchaser with no great wildlife interest but wants to set an example to the children perhaps, or have something whimsically decorative in the garden.
The habitat and planter combined idea will be difficult to achieve. Planters will need tending and the human interference will be anathema to most living things. Insects, though, are probably more insouciant so if you really want to pursue the idea of combining the two functions I would focus on that.
Personally, I would go for a birdhouse designed to precise specifications as would be provided by the RSPB but then use my (by which I mean your!) design talents to give it a humorous edge. A row of nesting places got up to look like beach huts and painted in contrasting pastel colours would amuse me but do birds take to high density living? That would need researching. As for planting to go with it, maybe some small sedums would work and there are experts on sedums on this forum who might advise. Certainly they are plants which have minimal maintenance demands.
As for materials, avoid plastic. It is becoming anathema now to some. Metal would need careful siting because, in the sun, it could become an oven so that suggests timber as the best alternative. There are treated timbers like Accoya with a very long life expectancy and researching them could add innovation to your project.
Good luck. I hope you do well.
Insects are much more tolerant of humans, and a stylish planter full of flowering plants that provide the nectar and pollen the nesting insects love to feed on, combined with the places for them to nest, is a much more elegant marriage of form and function. The gardener will enjoy the visual appeal and fragrance of the pollinator friendly plants and the pollinating insects will also pollinate other plants around the garden, such as fruit and vegetables, creating a virtuous circle. So, happy gardener, happy insects.
Each species of insect you wish to provide a home for, say solitary bees, masonry bees, hoverflies, ladybirds etc. with require different nesting conditions so research that first.
I don’t think it has to be wood though. You could use any material, so long as it is lined and insulated - so recycled plastic, trendy corten steel, whatever, but line each cubby hole with wood before staking with sawn off bamboo/copper piping etc. Some could hold a solid block of soft stone for masonry bees, or block of wood with holes drilled in or any material you like really. So long as the design serves the function you can go urban chic, quirky and fun or country rustic - that’s up to you and your creativity.