May is a fantastic month to be out and about, especially in
the wildlife-friendly garden. Everywhere looks fresh and new, with vibrant
greens and flowers starting to bloom.
If you’re lucky enough to have had frog spawn in your pond
in February or March, you should now have plenty of tadpoles doing a brilliant
job of feeding on algae and weed and feeding lots of other creatures in turn.
The odds are pretty long for a tadpole to carry out their extraordinary
transformation into a fully fledged frog, but a few will make it through. Help
them out by providing clear and easy routes out of your pond and be very
careful where you mow, trim or tread. New frogs are pretty tiny and very vulnerable
when they first start to hop!
Talking of fledging, the first batch of chicks for birds
such as blue tits or robins may be taking to the wing for the first time this
month, a reward for their parents’ dedicated care. Once fledged, successful
pairs may try for another batch, so may soon have another set of hungry mouths
to feed.
Wildlife-friendly gardeners will no doubt be familiar by now
with ‘No Mow May’; a great excuse to pack the lawnmower away for a while and
help wildlife into the bargain. Fledging and new chicks will need plenty of
invertebrates to keep them going as they rapidly grow and longer grass can help
attract plenty of mini-beasties to your garden. You might also be surprised at
what emerges in your lawn if left to its own devices, with wildflowers popping
up and providing a welcome burst of colour when given a chance.
As the days lengthen and the weather warms, bats will become
regular evening visitors to some gardens. You can help them by planting
evening-scented plants that attract night-flying moths and other important
pollinators, who can be a great food source for bats. If you would like to find
out who is visiting your garden at night, you can borrow, free of charge, one
of our brilliant bat detectors. Reserve yours here
Finally, make sure to take time this month to enjoy the
abundance of life thriving in your wildlife-friendly garden in this most
beautiful of seasons.
