4 out of 5 stars
The publisher provided a copy of this, free of charge, in return for an honest review.
The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world. For hundreds of years we have tried our best to eradicate or push to the margins all wildlife. This has happened for a variety of reasons, but predominantly because something thought it was a nuisance, or because it stopped someone making a smidgeon more profit.
There are some exceptions to this rule; the work of the RSPB, wildlife trusts and other organisations and individuals have continued to do sterling work in the face of continual barrage from commercial and even government interests. There is another option for those interested in helping wildlife survive so our grandchildren can see some of the plants and animals that we can, and were once very familiar to our ancestors, and that is to make your garden wildlife friendly.
In this comprehensive book, the authors begin with mammals that you are most likely to see in your back garden. This includes hedgehogs (we have two!!), foxes, mice and maybe a deer. Unless you live in the highlands of Scotland, you are unlikely to see a pine marten at all, and then you might get one in your garden.
The second section of the book is on birds. These are regular and popular visitors to gardens, and of the around 200 species that are in the UK, they have included 50. The photos are excellent, and the authors have included detailed feeding preferences and plant species that will attract them to your patch. Generally, we get sparrows, pigeons, with the occasional magpie and dunnock. We have even had goldfinches and two mallards once…
There is a brief section on reptiles and amphibians and what to do if you are fortunate to have some in your garden, and then they move swiftly on to invertebrates and other creepy crawlies. Whilst these are not everyone’s cup of tea (some may wish to skip the part on spiders), we should bear in mind that these creatures are key to all life on earth, including us! They include a lot of the headline insects such as butterflies, moths, stag beetles and so on, but more importantly include insects that you will never notice unless you specifically go looking for them. Which I guess is the fundamental idea behind this book: look after the tiny stuff and everything else will follow.
“A weed is a plant out of place.’ Let me repeat that. A weed is a plant out of place.’ I find a hollyhock in my cornfield, and it’s a weed. I find it in my yard, and it’s a flower.” ― Jim Thompson, The Killer Inside Me
This quote above is very apt for the next section. Those who desire an immaculate garden without a leaf out of place probably aren’t the sort of people who will be wanting a wildlife-friendly garden. Those who don’t mind a jumble of different plants that have a range of benefits for all sorts of wildlife and creatures are going to revel in this section. There are loads of different recommendations that have a visual and practical appeal.
They also cover wild flowers in this section, partly because the formal line between what is wild and decorative is much more blurred than it used to be, plus there are details on trees, shrubs and fungi. There is a warning on a couple of plants that they wouldn’t recommend planting, but it is there to advise in case you do have some of those in your garden, for example, honey fungus.
Overall, I thought that this was a really comprehensive guide to all things that can make a garden both pleasurable to us and essential to all manner of wildlife. I thought that the photos were excellent throughout the book, and these will help immensely for those who are looking at what they have in their garden. If you are going to buy one book to help your local wildlife, this would be a great place to start.
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