WILDLIFE FRIENDLY GARDENS
Private gardens make up a large percentage of the green space in Otley and as habitats in the wider countryside shrink and fragment, gardens represent potential havens for wildlife.
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We have been offering advice and hands on assistance for years now to the residents of Otley who want to move to a nature centred way of gardening.
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It is our hope that Otley's gardens can become part of the network of connected green spaces for our wildlife.
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More updates coming soon, so come please come back!
Here's a few ways to help wildlife in you garden - click to jump to section
GO CHEMICAL FREE
Chemicals such as pesticides and weed killers are one of the main sources of biodiversity loss in the UK. Putting chemicals on plants not only creates run-off which pollutes waterways, but damages the soil and also kills insects, which are the main source of food for many birds and small mammals. As a result, the biodiversity loss in the UK is one of the worst anywhere in the world.
Gardens form a huge part of our urban habitat, and going chemical-free can really help to restore our insects, birds, amphibians, mammals and reptiles.
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Try these convenient, affordable alternatives listed below.
Alternatives to Weedkillers
These do not kill our local wildlife.
These methods are mostly non-selective, so don't get them onto precious plants.
Vinegar
Vinegar in a spray bottle, with a dash of washing up liquid, can get rid of unwanted weeds.
Boiling Water
Use a kettle with a narrow spout to avoid splashes and wear gloves to avoid being scalded.
Dig it up
Some unwanted flowers, such as dandelions, may be dug up to get the roots. Try planting something else in the hole – such as bulbs or plug plants.
Baking Soda (Bicarb)
Useful for sweeping into pavement cracks to address unwanted weeds.
Mulch it
Spreading a covering of mulch on borders helps to reduce unwanted weeds as well as improving the soil.
Remember ‘weeds’ are just wild flowers
Before you kill them consider just leaving them; Purple toadflax, for example, forms attractive clumps of flowers throughout summer which are a great source of nectar and pollen for insects.
Alternative Pest Control
Slug Pellets
The blue pellets kill hedgehogs and other small animals. Try wool pellets instead or broken egg shells and/or gravel around precious plants.
Crushed Garlic
A few garlic cloves crushed in a spray bottle of water can be applied to precious plants to keep away slugs and snails.
Soapy Water
Can be sprayed on plants to get rid of unwanted pests such as aphids. But remember aphids are a valuable source of food for valuable insects.
LAWNS
Areas of mown grass are associated with traditional gardening, but they are monocultures which do not support any wildlife.
If you like to have a lawn, consider managing it for insects and birds in the following ways.
Leave a patch or swathe unmown – the number of insects will increase by up to 10 times when the grass is allowed to grow. Clovers and trefoils are particularly great food sources for bees.
Mow a margin around the edge or a pathway through the lawn, to signal it’s for wildlife and not just neglected.
Consider planting some wildflower plugs in the grass such as scabious, knapweed or betony. Yellow rattle, once established, parasitises the grass and slows its growth, allowing wild flowers to flourish.
Consider not using fertiliser and other chemicals on your grass.
Don’t heavily prune or cut hedges or trees between March and August. This is peak nesting time, and birds (even those in adjacent trees) will abandon their nests.
If planting a new hedge, try a native mixture of hedging which will attract more wildlife. Flowering trees such as crab-apple or cherry are great for nectar and pollen as well as looking beautiful.
Try planting some honeysuckle, jasmine or clematis through your hedge for extra pollen and nectar.
HEDGES & TREES
OTHER WILDLIFE-FRIENDLY GARDEN ACTIVITIES
Install a pond if you have room – they are one of the best ways of attracting wildlife such as frogs, newts, dragonflies and much more.
Plant nectar- and pollen-rich plants.
Be hedgehog friendly. Provide access to your garden by a hole in the fence or a tunnel under the fence, and encourage your neighbours to do likewise. Hedgehog-friendly streets provide badly-needed shelter, food and safety - we have lost over 80% of our hedgehogs and they need a helping hand.
Provide a selection of food and shelter for birds.
Install a water butt.
Make your own compost if you have room – its great for mulching and keeping weeds down, as well as offering warm shelter for wildlife.
Don’t be too hasty to clean up piles of leaves. Piles of old wood/vegetation are terrific habitats for insects, reptiles and small mammals.
Leave a bowl filled with stones and water in the summer – bees and other insects will use it to drink.
PLEDGE FOR WILDLIFE
We have prepared idea sheets of pledges for families, individuals, businesses, schools and community groups. Everyone in Otley can do something to help our wildlife!
This video is a recording of a live webinar ‘How to attract wildlife to your garden', based on the ideas from our Pledges for Wildlife.