This title includes practical instructions for designing and planting beautiful gardens that welcome wildlife, through step-by-step instructions with explanations of how wildlife will benefit. It covers all kinds of ideas for feeding and sheltering wildlife, such as bird feeders, log piles, toad houses, bee nesting boxes, butterfly roosting houses, bird boxes, habitat stacks and hibernation sites. It features annotated planting plans for country gardens, urban spaces, courtyards and wild gardens, as well as beautiful borders specially designed to attract bees, butterflies and birds. It features projects as seen in Michael Lavelle's medal-winning wildlife garden at the world-famous Chelsea Flower Show 2007. Award-winning garden writers Christine and Michael Lavelle give expert advice on how to help native insects, birds and animals, with the aim of creating a wildlife habitat in your backyard. They explain how the process of welcoming wildlife is not only good for local species, but will also improve the health of your plants. There are clear and easy-to-follow instructions on a range of techniques, with advice on planning and garden design to show how you can share your outdoor space with wildlife. All the major habitats are covered, with ideas for the best types of plants to encourage wildlife. There are also instructions for how to make bird feeders, bee boxes, log piles, nesting boxes, hibernation sites and more. With its wealth of hands-on practical advice, 40 step-by-step projects and over 570 inspirational photographs, this is the ideal book for gardeners and wildlife enthusiasts everywhere.

A unique illustrated book about growing native orchids giving a step by step guide to every planting situation. Learn how to cherish these remarkable flowers and help them flourish in their natural habitat: * Which species of orchids will work in their garden and what companion plants to grow next to them * How to grow orchids from seed or in a container * How to start an orchid meadow or add orchids to an orchard & preserving and promoting local ecosystems

This title shows you how to attract bees, butterflies, insects, birds, frogs and animals into your backyard. It features practical instructions for designing and planting beautiful gardens that welcome wildlife. It includes wild flower meadows, ponds, hedges, trees, shrubs, woodland edges, climbing plants, flower borders, herb and vegetable gardens, roof gardens and patios. It offers ideas for feeding and sheltering wildlife, such as bird feeders, log piles, toad houses, bee nesting boxes, butterfly roosting houses, bird boxes and hibernation sites. In this book, award-winning garden writers Christine and Michael Lavelle give expert advice on how to help native insects, birds and animals, with the aim of creating a wildlife habitat in your backyard. All the major habitats are covered, from grasslands and hedges to ponds and kitchen gardens, with ideas for the best types of plants to encourage wildlife. There are instructions for how to make bird feeders, bee boxes, log piles, nesting boxes, hibernation sites and more. With its wealth of hands-on practical advice, 40 step-by-step projects and over 570 inspirational photographs, this is the ideal book for gardeners and wildlife enthusiasts everywhere.

The threat of global mass extinction of bees, and the alarming decline in many native bird species, are key topics of discussion today. The main causes of this situation is intensive cultivation of monocultures, and the wide-scale use of pesticides, that in turn lead to destruction of traditional habitats and the various food sources they provide. We know that if just one species in a food chain is lost - and thus no longer able to perform its particular function - this will inevitably lead to the extinction of further species, and a reduction in the stability and productivity of the entire ecosystem. The preservation of biological diversity is guaranteed only if pollinators are able to survive - and each of us can contribute to supporting and strengthening them by creating a natural garden that welcomes and sustains these species, providing what they need to flourish. The spirit and magic of a natural garden stems from the fact that it is not created by human hands - at least not in the usual sense, with a great deal of effort and expenditure. A natural garden is about creating an ecologically balanced slice of nature - one that is not shaped by external forces, but works with what is already there. Turn your garden into a wildlife wonderland - and help to save the environment!

Advice involves immediate 'rapid-response' actions to initiate containment along with preventative strategies, measures for control and monitoring requirements post-control. The manual responds to the GB Non-Native Species Strategy and deals with over 40 species which have been selected from plants listed in Schedule 9 of the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) for the UK; invasive alien species of EU concern (as per EU IAS Regulation 1143/2014); and other noteworthy species of the urban environment, for example butterfly-bush (buddleia). Each species account includes: a brief description on ecology and identification with corresponding photographs; a distribution map for the British and Irish Isles; immediate actions that can be taken once identified; pathways of spread; lifespan; seed-production age; seed longevity; growth rate; a 'schematic' of the life-cycle aimed at assisting the determination of schedules for survey and treatment; prevention and rapid-response measures; tables of control, management and herbicide treatment linked to decision-making flow diagrams; waste-disposal requirements; revegetation post-management; and continued monitoring. Key references to published data and links to appropriate websites are also included.

