Guilty of overmanicuring gardens at the expense of wildlife?
It's bad enough that humans are destroying/reducing parts of our countryside with serious impact on our wildlife - we are now doing it in our own backyards! I love the birds that come into my garden and, now, in early March, they are foraging all around my garden looking for materials to build their nests. They can do this because I am more concerned about our birds that I am a neat, tidy garden. I have left my garden all winter and they are reaping the benefits. Most of the materials they need to build nests (from twigs/leaves/moss, etc.; they have in my garden. They will continue to reap the benefits for a good few weeks yet before I consider making a start on the garden, which I also hope will help with feeding their young. Why can't gardeners leave their gardens now in early spring, they are not that bad, when it is so vital for our wildlife? Also, I cannot understand why people want to landscape over gardens with gravel/paving slabs, etc. with very little or no grass, 'designer' plants that are of no use to wildlife. It is no wonder that we are helping with the declining numbers of birds visiting our garden. Does anyone agree?
By they way, I also have two cats. They were collars with 2 bells on and I keep them in when I feed the birds. Plus I keep them in during the day whilst the birds are nest building/feeding their young. They are happy cats. Another topic perhaps, but it's on the subject of helping our wildlife, especially the birds.
Posts
Well just to pick up on the cats, the bells won't stop them killing reptiles and amphibians or small mammals which have extremely poor directional hearing. Cats do also hunt in the day (I have hours of CCTV footage to prove it!). So really try to keep the cats in at all times if wildlife is a concern.
I have my garden split into three areas.
1: a veg plot, kept weed free and manicured
2: a wildlife area, which has reptiles and amphibians, small mammals, birds and lots of invertebrates (I almost lost the lot to the neighbour's cats - but that is another story)
3: I'm planning a paved area (patio) for us humans
I do intend to leave gaps under the paving when it is built, this will to some degree give it value to small animals that can live under there quite happily. It will also have many pots of native flowers growing on it to attract bees etc. But we do need a family area which is mud free to enjoy the garden.
It is just about balance really. I'm no fan of plain lawns and don't see they have much to offer to wildlife over paving to be honest.
I agree Gemma
And I really hope that Blackcap doesn't let her cats out at night to hunt the small mammals that are mainly nocturnal and the amphibians who love the early morning dampness of our lawns and are out and in the summer about much earlier than most humans get up to let their cats indoors.
As someone who's job used to entail my driving through the countryside very early in the morning, the number of cats I saw dead on the road at that time of day was horrifying. Keep cats indoors at night too!
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Our gardens are personal places we cultivate or not for our needs. Brought up on a small holding that fed us and the extended family manicured gardens decked in the latest fad were not my way. A real wild life garden would be untouched by humans, this is not possible bringing up a family, it has to change as required to feed us act as a play area, have some Grown up relaxation area. We are not ever going to save the world with our small domestic enclaves, we can do small things for nature though she is very capable of doing most of it herself. Being told I am doing it all wrong rubs me up the wrong way, not being a cat lover ( Allergic) and knowing the damage they do to wild life my under standing why a cat owner would lecture me about it is beyond me.
my garden or haven is a bit of everything, we can all feed the birds have insect stacks watch out for the small inhabitants of our gardens and still have a place for ourselves, that is as it should be, gardens are something we build for our own use and pleasure let us enjoy them.
Frank
Although my garden could be considered 'manicured' I still garden with wildlife in mind.
I am on a newish housing estate of around 15 years built on farmland.
I have a fish pond but also a small wildlife pond,I have nest boxes for birds which I also feed regularly.
I have a variety of different birds,frogs,toads,newts,harvest mice and have seen a fox outside,I also have hedgehogs
!
I have read that urban gardens have more wildlife than some open countryside.There is probably more wildlife on this estate now than there was when it was just farmland.
We are luck in that the estate still backs onto farmland and a Great Crested Newt reserve.
I think some gardens may fit into the category you allude to blackcap. However, I think most of the forum users here are a wildlife friendly bunch, though we can all learn to provide at least a small section of our gardens with wildlife in mind.
When I first moved to this property I planted shrubs such as Forsythia and Ribes. While being ok for bees they are less beneficial to other wildlife, so in that sense I regret planting them. In an attempt to compensate I've allowed a young Ash to grow on which is now about 15ft high. I've also dug a pond purely for wildlife with mainly native water and wetland plants around it such as water avens and purple loosestrife. I have the odd nettle patch too and left all the dead stalks over winter for the birds including goldfinches on the feverfew.
As has been mentioned though, to let a garden totally go over to a wild state would probably mean letting briar and hawthorn run rampant unchecked. The cat question is another controversial topic and while being a cat lover and in fact grew up with them, I'm well aware of just how many birds they kill in a lifetime...something that often gets blamed on the poor sparrowhawk.
best way to have a " wildlife garden" = not having a cat.
RSPB estimates domestic cats kill between 70 - 80,000,000 garden birds per year.
That's before we move onto small mammals, reptiles etc.
US research suggests the RSPB estimate will be revealed to be a huge under estimate.
The RSPB figures were arrived at by counting dead animals 'presented' to owners.
The US research is quantitative, using miniature cameras to track the cat's every move. They found only a small proportion of kills (around a quarter) are presented to owners. So the real figure is expected to be at least four times higher than the RSPB estimates.
god help the little birdies
My cat is a housecat. We live in a rural area. But a busy road goes through our hamlet. My cat is the same colour grey as the road. He wouldn't stand a chance. When he was younger he went out on a lead. I would love for him to explore outside. Yes he would probably kill the local wildlife. Stray cats are regularly dumped out here. They help keep the rabbit population down. I'm glad they do, they at least stand a chance. I have seen rabbits dying in agony of myxomotosis. It was once used to kill whole populations of rabbits. Life for wildlife isn't disney. I know local farmers that put snares down. Rabbits are left to die slowly because they don't bother to check them. My friends cat lost a leg on one.
Rats and mice are also wildlife. I'm sure most people would be happy if a cat killed them. Wildlife is not just the pretty birds. If you want a wildlife garden, you have to except that in nature there are predators. I have no time for silly oversensitive phases such as a "seeing the death and destruction caused by kitty". For goodness sake. A flock of birds at a feeder may be pretty to you but it could well be a battle ground for the birds.
Nobody here would probably shed a tear Lunaria if a sparrowhawk took a blue tit. That is natural.
What is not natural about 'kitty' is that they are non-native. In many areas they exist in population densities 500 times higher than they would naturally. This is due to them being able to receive food, artificial warmth and veterinary treatment.
You see the problem? It is not about nothing dying in nature, it is about introducing a non-native predator into ecosystems that have not evolved to cope with it at levels 500 times higher than would be natural.
People really should take the time to watch cats in the wild. They kill almost constantly morning, noon and night. Particularly when they know they are out of sight of their owners.
By the way, there is research showing that rural cats leave rats well alone, they generally have a plethora or 'easier' prey items to occupy themselves with. The myths are already dispelled by the research. Keep them indoors.