Yes, of course I am pleased the weather is becoming more Spring like. It's wonderful that the sunshine is warming the earth and flowers are braving to show their shoots above ground for the first time this year. People are starting to smile again!

I must admit though, there is more than a tinge of concern in my mind as we venture into the warmer Spring weather. Why? Well, this is the time of year when people tend to go mad in their gardens with tidying up, strimming, mowing, clipping, throwing,  burning and generally just titivating all that they survey.

Thinking about it, I feel that this behavior is down to the fact that we have not been in our gardens that much in the Winter months and so feel obliged to go out there and blitz it once the weather allows!

Whilst this action may make you feel better this isn't the case for our poor wildlife who would much prefer you left well alone.

I was very carefully and gently moving last years wet, brown leaves covering my crocosmia clumps and a huge frog hopped out from beneath the leaves and onto my hand! I really don't know who was more startled, me or the frog...

'Freddie' was so handsome and he just sat on my hand staring at me. Gently, I replaced his home and popped him back to snooze. Freddie had changed colour from green to brown to match his surroundings, as much of our wildlife does, and I just had not spotted him!

So the big message in Spring is be very careful not to disturb wildlife. I'm certainly not trying to curtail your gardening activities but merely asking you to make minor changes in the way that you garden. Small changes to your gardening habits will make a huge difference to wildlife. Give it a go!

BE ACTIVE IN HELPING WILDLIFE...

HEDGEHOGS*

This April has been so hot and dry that hedgehogs are dying in their thousands from de hydration. You can help by just popping out a shallow dish of fresh water each evening for them. Even if you do not have a hedgehog in your garden, you may have at least one passing through as they travel around three miles each night!

It will take persistent rain all summer for this situation to change as the ground is just so very hard - there is no moisture anywhere! Even their food source is difficult for them as worms and grubs follow the moisture down deep into the earth.

Please carry on with this regime and tell everyone you know to do the same.

March and April, depending on the temperature, you will find that hedgehogs are just beginning to venture out of hibernation in order to forage for food.

You can help them by providing some cat or dog food (not fish varieties) for them each evening with a shallow dish of fresh water.

To ensure that it's the hedgehog that eats the food, and not a wandering cat, simply place something over the food such as a plastic cat bed or a plastic storage box with a hole cut in the side just large enough for the hedgehog to enter.

Hedgehogs love somewhere warm to hibernate and to sleep so be extremely careful when touching your compost heap. Never use a garden fork to turn your heap or to remove compost - use your hands instead.

We see hundreds of hedgehogs mutilated each Spring by being skewered by garden forks. The injuries are horrific and many hedgehogs have to be euthanased to end their suffering.

Similarly, strimming and mowing mutilate and kill many forms of wildlife such as hedgehogs, frogs, toads, slowworms (legless lizard) and newts. It's almost impossible to see these little creatures as they blend in so well with their environment.

 

 

Too often we see hedgehogs with legs that have been cut off, a face cut that has been off or a long, deep, cut down the side of the creature all caused by a strimmer! We can so easily avoid this just by carefully checking for wildlife before proceeding.

You could get all the family involved and make it a 'fun' event. Children and grandchildren could be the 'checkers' and search for little wild creatures in the grassy areas before the adult strims or mows - the children will love it!

Don't leave buckets, pots or tubtruggs etc. outside to fill with water as many animals, such as the hedgehog, could easily drown. Just leave them upturned to avoid such events happening.

If you must burn garden waste, then please check very carefully for wildlife proir to lighting the fire as you could easily be burning to death a hedgehog or other little creatures without even knowing.

Before you throw away any rubbish from your garden please check that a hibernating, or a sleeping hedgehog, is not using it as their home. 

 

*For more detailed information on the hedgehog please visit our 'hedgehog' pages on this website. The British Hedgehog Preservation Society is also a useful website www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk.  You could also visit www.thehedgehog.co.uk which is an excellent website with lots of very useful information on the hedgehog. 

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GARDEN BIRDS*

Contrary to popular belief you should carry on feeding  garden birds throughout the year and not just in the Winter months.