Revitalise your recipes with the joys and satisfaction of foraged ingredients from your garden and beyond. In high-end restaurants and in the home, more and more cooks have unearthed the pleasures of using natural, foraged ingredients. But, what few realise is that you don't necessarily have to go rootling in hedgerows or woodlands to find them. Many of our own gardens contain an abundance of edible and medicinal plants, grown mainly for their ornamental appearance. Most gardeners are completely unaware that what they have actually planted is a rather exotic kitchen garden. The Garden Forager explores over 40 of the most popular garden plants that have edible, medicinal or even cosmetic potential, accompanied by recipes, remedies, and interesting facts, and illustrated throughout in exquisite watercolours by Lizzie Harper. This beautifully illustrated book redefines how we look at our gardens and unleashes the unknown potential of everyday plants - making it a must-have for anyone interested in gardening, cooking, or foraging. 'jammed full of fascinating garden lore, culinary history and clever recipes' Susan Low, Delicious

Plan Your Landscape or Garden to Help Beloved Backyard Visitors The presence of birds, bees, and butterflies suggests a healthy, earth-friendly place. These most welcome guests also bring joy to those who appreciate watching them. Now, you can turn your yard into a perfect habitat that attracts them and, more importantly, helps them thrive. Acclaimed author and expert entomologist Jaret C. Daniels provides all the information you need in this must-have guide for northern Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. Learn how to landscape and create pollinator gardens with native plants. The book begins with an in-depth introduction to native pollinators and to birds. It's followed by a "field guide" section to more than 100 native plants that are widely available to utilize, are easy to care for, and provide great benefit to birds, bees, and butterflies. The species are organized by level of sunlight needed and then by plant types. Each species includes full-color photographs and information about hardiness zones, what they are most likely to attract, soil requirements, light levels, and Jaret's notes. As an added bonus, you'll make use of blooming charts, tips on attracting specific species, and more! Plus, the invaluable garden plans and projects show you just what to do and can be customized to suit your own specific interests. Plan, plant, and grow your beautiful garden, with native plants that benefit your favorite creatures to watch and enjoy.

Inspired by the idea of doing something positive for their local environment, Yvette Verner and her husband Mike bought a small field close to their home in the south of England. With the bountiful assistance of nature they created a flower meadow which attracts a rich variety of wildlife, including badgers, deer and a multitude of birds and butterflies. In this book Yvette tells the story of their meadow: how they designed the layout, selected and planted wild flowers, trees and hedges and spent many absorbing hours wildlife-watching. Meadows such as theirs support large populations of plants, insects, birds and other animals, and are extremely important in maintaining the ecological diversity of our countryside. Many meadow species that farmers and gardeners consider to be weeds are host to other forms of wildlife: the modest oxeye daisy alone supports over twenty species of insect! "The meadow is still flourishing and each year is delightful and different. It is particularly wonderful to see our four grandchildren enjoying it so much." - Mike Verner, Yvette's husband

Fill your garden with flowers all-year round with inspiration, planting ideas and expert advice from Sarah Raven.

Colour and scent are the hallmarks of Sarah Raven's style – and they are simple luxuries that everyone can bring into their garden.

A Year Full of Flowers reveals the hundreds of hardworking varieties that make the garden sing each month, together with the practical tasks that ensure everything is planted, staked and pruned at just the right time.

Tracing the year from January to December at her home, Perch Hill, Sarah offers a complete and transporting account of a garden crafted over decades. Sharing the lessons learned from years of plant trials, she explains the methods that have worked for her, and shows you how to achieve a space that's full of life and colour.

Discover long-lasting, divinely scented tulips, roses that keep flowering through winter, the most magnificent dahlias and show-stopping alliums, as well as how to grow sweet peas up a teepee, take cuttings from chrysanthemums and stop mildew in its tracks.

This is passionate, life-enriching gardening; it's also simple, adaptable and can work for you. Sarah has made the garden central to her life – this book shows you how you can too.

Garden Wildlife is a book that looks at the habitats in our gardens from the point of view of wild animal and plants. If we understand our gardens in this way, then we can appreciate that different parts of our gardens essentially mimic wild habitats in microcosm. This means that we can provide places for wild animals and plants to flourish in our gardens, whether they happen to be in rural, suburban or urban settings. Above all, we need to get away from the current obsession with tidiness and sterility in our gardens, and allow odd corners to go wild, so that our native species can live alongside us in the modern world. Without wildlife to discover and observe in our gardens, our lives are impoverished, so we have a duty to ourselves and our children to invite nature back into our outside spaces.

In 2003 a MORI poll for the Royal Horticultural Society revealed that an extraordinary number of us are interested in attracting wildlife into our gardens. It also indicated, however, that many of us have no idea how to go about it. Information is sparse, and public opinion seems to suggest that gardens that are plentiful in wildlife are unattractive, expensive to upkeep and hard work to maintain. But this couldn't be further from the truth. In this illuminating book, Ken Thompson explains that encouraging wildlife is actually entirely compatible with ordinary gardening, costs next to nothing and is almost completely effortless. Packed with helpful hints and tips, the book shows us how easy it is to fill our gardens with everything from foxes, frogs and mice to butterflies, ladybirds and literally thousands of fascinating creepy-crawlies. Why should we? Because we'll be promoting the biodiversity of the UK, we'll be reconnecting with nature, getting more from our gardens, and we'll be doing our plants a favour.