Gardening Blog

Appreciating the close relationship between butterflies and moths and their foodplants is the key to helping create a space where they can feed, breed and shelter.

From Autumn onwards there are leaves of beautiful browns, yellows and greens turning to crispy litter in gardens and green spaces across the UK. But before you reach for your rake or (for the more technologically advanced among us) the leaf blower, stop and think, ‘what is in my leaflitter?’

The Secret Gardener kicks off the year with their tips for using old Christmas trees to create habitat for wildlife in your garden.

Huw Pennell, one of Butterfly Conservation's volunteers in Edinburgh, shares the story of the creation of his urban wildflower meadow.

This summer, parts of the UK have experienced drought conditions, and we’ve all been advised to cut down on our use of water.

Our blog this month comes from Butterfly Conservation’s Supporting Science Officer Rachael Conway, who has led the relaunch of Garden Butterfly Survey this year.

As we head towards the Big Butterfly Count, we've got some top tips for attracting butterflies to your garden this summer.

Following the most successful ever translocation of Chequered Skipper butterflies from Belgium to England, ZSL (Zoological Society of London)’s wildlife veterinarian, Dr Tammy Shadbolt talks about her experience as part of a team working on a four-year project to bring them back from extinction.

While their hands may be small, their impact can be mighty!

The Secret Gardener reveals some of the best ways to help butterflies and moths this June. Hint: one involves tea...!

This month our Secret Gardener has heard from a volunteer who's been making her village in the Scottish Highlands a haven for butterflies and creating lots of Pitstops for Pollinators.

Don’t just plant to look pretty, plant with purpose! We want as many people as possible to turn their green space into a habitat that will help butterflies thrive. But we’re also aware that a lot of first-time gardeners don’t always know where to start. We can help.

The Secret Gardener explains how, during worrying times, we can find hope in nature and that we all have the power to help make a positive difference to our wildlife.

Ensuring garden birds have everything they need to raise their chicks in your garden means providing habitat for moths.

Whether you have a single decaying log or a stately stack of sticks, having fallen wood in your garden is a vital resource for insects.

While you eagerly await your first glimpse of a butterfly in 2022, why not enjoy other wildlife and take part in the RSPB's Big Garden Birdwatch.

With hundreds of caterpillars and pupae tucked away in our gardens over the harsh winter months, sometimes the best thing we can do for nature is nothing! Here the Secret Gardener explains why leaving leaves and not cutting back hedges is the best thing to do for butterflies and moths in the winter.

November is still a good time to plant bulbs that will flower in spring and summer of the following year, and if you're planning to establish a mini-meadow in your garden, now is the time to get started.

When gardening in autumn and winter, I am always mindful that there are likely to be dozens of butterfly and moth species around me that I simply can't see because they are spending the winter extremely well-camouflaged or hidden in fallen leaves.

As we head into Autumn later this month, CJ Wildlife share some expert advice on how you can care for creatures visiting your garden.

Garden wildlife specialists and sponsors of the Big Butterfly Count, Vivara.co.uk, share expert tips on attracting wildlife to your garden.

In the last instalment of our Nurture for Nature blog, Dobbies Garden Centres' Marcus Eyles shares his top tips for getting gardens looking their best over summer.

Dobbies' Horticultural Director, Marcus Eyles, shares some top tips for ways in which you can use your garden to boost your mental and physical health as part of Nurture for Nature campaign.

Dobbies Garden Centres, official partners of our Nurture for Nature campaign share their top tips on how to keep your soil healthy.

This month the Secret Gardener explains why we shouldn't be wishing for the warmer weather too soon and shares some ideas on what to do in the garden this month.

The Secret Gardener reminds us that we need to give nature the space it needs this winter, and when we do, the results can be magnificent. 

This Autumn, CJ Wildlife, remind us that all of our gardens, no matter what size, can become bustling nature reserves for our local wildlife.

As the days begin to shorten in late summer, we know we are on the cusp of autumn and need to consider how we can help insects like butterflies and moths get through the coming winter.

Summers never seem long enough here in the UK, and later in June there’ll be the summer solstice, after which the days will begin getting shorter again. So all we can do is make the best of these long days and short nights by being outdoors as much as possible to soak it all up.