Out & About Magazine Autumn 2020

Out&About leisure

TARA HIGGS from the Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust has made her garden a haven for butterflies and says it’s easy for anyone to do if you plant the right flowers and herbs Nature corner OUTDOORS

T here is a big call for people to be more environmentally and wildlife friendly with many of us wishing we could do more, but unsure what steps we should take. Wildlife can thrive in towns and cities, with even small patches of gardens providing vital habitats for many species. With just a few simple steps you could be on your way to making your garden a welcoming oasis for wildlife. Over the summer I decided to convert one of my garden borders into a butterfly patch – it had been a herb area but had become a bit overgrown. Using Wild about Gardens Grow a Secret garden for Butterflies booklet and the Butterfly Conservation Gardening guide, I quickly realised many of my herbs were butterfly friendly. I trimmed and tidied the unruly monster sage bush and teased and tamed the thyme and oregano into shape. I was pleased to discover the sage was home to many 7-spot ladybirds and their larvae and made sure they were safe – I would need them later to control a possible aphid explosion on my nearby apple tree. I had planted verbena, campanula and ‘butterfly blue’ scabious around my pond last year and these had already attracted some small tortoiseshell and small white butterflies as well as a variety of solitary bees. I headed out to my local garden centre and managed to find some lovely ‘lemon ice’ chamomile, a deep pink phlox, several blue salvias and a bright yellow ‘Desert Eve’ achillea. These were all labelled as butterfly

Tara Higgs’ butterfly garden attracts species such as the gatekeeper butterfly (left) and the common blue

source of nectar for the butterflies I hope to attract. I would highly recommend tackling a small part of your garden and seeing what plants you can add to attract insects into your garden. My border is now buzzing with bees, ladybirds, butterflies and moths and is a constant source of interest while I take a few minutes out to relax from a busy day working indoors.

friendly, making it easy for me to pick out the plants I wanted. I topped these off with some lovely wildflowers I ordered online, with wonderful names like vipers bugloss, cuckoo flower/lady’s smock and birds foot trefoil. I was very excited to see my new border take shape and I plan to add more plants later in the year to ensure I will have year-round colour and a

For more information about BBOWT visit www.bbowt.org.uk BBOWT Facebook handle is @bbowildlifetrust and Twitter is @bbowt

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O&A AUTUMN 2020