What NOT TO DO In YOUR GARDEN

[@keithhanssen7413]

Not to mention leaving the year’s growth and leaf litter until spring helps protect the plants themselves.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Absolutely Keith, plants have a brilliant way to survive in the "wild" without our help - although not technically native I've never pruned one particular buddleja hard and at 20 years old now it still manages to help itself and provide fantastic cover for birds, and flowers just as well each year :) Best wishes, Joel

[@pauldurkee4764]

My mother lives in a neighborhood that is very anti nature, they hoover up the leaf's, but luckily they bag them up and i tip them in amongst the shrubbery in the back garden. When the ground is frozen, many bird species go through the loose leaf litter looking for food, blackbirds and thrushes love it.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Glad you're making the most of these discarded items, they're so vital for so many creatures, all part of the chain that keep others alive. Come spring it's these creatures that will be vital for birds feeding chicks too, we can provide tons of bird seed but there is no moisture in these of course and that's where insects play a very vital part. Best wishes, Joel

[@tgardenchicken1780]

Here in the upper Midwest of the USA more and more folks are 'getting it'. Many of us Master Gardeners are totally on board with this. For folks who have a hard time seeing the beauty of fall/winter plants left up, check out Piet Oudolf 5 season gardens. I have always seen the fall garden as one of the most beautiful. All the leaves, seed heads and stems just there in their beauty. Ready to protect our garden communities and foretelling a bountiful spring. The 'mess' is beautiful.

[@sbffsbrarbrr]

This is my third year leaving most things up and I love it, especially after a snowfall where everything looks like an artistic drawing. And what I have found is that there is almost no cleanup in spring because so many things are almost decomposed. And those that are not are very easy to pull by hand and thrown on the compost pile.

[@restorationlandscape61]

I agree. People are starting to understand the importance and get over what they thought was the unkept look. Now if we can just get more people to plant naturalistic gardens for habitat growth.

[@twotonenavy]

Piet Oudolf's gardens on Belle Isle in Detroit are beyond amazing and beautiful! They are a dream I'd love for my own yard one day. 😊

[@coolstertothecore]

I had a lovely moment today when lots of Great Tits and Coal Tits arrived in the garden at once. They were in and out of the buddleia and on the apple tree. I also spotted a wren in the ivy at the front, along with the usual blackbirds, sparrows and pigeons. It never stops being exciting to get visitors.

[@janiedunn637]

That’s 👍🏻. The last few wks coal tits in my garden & some male & female chaffinches . Also a dunnock coming back. ❤️ it. I was really close to a coal tit a few times.

[@31Blaize]

I hope this gets spread far and wide. I have had to have a "discussion" with my husband for the last few years I've left stuff over winter to convince him it's a good thing - I still haven't as he just pines for it looking neat. Fortunately he hates gardening so the undergrowth stays 😆 But it's a huge problem in this country that gardens which don't conform with this neat image are viewed as somehow inferior to those manicured ones.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Laughed several times at this comment! This is fantastic, I am glad you are persevering. Not sure where you are but here in the UK it apparently stems from "nobility" and those people being able to afford to employ gardeners, have everything neat, mown and formal.... it led of course to many other people wanting to replicate this "wealth" and to show that they could do it too. Wild doesn't necessarily mean messy, but there are many minds to convince yet and I hope this helps to continue to convert as many people as possible. Best wishes, Joel

[@31Blaize]

@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton UK here too 😄 Busy convincing as many people as possible in my village that at least a bit of wilder patches in your garden is a great thing so will definitely spread this message!

[@scottishsparky7927]

This works for me in many ways, the boost to the wildlife in the garden, the frost protection to the plants, and ultimately less maintenance

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

All 3 of these things! Absolutely spot-on :) Best wishes, Joel

[@sailor_stine]

Love the channel. What a wonderful shift in thinking for all - that a garden is a habitat 💚

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Thank you so much, and welcome to the channel! It's great to have another like-minded person here, and I do hope that the channel encourages more and more people to consider the wildlife when gardening. Many more videos to come this winter, very best wishes - Joel

[@kathrynhopkins]

Love a messy garden, everywhere you look there's life - so interesting. I've been gifted an acre of naturally generated woodland/wild scrub. So many young trees such as oak, ash, and hawthorn, all only 8ft to 12ft tall, with lots of blackthorn growing, all among tall black poplar trees that are starting to thin naturally. It was a floodplain meadow and left for decades (although the poplars were planted by a previous owner and too close together for a pioneer tree). Can't wait to add a floral understory and just enrich areas where wildlife is lacking. Looking forward to documenting in a nature journal. Nature is the most amazing part of being alive.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

