Bring nature into your garden

Studies show that the sounds of birds and the buzz of pollinators have a calming effect on hu-mans. There are many ways that town and city gardens may attract birds, insects, or even small lizards.

Introducing a shade tree to provide resting and nesting place will be attractive to many birds. As your tree develops, there may be flowers that will attract insects and the moment you have insects, the small lizards will follow to feast on the insects. Not all insects are harmful to your plants, and we need to allow room to all creatures if we want to invite nature into our living spaces.

Should you not be able to accommodate a shade tree, a large shrub might also do the thing. Provide additional nesting boxes to attract birds. Bird feeders and bird baths will certainly appeal to many birds. Putting out more than one type of bird seed will also entice a variety of birds. Fruit such as paw-paw will draw many species coming to feast. Bee hotels are also a rather trendy practice nowadays to attract especially leaf-cutting bees which are as important as honeybees undertaking pollination. Such small hotels are filled with reeds and pieces of cane, driftwood, etc. where these bees can go in and nest.

There are many plants that will lure birds to your garden, especially nectar- and fruit- producing plants which will attract hummingbirds and many other fruit eaters. Examples of some plants that produce nectar would be:

• Agapanthus
• Day Lilies (Hemerocallis)
• Petunias
• Snapdragons
• Buddleia (Butterfly bush)
• Tecomaria (Cape Honeysuckle)
• Lonicera (Honeysuckle)
• Fuchsia
• Salvia

Bees are attracted by flower colours such as blue, purple, violet, white and yellow. Any flower with these colours will work, especially if you group them together to create a larger colourful spot for the bees to notice easier.

Creating a safe haven for small lizards is also beneficial as they control pests such as slugs. They like hiding places created by piled rocks, water features and flat surfaces where they can sunbathe especially after a cool night. Help them hide away in creepers against walls, where there is shade and they can scramble around without fearing too much exposure to their natural predators.
I am sure that many of us have already done these things intuitively, so just start focusing on the small critters and birds in your small garden environment and you will be surprised how many tiny creatures you already accommodate. Enjoy them for what they are: part of Nature’s intricate mechanism.



AgriTurf: Marco de Wet
Cell: 081 600 9584



Pupkewitz Megabuild:
Eugene le Roux
Horticulturist
Cell: 081 124 6965