August is a quiet month in any garden
with little to do except general maintenance and wildlife
watching. Many adult birds are still in moult and
therefore inconspicuous, hiding away from predators while they are
vulnerable. The weather can be hot and muggy with the
occasional thunderstorm, and warm evenings outside may be
plagued with tiny biting insects such as gnats and
mosquitoes. These small insects provide food for many other
animals including bats, which may put in an appearance over
your garden or in the park at dusk. There should still be
plenty of nectar and pollen bearing plants in flower all
around with insects everywhere, including wasps and
hoverflies.
Buddleia may be coming to the end of its
flowering season now, but deadheading it will prolong the
appearance of new flower spikes. This may be a rather
laborious task, but is worth it to provide nectar for the late
summer butterflies such as red admiral, painted lady, and
small tortoiseshell.
Make sure your pond is regularly topped
up. It may be the only accessible water in the area and your
local birds, hedgehogs and foxes may depend on it. In hot
weather some mammals may even visit to drink during daylight
hours. If your pond dries up completely water boatmen, water
beetles and pond skaters may fly elsewhere but the nymphs of
dragonflies and damselflies and many other aquatic creatures
may perish. If you have managed to save rainwater, use this in
preference to tap water, but if tap water is all that is
available, add it little and often rather than a large
quantity all at once.
Swallows may be rearing their second or
even third brood of young. These birds return to their natal
nesting sites so, as colony size increases, nest sites can be
in short supply. By watching the birds now you may see a
suitable spot for an artificial nest in a shed (where the
window can be left open) under the house eaves or in a porch.
Make a note to place an artificial swallow nest cup here early next year.
Garden hedgehogs including youngsters
will be feeding around our gardens and are especially welcome in
vegetable plots and allotments. A hedgehog will eat up to a
hundred invertebrates every night including
caterpillars, earwigs and beetles, but only a few slugs which
are not their favourite food. Encourage them by
creating an area of dried grass and vegetation in an out of
the way place. Make sure this area is left undisturbed to
provide a safe day-time nest site.
Continue to mow lawns at this time if
they need a trim, but make sure you leave the cuttings on the
ground unless you need them for your compost heap. These will mulch down and conserve moisture in the
soil, keeping the grass greener for longer without the need
to water.
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