A booklet to assist everyone to help biodiversity by increasing wildlife in their gardens, no matter how big or small, has been recently launched. The brainchild of Juanita Browne, the booklet was produced by Laois County Council with the assistance of Local Authority Heritage Officers across Ireland. Also support from the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the Heritage Council.

Taking a very practical approach, the book details projects to help wildlife of all kinds under a range of headings, with tasks suitable for everyone from the total beginner to the more ambitious DIY enthusiast. With clear instructions and step-by-step drawings by illustrator Barry Reynolds, the guide offers the gardener lots of options to help our biodiversity.

Biodiversity in Your Garden Children’s Book

As a companion to the book, a children’s book with kid-friendly information on garden wildlife and colouring pages using Barry Reynolds’ fun original illustrations has also been produced.

New guide shows how to look after wildlife in your garden

With increasing agricultural intensification, gardens in many areas can be an oasis for wildlife, and with small changes we can make them even better. The guide outlines actions that can be taken to improve gardens for birds, bees, butterflies, bats and more, and the good news is many of the steps that can be taken are really easy. Just leaving an “untidy” corner of your garden for nature, leaving roadside verges to grow naturally or allowing some of the gold star plants for biodiversity – dandelion, willow, bramble, clover, ivy  – a spot in your garden can reap huge dividends for wildlife.

Every Garden Is Important

Inviting birds, butterflies, bees, wildflowers, and trees into your own garden won’t just help the planet, it will help you too!

A sterile garden, with tightly mown grass, or hard/artificial surfaces, offers humans no exposure to nature, no buzz from busy insects, no birdsong, no life. People feel better when they are surrounded by nature and indeed this sense of wellbeing increases directly with an increase in biodiversity – the wilder the area, with more different types of plants and animals, the better you will feel!

A visit to a town park with tightly mown lawns cannot compare to how good you feel on a walk through a wildflower meadow or a semi-natural woodland. So just imagine the health benefits of bringing some of that feel-good nature right to your back door!

To find out more about how you can create a haven for wildlife you can download Gardening for Biodiversity and Biodiversity in Your Garden – A colouring Book for your mini gardeners. Lets work together and make small changes that will make a big difference to our biodiversity.

A new series of short films has now been made to accompany the book – click below for more: