Human Nature: Helping Nature Can Help You

Watching and being in nature is guaranteed to improve your wellbeing, unless of course you encounter an angry alligator! Even on the most stressful of days, just gazing out the window for a few minutes and taking in the flora and fauna has made me feel so much better. It can help you de-stress, reduce anxiety and boost your mood too. It bridges the gap between old and young and any other perceived differences us human beings create. Nature can be enjoyed passively by anyone at any time, but what happens if your outside space just has tumbleweed, but without the, well, er, tumbleweed?

You don’t have to move to Borneo and rescue orangutans to feel good (although wouldn’t that be something?!), simple actions can make a huge difference. Here are a few ideas that you may wish to adopt, no judgement here though – I understand that people have different accessibility/health and safety needs, have different sized gardens and a whole host of other things going on.

What Can I Do To Attract Nature?

Let It Be

Having different grass lengths by adjusting the height of the mower on different patches of lawn is a great start. Mowing around areas of long grass so means you can get around easily without squashing insects or disturbing other creatures, it also looks like it’s intentional rather than laziness… Be aware that “No Mow May” is a great idea in theory, but reverting back to close cuts in June decimates the habitat you created, leaving the creatures that were enjoying it, homeless.

If you like a neat hedge as most of us do, only work on them when there is absolutely no danger of disturbing nesting birds. Don’t touch it from February to late summer. Birds still breed in late summer, if you’re lucky they might be on their third brood in August. Just facing up hedges if they have bolted, should be fine. It is best to watch before starting this – think twice if you see adults with beak-fulls of insects surreptitiously entering the hedge. Proper hedge maintenance should be left until it starts getting colder – climate change has affected the birds, nesting is starting earlier and earlier, and carries on for much longer. You can let wild plants grow underneath hedges unchecked. The mix of semi-formal & wilderness isn’t to everyone’s taste and it can depend on the size of your garden.

Creature Comforts

Whatever the size of your outside space, you can attract nature by provided drinking water, it doesn’t have to be a pond, especially if you have children. Keeping any receptacle topped up will be appreciated by birds, mammals and insects. A dish filled with pebbles makes an ideal hydration station for bees.

Food obviously works a treat as well! Once you start feeding wildlife, remember to be consistent with it and be mindful of the following:

• Please don’t put whole peanuts out in spring and summer – chicks can choke on them, the same goes for bread.
• Leaving bird food in the netting it comes in can cause injury and even the loss of legs if they get tangles in it.
• Never give hedgehogs bread and milk – the can die from gastrointestinal problems.
• Hedgehog food that contains meal worms can give the metastatic disease.

Cultivating food plants which are irresistible to hungry interlopers is a brilliant start. Knapweed provides food for pollinators when it’s in flower; it then produces seeds which feed the birds in the autumn.

Although nature is capable of finding its own home, a little helping hand in the form of luxury accommodation is often appreciated. Bird boxes, nest pouches, bat boxes and insect hotels are all beneficial. When choosing a new pad for your feathered friends, you need to consider the aperture size. It might be obvious but different sized entrances suit different species. For example, robins tend to go for a more open frontage when they’re choosing a nesting site, they also need a abundant larder to raid for all those hungry mouths…

Native Plants Are The Basis Of The Ecosystem

Growing native plant species in gardens is the way forward. True natives and most of their cultivars provide food and shelter for native wildlife. Food in the form of leaves for caterpillars and larvae, without whom we’d have no butterflies or other insects. The native plants also provide accessible nectar for insects, insects that have adapted to feed on them.

Without these plants and insects, we’d have no birds or mammals, herbivore or insectivore. Without these we’d have no carnivorous or omnivorous beings either. That’s how an ecosystem works, everything has a purpose and is a finely tuned symbiosis in the broadest sense of the word. An ecosystem is sensitive to change, it may not respond quickly but it will and it will respond faster than all it’s inhabitants can adapt and evolve. We must remember that we, as humans, are part of the ecosystem. We do however have an unfair advantage in that we have the power to change it and our track record demonstrates that it’s not always for the better.

Some Pitfalls With British Native Plants

A lot of plants are toxic, so whether gardening or foraging in the great outdoors, please only eat what you’re 100% certain is safe and keep an eye on your pets if you can’t keep said plants out of their reach. Always wear gloves for foxgloves! Please be careful when handling these plants, they are harmful despite being used in heart medicine. Corncockle is another beautiful British Native plant, unfortunately it is toxic to humans and livestock. It is important to do your research before introducing any plant to your garden, especially if you have kids or animals.

Breaking The Law (Sort Of)

Growing some species may get you noticed by the Local Authority even though they might be good food sources for insects. Giant hog weed (introduced to the UK from South East Europe but now grows wild) & ragwort are two of those species. Harmful to humans (please do NOT touch if you find any, giant hogweed causes burns) and ragwort poisons livestock (and humans if eaten).

Local Authorities have the power to order the plants to be removed. It is illegal to allow them to grow on neighbouring properties, or get into the wild. You may face a hefty fine in some circumstances. More information can be found at Environmental Controls and DEFRA. It is a bit of a confusing topic.

Don’t Feel Guilty About Enjoying Non-Native Plants

On the other hand, it has been scientifically proven that extending the flowering season (and therefore the availability of nectar) by growing non-native species is also a bonus. Double flowers, like some dahlias, are verging on impossible for insects to draw nectar from but some creatures feed on their leaves, insects like earwigs love squashing themselves up in petals, they helpfully photosynthesise and we can eat their tubers. Echinops, although a bit prickly for us, is a big hit with pollinators and keeps on giving by producing seeds which when left over the winter birds love to gorge on. So, gardeners who garden purely for their own pleasure are still contributing to nature.

Controversially, There Is A Little Judgement After All…

There is one thing that I do struggle with, despite being live and let live. Plastic plants! Unless you are frail, have mobility issues, are prone to falls or any other medical reason, then artificial foliage and flowers is a big no-no. For all the manufacturing emissions, it gives nothing back to the environment…

Sadly, in this all too industrialised world, we often forget the important creatures we share this space with. Without pollinators, we shoot ourselves in the foot as far as food production goes. They are, of course, part of an intricate and well balanced ecosystem. Look after the little things and the big things will look after themselves…

The natural order needs to be restored (native plants and insects are the basis) and encourage the symbiotic relationships of which humans should be a part of. A balanced approach is what’s needed going forward and you can help by doing little things – you will reap the benefits, probably more so than the wildlife; who knows, they might send an ambassador round to thank you too…