How wonderful to read this Kathryn, if anyone should have been gifted this, it's you! What a vital area this will continue to be under your guardianship, keep me updated on this area please and I'd love to know what species visit. Thanks for doing this, and thank you for the support - best wishes, Joel

[@davidcobb8422]

Thanks

[@glen4075]

I honestly think my blackbirds are part spaniel. They actually dig through my pots, earth and leaf litter everywhere 😊

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Haha! Brilliant to see though, busying themselves like they're at a rummage sale. You've obviously got a garden that they appreciate :) Best wishes, Joel

[@janiedunn637]

Exactly a garden 🪴 that has something about it instead of manicured ones. My garden has 🍃 🍁 lying around different places in my garden. Plants just left to their own devices. ❤️ it.

[@Tofog22000]

Great point of view, what NOT to do! Even this time of year, that is a beautiful garden space.

[@ChopsyMiche]

Joel thank you so much for spreading such incredibly important information. I absolutely agree with these wise and wonderful words. Its criminal to strip the garden at the end of the season. I consider myself very lucky in as much as my dearest mum taught me this when I was growing up. Can I please just say that I think that that garden still looks wonderful. Still so much interest and different colours etc, different heights and shapes and textures. A great home for the wildlife through the long winters, and so lovely to look at. Food for the soul x Thank you for sharing. Until next time🌻

[@clodaghgoss5069]

Oh, great advice! I've been doing this for years... mainly for the lovely effect of frost on the seed heads! I'm glad I'm doing the right thing for the animals in my little space ❤

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

You certainly are Clodagh, you certainly are - so many creatures will have benefitted and will continue to do so, and all through very little effort :) Best wishes, Joel

[@Debbie-henri]

Topped up my brash hedges over the past week. It's amazing how quickly they sink down over the course of the year, but as well as providing a habitat for creatires great and small, they make the darkest, richest soil at the base. I really only clear away dead plant growth if I'm planting something new, or I'm dividing old perennial plants.

[@LucyLeaf]

I know what you mean. We’ve had a brash pile (before I even knew that that was what they were called )😂 for the last 25 years, we’ve been piling any weeping willow branches & twigs that come down in storms. At the peak of the year it can be 5’ high & eventually drops down to 2’ over the following months, always amazes me. We have hogs in there🦔looks very cozy 😂Fergus Garrett of the Great Dixter garden arranged a sound scape project to collect the noise of wildlife in the garden & ecologists set up a microphone in a brash pile they constructed. It just looked like a pile of sticks but the noises that were captured was extraordinary, sounded like thousands of mouths munching away.

[@LucyLeaf]

Well worth checking out.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Thanks @Debbie-henri and thanks @LucyLeaf - I have a huge brash pile at the end of the garden and you're right, the way it becomes less and less over the year is incredible, all the ripe for topping up each year. Such a vital habitat for so many creatures and I think I saw that sound-recording video but you've reminded me to watch it again! I have a dear friend that has worked on Springwatch doing exactly this re sound-recordings and I hope to interview him soon and bring another video to the channel :) Take good care both of you, and thanks again - Joel

[@AmirsAllotment]

Very informative Joel! Great reminder for us all 😊 I hope you are keeping well my friend 😊🌱👍

[@wildlifegardener-tracey6206]

The only winter job I do is removing leaves from my pond. I dont touch anything. Leaves are alive with springtails when you lift them. A great mulch for the garden. With the frost recently the garden looked beautiful as theres so many seed heads.

[@mywildwelshgarden-es3fr]

I love your videos and it`s great to see you`re in Wales. I have been a conventional gardener all my life and have just started my journey of wilding my garden. I was thinking that there are so many channels about allotment gardening and so few about wildlife and wild gardening - at least, not that I can find. I`ve just started my own but it feels quite lonely. It would be great to encourage more people to do the same and maybe we could have a little youtube community like the allotment gardeners or homesteaders have. Best wishes, Isabel (My wild welsh garden)

[@maisycakes1125]

Brilliant video and loved Phil’s ‘urban’ sized garden....just the right size for many of us and it was great seeing what he and you had done in it 😊

[@rockandroleplay5465]

