Attracting wildlife to suburban garden.

[Abreezeitheglade]

I recently moved to a house with an entirely paved garden. I’m gradually pulling up the slabs and would love to make it into a garden which attracts as much wildlife as possible. Any tips for planting gratefully received. I’m thinking of flower, hedges and maybe a pond.

Don’t have any worries about my garden being neat!! Four year old has been planting today and had a lot of fun. We had a walk down the road and spotted 8 bird feeders so I think I’ll make a bird bath so they can drink/wash. Thanks for the help everyone.

Holes under your fence or put in a couple of hedgehog Highways.
Teasle for the bees in summer and birds in winter. The plants are total beasts but they are easy to spot and pull up if they try to take over.
Sunflowers, again for the bees in summer. Keep the heads for winter. I tie them to a small tree and the blue tits snack on them once winter really kicks in, usually mid December.
Don't forget water and to melt it in winter.

Don't use pesticide, fungicide or weed killer.
A pond is brilliant
Choose a range of plants so that there is always something flowering eg ivy for winter.
Create habitats,
Put nest boxes on north facing walls
Garden for insects, if you have insects the others will follow.
If you can get hold of any rotten old logs, make a log pile and let them rot down.
Don't fret over native species but avoid anything that flowers as a double.
Don't cut back perennials until the spring or ensure seed heads are left out somewhere (we get goldfinches that love verbena bonariensis seeds)

Buddleia davidii (the most common one) is invasive, the pp was right. It notoriously self-seeds very easily and spreads all over the place.

www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/advice/gardening-for-wildlife/plants-for-wildlife/shrubs-for-gardens/invasive-shrubs/

Even if you control it with pruning, the trunk and roots can become so big that they cause damage or compete hard with other things trying to grow nearby. It can also seed itself high up in awkward, hard-to-reach places like gutters and bits of roof and cause damage.

But there are different varieties of buddleia, some of which will NOT do this and are still really beautiful, and great for butterflies.

Thanks @Lucanus, interesting read.

Ultimately I agree, if the invertebrates are well looked after, as the base of the food chain, the rest should have an easier time. Of course there are many other factors, but a good place to start.

OP I had exactly what you had and I couldn't believe how successful in 1 or two years I was in increasing pollinators and the natural food chain and it really made me SO happy (and I learned so much in the process). I am lucky in that I was yearning for a sort of country-ish look and feel, and lots of plants that fit into that aesthetic that are hardy, disease free and attract pollinators.

Malus evereste (crabapple) is small, pretty and birds love it. I also planted a rowan by my gate - for good luck - it's still a small tree fully grown but would take thirty years to do that and can be easily pruned on the way.

I read a great book called 'brilliant and wild' which recommended nepeta I think walkers gold or similar. Also bees LOVED chives and oregano.

Climbing roses - try and not spray them as greenfly attract sparrows! I was just sitting on my patio thinking how lazy i was not trying to reduce greenfly (i only ever spray them with a drop of washing up liquid in water and just remove the worst with my fingers anyway) and then a cute little bird just flew over my shoulder and started eating the greenfly! Apparently a huge source of food for them.

Hardy geraniums are easy to look after and bees LOVE THEM. I had wargrave pink but looking it up now I can see it might be considered invasive.

verbena bonariensis made my garden a riot of butterflies in autumn.

Also I really left my lawn to be a riot of daisies and buttercups, I mean I cut it but never treated it with anyone weird.

Was SO PROUD when i discovered some newts as well as the increased bird life. It really is 'if you build it, they will come'.

Bees love alliums - I let chives, onions and leeks go to flower. The leek ones are amazing. Huge pompoms buzzing with bees.

My garden is urban, not suburban, and I see some wildlife. Usually have a 'pond' and that attracts a lot including dragonflies.
It doesn't need to be deep. Make sure that there is a way out of it if a hedgehog falls in, and put a strong heavy mesh cover over it if you have young children.

Make an insect hotel, your little one can assist there must be tutorials on youtube. I would not have a pond with such a young child.

Best thing we did was the pond. Little more than a large puddle really but heaves wilth wildlife. Loads of frogs and tadpoles, water beetles and snails, the birds and hedgehogs drink at it and lots of native flowering plants around it.

@Frockfinding , it doesn't need to be a proper pond. A bird bath or a basin, or a puddle or bog-garden area will be a big help.
If you have children or grandchildren, a proper cover on anything remotely pond-like is a must. I'd say no to trampolines as well as ponds.

A couple of good books are:

No Nettles Required by Ken Thompson
How to make a wild life garden by Chris Baines

Yay good luck with the project!
If there is space for an apple tree go for it 100%.
Grow ivy on something that isn't the house. You need to be careful in choosing the right place for it but ivy is one of the single best plants for wildlife.
Honeysuckle up the fencing.
Another vote for hardy geraniums being a pollinator magnet and looking fab all summer. Also wild marjoram, queen annes lace, corn marigold.
Given you have lots of paving - mint. It will spread as far as the paving allows so keep it surrounded by concrete in some way. The flowers attract lots of bees/butterflies plus you can make (proper) mint tea from it.
Free birdbath pending any pond installation - Large Wagamama take away bowl. Stick a rock in it and put it on the floor in an open area (so cats can't jump out from a hiding place nearby). I surrounded ours with rocks as well to reduce the risk of tipping over.