Garden Watch: A weekend of wildlife
Garden Watch: A weekend of wildlife has now taken place; thanks to all who took part. Please re-visit this page in the autumn to see the results.
All returned forms have been entered into a prize draw to win a copy of the latest edition of Wildlife Gardening for Everyone. We will be announcing the lucky winners here soon. Partcipants of the survey online will shortly recieve their promotional code for the opportunity to receive a free gift from Vine House Farm bird foods, a corporate partner of the Wildlife Trusts.
What is Garden Watch:
We know gardens are good for wildlife and Garden Watch is your chance to show us just how good your garden is!
Garden Watch, our gardening survey, took place on Saturday 26th – Sunday 27th June 2010. Understanding what species are using gardens can help us safeguard them.
All results are being processed by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Biological Records Centre.
Why we're doing the survey:
Gardens are vitally important for wildlife and they can provide green corridors or stepping stones to connect to the wider countryside and richer wildlife areas. The Wildlife Trust is working to create Living Landscapes - bigger, better and more joined-up spaces for wildlife to thrive. We are working to create landscapes where wildlife can move freely between sites and expand in range and numbers; where people can explore nature locally and where habitats are connected.
We have started by connecting our nature reserves through purchasing and restoring land in between and also by working with local land owners to help them to provide high-quality wildlife habitats on their land and to link in to Wildlife Trust nature reserves. However, in urban areas, gardens are the best habitat available to wildlife and hold the main potential for connecting larger green areas. Collectively across the UK we look after more than two million acres of gardens – that’s an area five times the size of Greater London!
With the countryside increasingly under threat, many species are looking for refuge in our gardens. You don’t need a huge garden to make a difference – even some flowers on a balcony or a small log pile will be appreciated by the smaller creatures.
By making a few simple changes to the way you look after your garden you can share your garden with a host of feathered and furred friends, as well as insects and amphibians.
Steps to making your garden more wildlife friendly and helping local wildlife:
- Visit our 'guides and activities' page or download our guide.
- Record what is in your garden with the help of our spotter sheets
- Get your garden, wildlife ready for Garden Watch next year!
- Show us how good your garden is for wildlife by uploading your pictures on our Flickr group- see the Garden Watch thread.
- Become a supporter of the Wildlife Trust
- Find out how else you can help and enjoy wildlife by visiting www.wildaboutgardens.org for more hints and tips. This is a joint project between The Wildlife Trusts and The Royal Horticultural Society. Find out about Wildlife Watch for children and GreenWatch for teens here. If your interested in wildlife how about taking one of our wildlife training workshops, joining an ecology group or volunteering with the Trust.