Spring
Nature-friendly Gardening Guide
Contents 3 Introduction 4 Soil health 5 Grow soil-saving plants 6 Gardening for wildlife 8 Composting 10 Pollinator-friendly plants 12 Water conservation 14 Tips for your garden 15 Make a bug hotel
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© Soil Association 2023 The reader of this report agrees not to copy, reproduce, extract or transmit in any form, the whole, or part of, the data, materials or information contained in it. Registered Charity No. 206862 in England and Wales. Registered Charity No. SC039168 in Scotland.
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Hello gardeners! Welcome to our Nature-Friendly Gardening Guide. My name is Ben, and I’m the Head of Horticulture for the Soil Association, the charity that joins forces with nature for a better future. We’ve put together this guide to help gardeners like you to encourage and support wildlife in your own outdoor space. Whether you have access to a window box, garden or allotment, small changes can add up and can make a big difference.
We’ll also look at other simple approaches to gardening in a more environmentally friendly way, including composting, ways to look after soil health, and techniques to save water (especially important with hotter summers on the horizon).
You probably already know that Britain’s bees are in trouble. There are 35 species at risk of extinction in the UK alone, and all bee species face serious threats from things like habitat loss, overuse of pesticide and disease. The plants we choose can have a huge impact on supporting bees throughout the seasons, and we have a list of some of the best plants for pollinators on page 10.
If you have any of your own ideas or tips for creating a nature-friendly haven – please let us know!
Other wildlife needs our help too – and you can find out more about how to support hedgehogs, birds and butterflies by making your garden a wildlife haven on pages 6-7.
You can get in touch via Facebook, Instagram or Twitter @soilassociation. We’d also recommend joining our Facebook group – The Soil Hub – where you can share ideas with other like-minded gardeners. Happy gardening! Ben Raskin Head of Horticulture
Soil health
Look after your soil and it will look after you. Our soils are incredible! They give us life, grow our food, and provide a home for billions of organisms. Soils store more carbon than the atmosphere and all of the world’s plants and forests combined, with nearly 10 billion tonnes of carbon stored in UK soils alone! We must protect them if we are to move towards a world with good health, in balance with nature and a safe climate.
Top soil facts Soils are home to a quarter of the Earth’s species! From the familia r earthworms, to the lesser-know n tardigrade and many undiscovere d species. One gram of soil (a quarter of a tablespoon) can harbour up to 10 billion organisms - that’s more than the number of people living on the planet! Earthworms are a real hero of healthy soils. Their activity offers many benefits, from increased nutrient availability and better drainage, to creating a more sta ble soil structure.
The bes t thing you can do for a nature-f riendly f uture is to sup port the Soil Associat ion. Click he re to find out more.
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Grow soil-saving plants By growing a soil saving plant, you’re helping to look after your soil at home, attract beneficial insects and help soils lock in more carbon from the atmosphere, reducing our impact on the environment. Plants that pull nitrogen from the air help increase the fertility of your soils, while deep-rooting plants stop compaction, promote healthy soil structure, and draw up nutrients deeper in the soil for use by other plants. Here’s three top choices of soil-saving plants to grow at home:
Legumes
Try mixing up your grass with clover! Clover improves soils health, attracts beneficial insects - like ladybirds and promotes a healthy lawn. Use white clover or yellow trefoil, as these species are low growing. Not only is clover good for the soil and the environment, it can also add beautiful colour to your garden. Edible legumes are a great addition to your vegetable patch. Like clover, these crops are nitrogen and carbon fixing - but they also taste delicious. Some easy and tasty options to try are French runner beans and peas. Or, if you’re feeling adventurous, give lentils or chickpeas a go!
Phacelia
Phacelia is a stunning blue flower that germinates very quickly. It can be useful between crops to protect the soil from rain and wind. It also holds onto soil nutrients, preventing them being washed away. You can even sow them in gaps in your flower bed, or when you are waiting for a tree or shrub to grow big and fill a space.
