4 Easy Ways to Create a Nature Sanctuary in Your Garden — Even if it’s Tiny

Spending time in nature has been proven to boost your mental health and sense of wellbeing. (Mind) Creating a tiny nature sanctuary will help to improve your mood and benefit your local wildlife — everybody wins!

Whatever the size of your outside space, be it a balcony, a communal space or a tiny courtyard, you can brighten your life by encouraging wildlife to it. Nurturing your precious plants and visitors will offer you great comfort and a valuable sense of achievement in these tricky times.

If more of us use these 4 easy ways to create a nature sanctuary, we can make huge improvements in protecting our local wildlife.

It’s a win for you. And a win for nature.

1. Feed the Birds

Not just for Mary Poppins, this is a great start to encourage wildlife into your garden. Try a stick-on feeder for your window, or invest in a hanging feeder for a branch or freestanding pole. Garden birds will thrive on a regular supply of tasty treats.

Ark Wildlife has a superb range of seed and feeders. Ark Wildlife

They’re also super friendly and helpful if you need advice.

Kingsley, our resident robin, tucking in to a suet enriched garden bird seed mix. This plastic feeder is attached to the window glass with suction cups — simple and effective.

2. Put Out Water for Drinking and Bathing

It’s amazing to see the variety of wildlife that will be very grateful for a bowl of fresh water. Birds need to bathe often to keep their feathers healthy. Hedgehogs are thirsty little creatures; they will include your garden on their nocturnal rounds, if there’s water in a dish on the ground.

Any plastic, ceramic or glass bowl will do. Maybe even the ugly salad bowl Great Aunt Beryl gave you can finally fulfil its destiny… Adding a few stones or a ping pong ball will prevent the water from freezing as quickly in winter.

3. Make a small woodpile

This is probably the easiest step in this whole post. When you cut back any plant, empty any container of compost or cut the grass, you can simply pile everything in a corner.

The combination of woody stems, earth and soft grass clippings will gradually rot and provide a haven for mini beasts.

This would be an excellent place to put your bedraggled Christmas tree to save annoying the recycling collectors!

4. Cut your grass (if you have any) less often

Less work for you and so much better for the bees. Clover, dandelions and nettles are rich sources of nectar for many species of bees.

Letting the grass grow a little longer will allow pollinators to benefit, rather than scalping the lawn too short.

Bees and other pollinators feast on clover. Try leaving your grass a little longer between mowings.

That’s it folks! 4 easy ways to create a nature sanctuary in your tiny space — which one will you try first?