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Supporting my local wildlife

MCNashieMCNashie Posts: 1
in Wildlife gardening

I currently live on the rural edge of a small town in the south west of England and have been feeding the local birds consistently for the entire duration I have lived at this house. The verity of birds I get on my feeders is outstanding, Wood Pigeon, Pied Wagtails, Short-toed Larks, Chaffinch. Greenfinch, House Sparrow, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Robin, Blackbird, Starling and my mouse prized visitor is a beautiful Lesser Spotted Woodpecker.

I first noticed him when I was sat in my living room half facing the window and saw a shape fly past onto the feeder that I didn't recognise, I almost shouted out in excitement when I caught sight of him out there but he is the most timid of the birds by far. Maybe some others visit too but I'm new to bird watching and by the time I start flicking through my books I already forgot what the birds look like.  

Anyhow I sadly have to move house in just over a month and I going to be positioned in the centre of town instead of my current rural location and there's no bushes or hiding spots for the local birds nearby to my garden not to mention it's a coastal town so any birds have to contend with the local gulls.

I have some small patches of garden and I really want to make good use of them, right now they are just patches of weedy soil and the patch I'm most interested in is directly in front of my garden on a private footpath its about half a meter long and about 2 meters wide, there are currently some big evergreen bush's outside my rural home and they are completely rammed full of small birds so I was hoping by planting something in this patch of soil I could provide a place for some wild birds to hide and live.

I have no experience with wild bird habitats or any clue if they would even bother venturing into the town to feed out of my garden but I really do hope I can make it comfortable for them and at least try to make it an attractive option for as many as possible.

I was thinking some sort of dense hedgerow would work, but as to which specific plant I need I am not sure. It would could grow reasonably high and not be a problem, perhaps up to 5 meters or so but if it ends up growing aggressively outwards over the footpath we might have some problems with the neighbours, I can maintain it regularly but wouldn't want to use any power tools to do so because I want the birds to be comfortable. Also anything with dense roots that might eventually damage the footpath or neighbouring property would be less than ideal.

Posts

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,441

    Hawthorn is always a good start for a wildlife hedge



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,128

    My daughter lives in the centre of a large town and has a very large rambling rose bush - it's full of birds,  blue tits, great tits, long tailed tits,  robins, wrens, dunnocks, goldfinches, chaffinches, sparrows, blackbirds .............. the list goes on.  The road is close to a river which runs down to the docks, and there are lots of seagulls and also town pigeons, but the smaller birds are safe from marauders in the prickly rosebush. 


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • Steve 309Steve 309 Posts: 2,753

    ...and hang up feeders too!

  • Victoria SpongeVictoria Sponge Posts: 3,502

    Hi McNashie,

    It is nice that you are wanting to help the birds in your new area- you might be the only one who doesimage

    The best thing I've read while trying to make my garden bird friendly (suburbs) is that birds don't like to jump down into a small enclosed space, which makes a lot of sense, but they don't seem to mind jumping down in stages, I suppose since they can survey the ground... Even a small young tree seems to do the trick, or shrubs and things they can stand on.

    It might be a while before your hedge starts to house the birds but there's no reason the birds can't live elsewhere and come to your garden for food. That's the only reason they come to my garden anyway- I'm growing a mixed hedge of hawthorn, blackthorn, rosa rugosa and guelder (sp?) rose but it will be a good while before anything could live in it. I can't grow a long stretch so I've planted 3 stretches of 2-3 metres where they will fit.

    My wildlife book also suggests field maple, wild privet, hornbeam, beech, holly and yew, for wildlife in general though, not just birds.

    Ive also provided them with a birdbath and have a small wildlife pond which I think they bath in.

    I had ten young starlings on my fence this morning and was pleased to think my mass purchases of suet are helping, even if I don't house the birds.

    Good luck and hope your move goes wellimage

    Wearside, England.
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