Trees
Trees might not be a particularly novel suggestion, but their impact on soil is undeniable. Their deep roots mean that they recycle nutrients, improve drainage, water quality, improve soil structure and sequester carbon. They even help build soil fungi. What’s not to love? Some trees will even fix nitrogen. Try growing Alder, Gleditsia or Laburnum varieties. But be warned, Laburnum seeds are poisonous when they are young, so if you have pets or young children this may not be the one for you. Even in small spaces, you can grow small varieties or trained fruit trees. As well as being soil-saving, they can produce delicious fruit and can be a stunning addition to any outdoor spaces.
Make your garden a wildlife haven! Around 87% of UK households have a garden - together, this amounts to an area that’s about a fifth of the size of Wales. That’s over 10 million acres, which is larger than all of Britain’s nature reserves combined! With the UK’s decline in biodiversity now widely documented, it’s never been clearer that wildlife needs our help. 41% of Britain’s wildlife species have declined since 1970, and more than one in ten are now facing extinction. Whilst intensive farming practices have been identified as the main driver of these declines, our own efforts at home can add up to make a big difference to protect wildlife, providing a network of connected habitats and food sources that are vital for Britain’s biodiversity to thrive. The good news is that all of our small changes add up even a small increase in bee-friendly organic habitats can boost bee numbers by a third! We all have unique spaces at home, so everyone’s approach to ‘ecological gardening’ will differ. Some may reserve a special corner for wildlife, whilst others might try making their whole garden naturefriendly, especially if you’ve got the blank canvas of a new home. 6
Either way, a few ‘quick wins’ can help make most gardens better for wildlife: Let your lawn grow – leaving a section of long grass in your garden is one of the most simple and effective changes to help wildlife. Long grass provides a home for nesting butterflies and allows wildflowers to flourish, which provide nectar for bees and other pollinators. Phase out your use of pesticides – ‘Pesticides’ are the group of chemicals designed to kill insects and other pests such as weeds (herbicides). Recent studies on the biodiversity crisis name the impacts of pesticides as key drivers, so reducing application of these chemicals in our gardens is a brilliant quick win for wildlife. Hedgehog holes – access to a connected and continuous selection of habitats is one of the biggest barriers facing our wildlife, particularly roaming mammals like hedgehogs. If your garden is bordered with fences, liaise with neighbours to negotiate some hedgehog holes – small gaps cut into fences which will allow wildlife to pass from garden to garden.
Boxes, baths and feeders for birds – a classic quick fix for attracting wildlife to your garden, this combination can provide an important habitat and food source for nesting birds. Make sure to keep them clean and steer clear of ‘pretty’ bird boxes made of ceramic or metal. They can cause baby birds to experience changes in temperature and humidity, which can be dangerous. It’s best to stick to wooden boxes to ensure birds are kept safe. Insect hotels – this is another great option that’s suitable for gardens of all shapes and sizes. Insect hotels provide a refuge for all kinds of creatures, from bees and beetles, to spiders. As with bird boxes, do some research before buying – the most attractive looking boxes may not be the most appropriate for the animals you’re looking to protect! Or, find out how to make your own bug hotel on page 15. Water source & ponds – adding a water source to your garden can make a huge difference for wildlife – it’s one of the most common changes agroecological farmers make to their land when they look to boost biodiversity too. Even a small body of water makes a big difference, so if you don’t have a pond, consider a ‘container pond’ – made with a sunken bucket, pot or trough.
The bes t thing you can do for a nature-f riendly f uture is to sup port the Soil Associat ion. Click he re to find out more.
Which plants should you choose to help wildlife? Climbers like clematis, wisteria and ivy provide a dense canopy for birds to nest and plenty of flowers for pollinators.
Hedgerows – where possible, hedgerows make a fantastic ecological alternative to fencing.
Some plants, herbs and flowers are particularly good for pollinators, see page 10 for more recommendations.
