Gardening for Bugs

Planting for Pollinators

Here are some of our top tips when it comes to planting for pollinators:

• Provide flowering plants from spring to autumn, so there is a source of pollen and nectar throughout the seasons. And focus on planting native wildflowers or plants which are closely related to our native ones.
• Perennial flowers that bloom year-to-year can be especially useful for bumblebees. Herbs and traditional cottage-garden plants are a good place to start – plant mint, marjoram, thyme and lavender for an instant boost!
• Flowers are best planted in large groups or patches of the same kind; this can reduce the energy that pollinators use to fly from flower to flower.
• A selection of plants with different flower shapes (e.g. bowl-shaped, bell-shaped, flat, ‘lipped’ and tubular) will appeal to different pollinator species, as they have different tongue lengths.
• Don’t forget places to rest and nest! Leaving some of your garden to go a little wild can help to provide suitable nesting sites. Carder bumblebees will make their nests in long, tussocky grass. Bumblebees will also create nests in undisturbed compost heaps or underneath hedgerows. Some hoverflies have aquatic larvae so need small pools or ponds to breed in. Many solitary bees nest in the soil – in bare patches of ground, or short turf. Others are aerial nesters – they use hollow plant stems. Many butterfly and moth larvae are particular about which plants they will eat, so read up on which plants are best for hungry caterpillars!

Building for Bugs

Helping out our invertebrate friends doesn’t have to stop with the things you plant. Lots of invertebrates such as beetles, woodlice, spiders and centipedes live, breed or hibernate amongst or under logs, stones or dead vegetation. A bit of constructive clutter or artificial bug houses can provide great hidey-holes for insects.

Here are some of our top tips:

• Leave things to rot. Compost heaps and leaf piles provide warm, damp environments for bugs and give you compost that’s great for your garden.
• Spring cleaning is best. Hollow stems and seed heads can be snug winter hideaways for small insects and spiders. Some seed heads can also be an attractive addition to a winter garden.
• Build a bee hotel. That sounds harder than it is – all you really need is a saw, some twine and some bamboo canes.
• Build a bug hotel. With a bug hotel you’re not just looking to attract bees – there are all sorts of invertebrates looking for a place to stay! They can be as simple or as elaborate as you like.
• Create a deadwood habitat. Nearly two thousand invertebrates in Britain depend on deadwood and use it in many ways. These habitats don’t have to be more complicated than just stacking a few logs.
• Make a pond. This is one of the best things you can do for wildlife. Make it as small and simple or as big and elaborate as you like. Either way, it will attract dragonflies, damselflies and other aquatic invertebrates, and provide a breeding ground for pollinating hoverflies.
• Create a bog garden. It’s just a shallow wet area planted with marsh plants for wetland bugs, and a great way to do something constructive with a leaky pond or an area that’s already boggy.

Let it Bee

We did say that often less is more. Consider leaving patches of your lawn to grow a little longer – different invertebrates like different grass heights. Long grass provides sheltered conditions and structured habitat for grasshoppers, spiders, beetles and bugs.  You might also be surprised at the species of wildflowers that pop up when you leave your garden to its own devices.

Other things to think about:

• Your ‘weed’ might be a bug’s perfect plant. Weeds are, after all, just plants growing somewhere we don’t want them. If they’re not causing a problem, let them grow.
• Let climbers such as ivy do their thing. Growth along walls and fences provides extra shelter for bugs, flowers in early Autumn, and you’ll have new buggy neighbours in no time.
• Leave dead leaves where they are. They provide food for worms and other decomposers that are great for your soil.

Managing Pests

We understand that pest species can cause damage to your precious garden produce, but did you know that there are plenty of invertebrates that can do the job of controlling pests for you? Some of our best pest controllers include wasps, beetles and lacewings. It’s just a case of creating the right environment for these effective predators.

Buglife actively encourage people not to use pesticides or insecticides – they are harmful to all invertebrates, the natural environment and have the potential to cause harm to humans as well.

Here are some tips for managing pests in an invertebrate-friendly way:

• Create habitat in your garden for predators such as ladybirds, by leaving wild areas, or slug-hunting beetles like the Devil’s Coach-horse (Ocypus olens), which can be found amongst compost heaps.
• Bee hotels can provide a home for solitary wasps, who don’t sting, but are enthusiastic predators of various pest insects.
• Companion planting strongly scented plants such as Marigolds, Sage or Lavender near vegetables and flowers can deter insect pests. Nasturtiums also lure egg-laying butterflies away from cabbages.
• Create barriers for pests. It might seem too simple to be true, but using mesh, sandpaper and other materials can stop invertebrates from reaching your growing vegetables.
• If all that fails, soapy water will do the trick. A teaspoon of washing up liquid in a gallon of water is enough to wash off aphids, mealybugs and spider mites and won’t harm your plants.

Our Show Gardens

Buglife have been lucky enough to work with two incredible designers to create gardens which showcase the different habitats we can create in our gardens, no matter how small the space!