Wildlife garden

A wildlife garden (or habitat garden or backyard restoration) is an environment created with the purpose to serve as a sustainable haven for surrounding wildlife. Wildlife gardens contain a variety of habitats that cater to native and local plants, birds, amphibians, reptiles, insects, mammals and so on, and are meant to sustain locally native flora and fauna. Other names this type of gardening goes by can vary, prominent ones being habitat, ecology, and conservation gardening.

Both public and private gardens can be specifically transformed to attract the native wildlife, and in doing so, provide a natural array of support through available shelter and sustenance. This method of gardening can be a form of restoration in private gardens as much as those in public, as they contribute to connectivity due to the variability of their scattered locations, as well as an increased habitat availability.

Establishing a garden that emulates the environment before the residence was built and/or renders the garden similar to intact wild areas nearby (rewilding) will allow natural systems to interact and establish an equilibrium, ultimately minimizing the need for gardener maintenance and intervention. Wildlife gardens can also play an essential role in biological pest control, and also promote biodiversity, native plantings, and generally benefit the wider environment. Some environmental benefits include the reduction in pest populations through the natural mechanism of biological pest control, by helping reduce the need for pesticides. Habitat gardens also provide the environment an ecosystem service by recharging aquifers by intercepting rainfall.

Anthropogenic activities such as land development and urbanization are major drivers of habitat destruction, causing habitat loss and displacing wildlife as a result of increasing fragmentation. Fragmentation, among other human factors contributing to habitat loss, aside from constant land disturbance (such as the heavy use of pesticides), all contribute to large declines in wildlife populations and biodiversity. By converting private green spaces in residential and commercial areas to wildlife or habitat gardens, residents can collectively assist restorative and conservation efforts in providing more spaces for wildlife to survive, and potentially strengthen ecological resilience in urban areas. Rewilding lawns can turn the garden into a carbon sink.

Planning a successful wildlife garden requires consideration of the area surroundings, and a focus on overall ecological functionality. Vegetative structure and complexity play an important role in the benefits the landscape will provide to the wildlife, through the varying plants serving as sources of food and cover for survival. In particular, planting native vegetation creates greater diversity in yards by providing habitat for birds, pollinators such as bees, and other wildlife, which results in their numbers in population growing. There are countless ways in which wildlife gardens can be built or converted, as long as food, water, shelter, and space are provided. The process will usually involve removing invasive species to replace with native species, retaining leaf litter as well as mature trees, assuring varying distribution of vegetation complexity and structure, and implementing other habitat elements such as ponds to include water sources. True to the nature of a habitat in the wild varying depending on its environment and the species inhabiting it, a wildlife garden can be built to resemble a desired habitat, with strategic features meant to attract desired birds or pollinators.

Building a successful garden suitable for local wildlife is best accomplished through the use of multiple three-dimensional habitats with diverse structures that provide places for animals to nest and hide. Wildlife gardens may contain a range of habitats, including:

Log piles – Preferably located in a shady area, a pile of logs is a sanctuary for insects and other invertebrates, as well as reptiles and amphibians. The organic structure is a shelter for both protection and breeding. In addition to logs, garden debris may also be added around the garden to be used as a natural mulch, fertilizer, weed control, soil amendment, and habitat for arthropod predators.

Bird feeding stations and bird houses – A place for birds to eat and take shelter will increase the number of birds in the garden, which play a key role in biological pest control. Not only will food and shelter increase the survival rate of birds, but it will also ensure that they are healthy enough for a successful breeding season.