leaving seed heads

Features from Wildlife magazine Wildlife articles 2008 -- Spring 2008 -- ::Severn Barrage ::The Variety of life ::A year at Willsbridge ::Willsbridge comes of age ::Reaching out - Willsbridge ::Round the reserves Wildlife articles 2007 -- Autumn 2007 -- ::Thinking BIG ::Watery webs:the pond network ::Wildlife in the landscape ::Variety of life ::How to be a climate friend ::Seasonal stroll - Walborough ::Round the reserves -- Summer 2007 -- ::The Folly Farm appeal ::Weston Big Wood-biodiversity at its best ::The variety of life ::How to capture a butterfly ::How to get to know an orchid ::Seasonal stroll - WestonBigWood ::Reserves update -- Spring 2007 -- ::Folly Farm - a very special place ::Making a difference at Folly Farm ::How find the magic at Folly Farm ::Seasonal stroll at Folly Farm ::Magic spots at Folly Farm ::Batscapes ::Climate challenge ::Variety of Life - the Ponways project ::Round the reserves Wildlife articles 2006 -- Autumn 2006 -- ::The Severn Estuary ::Bird Watch results ::How to identify garden birds ::Making space for wildlife ::How does your garden grow? ::Round the reserves -- Summer 2006 -- ::Going for green ::Stand up and be counted ::Happy birthday NSLMP ::Holi day - a riot of spring colour ::Avon's species-rich grassland ::How to photograph dragonflies ::The Big Switch ::Round the reserves -- Spring 2006 -- ::How to identify winter water birds ::Make 2006 the year you... ::Invasive invasion ::Sowing the seeds: Willsbridge Mill ::Round the reserves Wildlife articles 2005 -- Autumn 2005 -- ::Indentify common funghi ::Build a hedgehog hideaway ::Big Bird Watch ::Champions for wildlife ::Round the reserves ::Seeds of the futre: Willsbridge Mill -- Summer 2005 -- ::Restoring Folly Farm ::How to become bee-friendly ::How to identify the butterflies of spring ::Save our seas ::The variety of life: hedgerows ::Round the reserves ::25 Ways to make a difference -- Spring 2005 -- ::The variety of life: water voles ::The Avon Biodiversity Action Plan ::How to take really good wildlife photos ::How to help your garden grow ::Round the reserves ::Seasonal strolls: Browns Folly ::Sowing the seeds: for wildlife for people ::Sowing the seeds: looking back

How to...

Help your garden grow

This is the time of year when the first violets hint at spring and you have to resist the temptation to plant up your garden immediately. There's a lot that you can do, however, to benefit wildlife and prepare for the coming months...

START to cut back the perennial plants which birds have stripped of berries and seeds over winter months.

You can add them to your compost heap or make into temporary insect hotels scattered around the garden - just as effective as the ladybird, beetle and lacewing 'hotels' you can buy commercially.

Conventional gardening dictates that you cut back your perennials in October, but leaving the seed heads over winter is valuable for your garden wildlife. It will mean you have to check tall perennials after storms and heel in any that have little 'wells' around them which could fill with rain water which, if it freezes, will damage the plant.

BREAK out and distribute as much compost as you can onto your beds as a mulch, and don't forget to mulch over rhubarb crowns which will need some protection from hard frosts during February and March.

PLANT parsnips and shallots - little and often, when the ground is dry, rather than risking the whole packet in one go, only to find that late frosts kill the new growth. You can sow all sorts of seeds under glass - try leeks, lettuce, onions, cabbage, cauliflowers (and yes, next Christmas's Brussels sprouts!). Use old window glass and tyres to create a recycled cold frame - two tyres high is usually adequate.

PLAN a herb garden for spring and summer. Some plants you might include are bay, salad burnet, caraway (biennial), chervil, chives, fennel, sorrel, tarragon and thyme. Split and transplant deciduous herbs - your evergreen herbs are best split and transplanted in the summer.

MAKE a clamp for storing root vegetables by burying a large diameter section of clay drainpipe, about 18 inches (44cm) long in well drained soil. Put small stones or gravel at the bottom for drainage, fill with root vegetables and cover with a wooden lid. In a frosty spell lay straw, shredded newspaper or old carpet on the lid and weigh it down with a stone. It's just so much easier to pick up the lid and take out carrots than digging them out of hard frosted ground!