Other websites, useful books and wildlife gardening suppliers

It is not always easy to find reliable suppliers or accurate information about wildlife gardening, or to know which books to buy.   You may like to have a look at some other websites that I have found useful and informative, or check out some of the best wildlife gardening books.

Haiths is a mail order company with a good range of bird seed mixes, feeders and other products for the wildlife in your garden as well as information pages.  You can visit their wildlife gardening pages on www.Haiths.com

Vine House Farm is a company growing their own garden bird seeds.  Their farm, in Lincolnshire, is managed in a way that is entirely wildlife friendly and the conservation work they have done has encouraged back a wide range of birds including lapwings.  www.vinehousefarm.co.uk

Emorsgate Seeds is the best supplier of native wildflower seeds having mixtures for meadows and a wide selection of individual species.  www.wildseed.co.uk

Paul Bromfield Aquatics have an excellent selection of pond and bog plants, including natives, with quick mail order delivery. www.bromfieldaquatics.co.uk  

John Shipton supplies good quality native bulbs and some wildflower plants.    www.bluebellbulbs.co.uk

Chiltern Seeds have seeds of many cottage garden plants.  www.chilternseeds.co.uk

If you prefer to grow your plants without the use of plastic you will find a range of biodegradable pots, trays and plug at The Natural Gardener,  www.thenaturalgardener.co.uk plus peat-free compost and natural weed and pest control products.

For pond liners and underlay for all sizes of ponds and helpful advice go to www.flexibleliningproducts.co.uk

The British Trust for Ornithology has a good website with lots of information about feeding the birds in your garden and putting up nest boxes. www.bto.org

If birds are a real interest, visit the website of bird artist Ian Lewington whose wonderful prints are available for sale online. www.ian-lewington.co.uk 

The Bumblebee Conservation Trust is dedicated to conserving the UK's bumblebees.  Their website has information on identifying these insects and how to attract them to your garden.  www.bumblebeeconservation.org

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation deals with all aspects of these animals and the habitats they live in.  www.arc-trust.org

If you are interested in identifying the moths you may find in your garden or just want to see wonderful pictures of these beautiful insects, visit www.ukmoths.org.uk

Flora Locale is an organisation that promotes the wise use of native flora for planting projects, and campaigns to safeguard our native flora.  You can find out much more about their work on www.floralocale.org 

If you are interested in conservation on a more global scale visit the website of the World Land Trust on www.worldlandtrust.org for information on education, projects overseas and conservation news and issues.  You can also help them to protect rainforests and other wildlife habitats.

Wildlife Gardening Books

There are several good wildlife gardening books around. Here are three of the best that I recommend to participants on my courses.

How to Make a Wildlife Garden by Chris Baines. This book is now a classic and has been revised and updated for the BBC series, Charlie’s Wildlife Gardens. ISBN 0 7112 1711 4

Gardening for Birds. Stephen Moss.   An excellent book by a professional with a real interest in the subject. Garden bird identification, month by month in the garden, plants for birds etc.  ISBN 0 00 220168 2

Creating a Wildlife Garden by Bob and Liz Gibbons. A book with lots of good ideas and beautiful photos. ISBN 0 600 33384 1 (sadly now out of print, but sometimes available second-hand.) 

A selection of wildlife gardening books by Jenny Steel is available from this website.  Click here for more information and an order form.