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Wildlife garden checklist

None of this needs a big garden or much money. A gap in a fence and a corner left messy do more for wildlife than most of what gets sold for the purpose.

15 items

Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.

The items

  1. Hedgehog hole cut into the base of a fence or wall13cm square is enough — without one, a hedgehog is trapped in whichever garden it's born in.
  2. Log pile or wood stack left to rot in a shady cornerShelter for hedgehogs, beetles and overwintering insects.
  3. Pond or water dish added, with a sloped exitAnything that falls in — hedgehog, bird, bee — needs a way to climb back out.
  4. Bird feeders put up and cleaned regularlyDirty feeders spread disease between birds faster than no feeder at all.
  5. Nest boxes fixed up before springPut up too late and the birds have already chosen a site elsewhere.
  6. Insect or bee hotel installed in a sunny, sheltered spot
  7. A patch of wildflowers or long grass left uncutFeeds insects that a mown lawn has nothing for.
  8. Native hedge or shrubs plantedSupport far more insect life than most ornamental non-native plants.
  9. Some autumn leaves left in a corner, rather than all clearedShelter for hedgehogs and insects over winter, and free mulch by spring.
  10. Pesticide and slug pellet use stopped or cut right backThey remove the food source the rest of this list is trying to attract.
  11. Bat box fixed to a wall, if there's a suitable sheltered spot
  12. Bird bath kept topped up and cleanedIn summer, water can matter to birds more than food does.
  13. Hedgehog house sited somewhere quiet and undisturbed
  14. Netting and mesh checked to be wildlife-safeLoose garden netting is a common way for hedgehogs and birds to get tangled and hurt.
  15. Compost heap left accessibleIt's shelter and a feeding ground for insects as well as somewhere to put scraps.

Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.

Questions people ask

What's the single most useful thing I can do for hedgehogs?
Cut a 13cm gap in the base of a fence or wall so they can move between gardens. Without one, a hedgehog's territory is whatever garden it happens to be born in.
Do I need a pond to help wildlife?
No — even a water dish or a washing-up bowl sunk into the ground helps, as long as it has a sloped side or a ramp so anything that falls in can climb back out.
Won't leaving a corner messy attract pests?
It attracts insects and the birds and hedgehogs that eat them, which is the point. A tidy garden with no cover and no food is the one that stays empty of wildlife.