How to make a woodland edge garden for wildlife
Few of us can contemplate having a wood in our back gardens, but just a few metres is enough to establish this mini-habitat!
Few of us can contemplate having a wood in our back gardens, but just a few metres is enough to establish this mini-habitat!
Living up to its name, the bullhead has a characteristically large, flattened head and a tapering body. Look out for it in fast-flowing, stony rivers and streams.
Cock's-foot is a common, tussocky grass of grasslands, woodland rides and cultivated ground - its fluffy, pinky-beige flower heads are quite distinctive.
The ragged-edged, purple flower heads of Greater knapweed bloom on sunny chalk grasslands and clifftops, and along woodland rides. They attract clouds of butterflies.
A streaky brown bird, the reed bunting can be found in wetlands, reedbeds and on farmland across the UK. Males sport black heads and a white 'moustache'.
The fly-shaped flowers of this fascinating plant are attractive to insects - but not the ones you might expect!
Gwent Wildlife Trust volunteer, supporter and keen photographer Jeff ‘Otterman’ Chard is the UK Wild Otter Trust Ambassador 2020.His title comes in recognition of his commitment to Otter…
If I fancy a change of scenery, I head down to Peterstone Gout on the Gwent Levels, nestled between St Brides and Newport on the B4239 and six miles west of Newport city centre. The site is…
Despite having the familiar sage-green leaves, Wood sage has very little scent, so is not a good cooking herb. It can be found on acidic soils on sand dunes, heaths and cliffs, and along woodland…
The pincushion-like, lilac-blue flower heads of Devil's-bit scabious attract a wide variety of butterflies and bees. Look for this pretty plant in damp meadows and marshes, and on riverbanks…
As its name suggests, the Dwarf thistle is a low-growing plant that is almost stemless - its purple, thistle-like flower heads growing out of a rosette of spiny leaves.
A familiar 'weed' of gardens, roadsides, meadows and parks, red clover has trefoil leaves and red, rounded flower heads. It is often used as fodder for livestock.