Garden Information
HOW CAN I HELP HEDGEHOGS?
GARDEN:
A safe wildlife- friendly garden is the best way.
An old-fashioned mixed garden, with borders full of shrubs and flowers.
Vegetable patch where there is soil regularly dug.
Fruit bushes and trees, fallen fruit often attracts insects.
Compost bin that a hedgehog can dig in.
Lots of hedges (‘HEDGEhogs’) bushes, trees, shrubs, flowers. Wild areas with log piles, areas behind a shed undisturbed.
All the above makes a perfect habitat for hedgehogs.
Other things to consider is how they can access your garden
Through hedges is perfect, holes or gaps under gates or fences, purpose-built hedgehog highways, a 13cm hole cut in the fence in several places between gardens is ideal.
Hedgehog highway gaps under the fences. A very important addition to encourage hedgehogs in your garden. You can drill a 13cm hole even in the concrete base fences.
Here’s an example of a natural hedgehog highway hole
Other things to consider is how they can access your garden?
Always consider these things about your garden and also adjoining gardens.
Do you know if there are badgers, polecat's minks around?
Dogs are a predicator to hedgehogs, they can bark or bite.
Do you or they have a pond with shallow access out?
Are you near a busy road?
If near a cattle grid, does it have an access ramp?
Do your neighbours or a Farmer use pesticides nearby?
Are there holes in the ground, drains, footings, building works?
Netting for football, peas or fruit bushes?
Would you buy or make a hedgehog house?
Make a feeding station for hedgehogs that is cat proof?
Put clean water in several areas in the garden in shallow bowls?
All the above should help to attract hedgehogs to your garden.
With all the new-builds going up in our towns, the gardens are small, concrete everywhere, fences or walls that stop wildlife, raised beds or pots, artificial grass, carparks. The countryside is shrinking and the increase of badgers and foxes all competing for the same food,
Habitat’s lost, old woodlands cleared for new roads, streams and rivers diverted or piped under construction areas.
The hedgehogs don’t stand a chance of surviving unless we all do our part!
The British Hedgehog Preservation Society are doing an amazing job of publicising the plight of hedgehogs and campaigning for them to be protected. The Hedgehog Street, can be found online and has a mapping system to log all hedgehogs seen whether dead on the road or in your garden. Please look them up.
We are always looking for the ‘perfect release gardens’ for our hedgehogs if they can't go back to where they were found)
If you feel your garden is suitable, please get in touch - Thank you