How to make your own compost
The best thing you can do for a nature-f riendly f uture is to sup port the Soil Associat ion. Click he re to find out more.
You will come to think of compost as gold when you can see what wonders it can do for your soil.
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Well-made compost is a great source of organic matter. Added to the soil or to container plants, it will boost biological activity, suppress disease and result in stronger, healthier plants with better yields. And, a compost heap is an excellent way of processing all the organic waste that is generated through the year. Equipment Well-rotted compost can be made in a simple covered heap, turning it backwards and forwards every couple of months so that the materials mix well and the bugs can get to work. This can be a little messy, though, so in small gardens or urban situations, it makes sense to have a contained compost heap. There are many commercial ones, or you can make one from old pallets or other reclaimed wood. It helps to have at least two compost areas side by side, so the materials can occasionally be turned from one to the other. Ingredients Almost anything of organic origin can be put through the composting process, but in urban areas, you have to be careful about attracting vermin. Stick to adding garden waste, paper and cardboard, and fruit and vegetable peelings. Woody material needs to be shredded or chipped before composting. You need an even mixture of woody and non-woody material to make a good compost.
Young annual weeds are fine to add as long as they have not gone to seed. However, do not add perennial weeds, because they can survive in the heap and multiply once you put the compost back on the soil. Avoid any grains (bread, couscous and so on), meat and cooked food to avoid attracting rats. Time Compost can be ready in as little as six weeks, but it usually takes longer. Regular turning makes sure that all parts of the heap are evenly composted and that it doesn’t get too hot during the process, which can kill off the essential aerobic bacteria. When the compost has transformed into a black and crumbly texture, it is ready to use as a mulch or soil additive. If you plan to use the compost to make a growing substrate for your container plants, it is best to cover it with tarp and let it mature for three months or longer. This will ensure that all composting processes have stopped and there will be no adverse affect on plant growth or germination when it is used.
My compost heap stinks! Tip: It may have gone anaerobic. Always mix greens and browns especially when adding a lot of greens in one go. Don’t compress the compost to make more space. You could use an aerator (long metal poles) to create air channels and or turn the heap once every few months. Healthy, ready compost should not stink – this smell is given off by anaerobic bacteria which occurs when there isn’t sufficient air in the mix.
Plants for pollinators Create a nature friendly haven for wildlife with our top list of pollinator-friendly flowers and herbs for a garden, allotment or window box buzzing with activity! Common Poppy Poppies can bloom from early summer, right up until October – giving bees months of pollen. Lavender Bees can see the colour purple most clearly so this is another great plant for a range of species. Evergreen Clematis These plants are great climbers – why not use them to brighten up a wall, or drape them over a pergola to provide shade during the summer? Foxglove Bees absolutely love foxgloves, and on some days it seems like they’re almost queueing up to crawl inside their many petals. Nasturtium Nasturtiums are easy to grow and come in many different varieties. For ultimate ease, make sure to buy a perennial variant to avoid having to re-plant each year.
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Teasel Teasels are a 2 in 1 solution – bees love them when they’re flowering, and birds such as goldfinches love them when they’re seeding. Bronze Fennel Bronze fennel is not only a beautiful ornamental plant that looks perfectly at home in your flower border and is a great plant to support bees – it also tastes great. Pick the smallest new shoots in Spring for a burst of aniseed flavour, which works fantastically in salads or herbal tea. Top tip: cut the plant back to the ground in midsummer to get fresh new growth. Green Coriander Seed Coriander is a staple herb for lots of dishes and is easy to grow in pots on your windowsill. It does have one small problem, though: it goes to seed easily, making the leaves quite tough and bitter. Don’t throw the plant out at this stage, however – you can grow it on and harvest the seed. The unripe seeds have a flavour somewhere between the fresh leaf and the dry coriander seed. You can scatter the soft seeds in salads, add them to pasta dishes or throw them in smoothies for an unusual tang.