The type of food you feed the birds in Spring does change a little as the weather becomes warmer. The high energy foods give way to seeds, peanuts and generally less fatty foods.

WHAT TO FEED GARDEN BIRDS

• Raisins, sultanas and currants;
• Cooked rice, unsalted;
• Dry porridge oats;
• Cold plain potatoes - not chips;
• Apple and pear, chopped;
• Peanuts for birds;
• Seeds.

WHAT NOT TO FEED GARDEN BIRDS

• Cheap peanuts - may contain toxins;
• Dessicated coconut;
• Spicy foods;
• Salty food;
• Salted nuts, bacon, crisps and snacks;
• Margarine and vegetable oils;
• Chocolate.

Always make sure that your feeding stations are cat proof - dustbin lids come in very handy for this...

 

Once the birds have their young please put your peanuts and seeds in a bird feeder as the baby birds can choke on whole peanuts and seeds.

 

Now is the time of year for birds, and wildlife generally, to start looking for nesting materials so lets give them a helping hand!

Ideal materials include the dried flower stems of plants which can be broken for them, popped into a pile and safely placed for them to help themselves to. Pet fur that is shed in your home can be put trees and teazel for the birds to insulate their nests with - not to mention carpet fluff!

 

Birds still need to take a bath first thing in the morning and once it starts to become dusk in the late afternoon as it keeps their feathers in pristine condition. Keep the water clean and topped up, especially in hot weather as it will evaporate and birds do drink quite a lot. Don't forget to make the bird bath cat proof!

Even in Spring, water in a birdbath can still freeze so check on cold mornings and if necessary smash the ice and replace the water. This is crucial as birds require a bath to keep in the warmth. The water allows the birds to fluff up their feathers which is like us layering our clothes to trap in the heat.

*A really useful website for bird care is www.volutaryrescuecentre.org.uk

To purchase anything 'birdy' please visit www.birdcareuk.com and if you order online 10% of your order value is donated to our charity to help us look after local wildlife.  

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GARDENS AND WILDLIFE

To encourage a whole host of wildlife into your garden just allow areas to grow wild - then just leave it alone!

Allowing nettles to grow will attract beneficial insects into your garden. To ensure a plentiful supply of fresh young nettle shoots keep trimming the tops of the nettles with a pair of scissors.

Start to think of planting wild flowers and plants that will attract bees, butterflies, lacewings, ladybirds and dragon/damsel fly into your gardens.

An excellent source of organic seeds and useful information can be found at www.OrganicCatalogue.com and for native plants and trees visit www.hopesgrovenurseries.co.uk

The one plant not to have in your garden is the oriental lily as they are poisonous to many animals. They may have a beautiful fragrance but it's not worth the risk - grow sweet peas instead! 

Try leaving a pile of old stones permanently in the corner of your garden. This 'hibernaculum', if left undisturbed, will provide a safe home for frogs, toads, newts and slowworms (legless lizard).

 

 

A hibernaculum of piled up logs will attract beneficial insects such as insect eating beetles, bumblebees and centipedes as well as hedgehogs, frogs, toads, newts and slowworms. These are just a few of the beneficial creatures that will happily make themselves at home in your woodpile.

PONDLIFE

A pond can still freeze over in early Spring so it's worth popping an inflatable ball in the water as this will absorb some of the pressure of the expanding ice. Doing this reduces the risk of damage to your pond.

This should also enable you to siphon out some water to create an air pocket beneath the ice as the ball, once removed, will create a hole through the ice.

It's important to keep an area of your pond ice free as toxic gases, such as methane and hydrogen sulphide, can build up and as it is trapped beneath the ice it poses a lethal problem for fish and other creatures living in the water. 

Remember to always thaw out your pond gradually with hot water in a saucepan placed on the ice. Never smash the ice as the shock waves can kill the inhabitants of the pond.

  

Spring is not the time to clear out your pond as wildlife is springing into action. The time for this job is early Autumn when wildlife is winding down ready for hibernation.  

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