To be sure flowers are actually bee-friendly, we recommend ensuring they are certified organic. Organic farms are havens for wildlife and provide homes for bees, birds and butterflies. In fact, on average, plant, insect and bird life is 50% more abundant on organic farms!
The best thing you can do for a future nature-friendly Soil is to support the Association. Click here to find out more.
Chive Flowers Chives are almost indestructible but keeping a supply of fresh leaves isn’t easy – especially when the weather gets hot and dry. But don’t worry - the leaf isn’t the only part of the plant you can eat. The young flowers are also delicious. They taste of onion and can be quite powerful, so make sure to use them sparingly. And don’t forget to leave some for the bees, who love them! Lemon Thyme Thyme is one of the most well-known herbs, and really hardy. It suits a range of growing
spots, doing equally well in borders, pots in the garden, or on the windowsill. It’s also a particular favourite of our buzzing friends. There are lots of different thymes, and lemon thyme combines the familiar punchy aroma of thyme with fresh lemon overtones. Cut the fresh young sprigs when they’re flowering, and you also get a peppery note as a cheeky bonus. Basil If you’re a fan of home-made pizza, having a fresh supply of basil on your windowsill or in your garden is a must. Basil isn’t too hard to grow from seed and can thrive either in pots or in a greenhouse. In a sunny year you can even grow a good crop outdoors.
Water conservation in the garden All water is not equal Now is the time to start capturing water. The summer months present the annual challenge for the enthusiastic gardener to see whether they have captured enough water to avoid dipping into the mains supply over the summer. Mains water may appear the same as any other but in fact is at the end of a long journey of filtering, processing and stabilising to make it safe for us to drink. This food-grade resource is particularly in demand in the summer months, a demand set to increase as weather patterns including heatwaves become more
erratic. It’s not all bad news though, more frequent stormy weather will give more opportunities to capture and store rainwater reducing demand on the precious resource that is mains water. This may also reduce your water bill.
Become a rainwater harvesting warrior! With a little planning and DIYing you could easily harvest enough rainwater to stretch though the drier months. Water butts are a must for the sustainable gardener and can be easily attached to downpipes on houses, outbuildings, sheds – or any sizeable surface area with a slope. Coming in all shapes and sizes, made from recycled plastics to wood or even clay, there are many options to choose from and tutorials on fitting these are readily available online. A decent downpour can easily fill a 150L container from a small roof so consider linking more together or having several located near to watering hotspots. Be sure to secure lids to deter mosquitos and a tennis ball can help to stop the surface freezing over during winter.
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The best th ing you can do for a nature-frie ndly future is to suppo rt the Soil Associatio n. Click here to find out m ore.
Less is more It turns out using water sparsely, not only conserves water but is good for plant health too. Spot watering at the base of plants is much more efficient than spraying large areas. It also avoids splashing. Wet plant leaves can lead to spore germination and splashing the soil can both damage its structure and transmit soil borne pathogens to the plant. Potato leaves for example should not be watered as blight spores could travel down to the tubers. On tomato plants you risk introducing blight spores from the soil to the lower leaves – remove the lower leaves when the plant is established. During the summer, water early or late although be mindful that slugs and snails will also thank you for the night-time moisture. Regulate temperature and humidity in the greenhouse by watering minimally and ventilating well. Over watering seedlings can easily lead to damping off, a disease which can cause seedlings to collapse.
Out on the lawn grass is well suited to weathering droughts so neglect is encouraged. You could however mow at a higher setting and leave cuttings on the lawn. Soil edges that meet walls and tarmac roads can be prone to drying out so check these areas for dry spots. In general roots are encouraged deeper into the soil by reduced watering leading to a more resilient plant. Liquid feeds and watering naturally go hand in hand and rainwater is recommended so as to not inhibit the good bacteria in your homemade compost teas and comfrey mixtures. Over feeding is as much an issue as under feeding so go easy on the seaweed. In fact many believe that if you prioritise improving soil health then the reliance on liquid feeding will substantially reduce. Hence the phrase feed the soil rather than the plants.
Tips for a nature-friendly garden 1. A living mulch This feeds the soil and gives you food or flowers. Try alpine strawberries, Ajuga, or even nitrogen fixing plants like yellow trefoil. You can also use an organic mulch such as compost or composted woodchip. Though this won’t capture sunlight it will protect and feed your soil. 2. Plant a tree Mature trees offer so much to a garden apart from beauty; shade, habitat for wildlife (especially birds), fruit or nuts, and organic matter for the soil to name a few. You can fit a tree in almost all gardens. Grow as cordons or low stepovers if you don’t have a massive garden. You can even grow fruit trees on very dwarf rootstocks in pots. 3. Plants that don’t flower in spring As winter turns to spring we all rush out to the garden centre in excitement and buy a load of plants, usually those that are in flower and look great at the time. Most gardens therefore have lots of flowers in spring but as the year progresses not so much for pollinators to eat. It is really important for insects to have access to food later in the season and you can help by putting a few late flowering plants in your garden. Abelia, Mahonia, Witch Hazel, and Sedum are just a few that will bring late pollinators into your garden. 4. Complete the growing circle Save some seed or take a cutting. Unless you are desperate for the latest coloured Hebe or newest variety of courgette then you can make your own plants. You can save seed from open pollinated varieties. Taking cuttings can also be straight forward. Start with something easy; tomatoes, calendula or beans for seed saving, or hardwood cuttings like blackcurrant and honeysuckle. There’s nothing quite like the feeling you get as a plant grows from your own efforts. 14
Make a bug hotel A bug hotel is a structure designed to attract insects, offering protection and shelter. The size and design is up to you and will depend on your space. We share instructions for creating a simple pallet bug hotel below: Making the foundations You can usually source recycled pallets from a local supermarket or a local working farm. Five pallets work well to create a space large enough to attract an abundance of wildlife, whilst not being too heavy (which can cause the structure to sink after heavy rain). Place the first pallet upside down on the level ground in your garden – this technique creates a large opening at the base that hedgehogs may choose to make home. Then place each pallet on top of the other, securing in place with heavy duty garden twine or wire. Filling the gaps The final step in building the perfect resort for bugs in your garden is to fill the gaps between your wooden pallets with the rest of your materials, to create unique habitats for every insect you hope to find.
Stacked stones, broken terracotta, bricks with holes, pipes or old tiles - these help create a frost-free habitat, essential for amphibians to shelter during winter. Straw and hay - these provide many opportunities for invertebrates to burrow in and find safe hibernation sites. Dry leaves - these mimic the forest floor, encouraging a range of insects. They can also be used in the base of the hotel, making a perfect hibernation spot for hedgehogs. Loose bark - especially attractive to a variety of spider species, and centipedes.
Materials to use Dead wood - this provides an increasingly rare habitat, perfect for solitary bees to lay eggs and hibernate. This wood can also attract other hibernating or breeding species such as beetles, woodlice and ladybirds. The best thing a Bamboo stems or you can do for logs with holes future nature-friendly drilled - these e Soil is to support th also make perfect Association. breeding sites for Click here to solitary bees. find out more.
Together we can save our bees 35% of UK bee species face extinction. And if we allow bee numbers to continue to decline our wildlife, flowers, plants and even the food we eat will be devastated. But if you join the Soil Association today, together, we can turn this around. We can plant trees to provide bees with the food and habitat they need to thrive; support farmers to grow their crops without pesticides; and lobby the government so that they maintain the ban on bee-killing pesticides. And as a member, you’ll join a community of thousands who are passionate about protecting the future of our pollinators. You’ll be supporting us all in restoring nature, health, and a safe climate from the ground up.
Find out more:
soilassociation.org/saveourbees Registered Charity No. 206862 in England and Wales. Registered Charity No. SC039168 in Scotland.