Working so hard this year to make my garden accessible to all wildlife! Weve got so many bird pairs living here, its really fun watching them come to the bird table for breakfast in the morning.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Hi there! Your efforts will be rewarded, guaranteed. I agree, there's something very satisfactory in sitting back and watching the grateful birds, able to get through the day due to your thought and generosity :) Best wishes, Joel

[@Mig29now]

I was scrolling through your older videos today. Your great interview with Brett Westwood a few months ago mentioned the huntsman spider and it being quite rare. Well, earlier in 2023, July or thereabouts i came across a small bright green spider in my garden, It puzzled me, so, i looked it up for hours . Seems it was a huntsman spider, nothing else came close to it's description. So if it was a huntsman spider it turned up in one of my plants in my tiny garden in King's Norton, South Birmingham in 2023. I'll look out in 2024 to see if i come across this character again. Wonderful stuff this wildlife thing.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Hi David, that certainly sounds like the green huntsman, which is rare in the UK but not unknown in the south I believe. I really hope you see it again next year as they apparently live to around 18 months, without predation of course! Ensure you have your phone camera with you when you're on the search as this would be such a good record. Do let me know if you see him/her again, they're usually out around May I think. Best wishes, Joel

[@cavendish009]

Could not agree with you more - lovely reason not to do TOO MUCH WORK !!!!!!

[@D-H-D]

Just got back from holiday. Monday morning, coffee and Wild Your Garden with Joel. Great start to the week. Cheers Joel.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Really appreciate reading this on a Monday evening after incessant rain and planting out in the cold! Thanks so much, best wishes - Joel

[@nickiramsay2421]

You don’t need to tell me twice not to do any gardening at the moment, it’s way to chilly 🥶😁 I do love that pond, it’s a similar size to my garden and is giving me ideas 😊

[@blue2mato312]

I get cold for hours now just opening a door or going a few seconds outside, so apart from feeding my balcony birds I’m staying inside wheneber I can! .I’m having minus 14 Celsius at the moment and I’m not prepared for this cold 😆 You should absolutely do something like that, this garden is stunning! So much wildlife both with the pond and vegetation.

[@SisterDogmata]

Hey Joel! Love the leave things alone ethic! It really does work wonders for the winter visitors in our gardens. The rate wild land is vanishing means it really is up to anyone with a garden, no matter how big or small, to help our wildlife out and give them safe havens. Best wishes.

[@barbaral.5980]

Most German gardening books will tell you to leave your borders alone til February or March for added interest and protection cause the winters tend to be colder here. The only thing I will make sure to cut back are the seed heads of selfseeding plants that tend to take over the border, but I can offset that loss. I'm in the lucky situation having bought an older house with a mature garden, which gave me a lot of older trees and shrubs providing everything from dead wood for insects to food and shelter for birds.

Well, I for one can never be accused of doing too much in my garden. 🤣

[@tgardenchicken1780]

LOL, same here.

[@blue2mato312]

Now if only I could convince the board of my building to do the same, but they are so old fashioned they remove every leaf off the overly mowed lawn every autumn and ‘tidy’ around beds. Thankfully they haven’t cut every twig in the few beds though. It crushed my soul last summer when the grass had grown a little and some wonderous wildflowers I had never seen before appeared, I even wondered if they had been planted they were such an anomaly in the lawn. A couple of days later they were all mowed to oblivion. I don’t know if you read comments anymore, at least not my long rambling ones 😂😆, but I would love a suggestion on how to convince such a board and neighbours sharing an outside space (three apartment buildings with a mostly lawn «garden» owned by all of us) how to change and care for wildlife. They also hate the wonderful dandelion.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Hello! I don't have as much time at the moment to keep up with comments, especially as there are over 250 videos on the channel now and I have so many notifications every day - I do try my utmost to reach everyone though, you included, it just might take a little longer these days! Over winter should be better as there is more time in the evenings of course. But this is a great idea for a video and I have made a note - I have also been meaning to do a video on why dandelions are so "hated", I did a long thread on Twitter about it last year and it got such a positive reaction with thousands changing their minds :) I shall do the same for you. Hope you are keeping well, do keep leaving your wonderful comments, I will see them at some point and I do appreciate them :) Best wishes, Joel

[@blue2mato312]

@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton Hi thank you Joel! Sorry you must be very busy with the social media on:top of your gardening work and shop, and it’s all great things that you do. Your channel and some others too help me keep my head above water thinking about what I can do for wildlife. It would be fantastic if you could do something about how to get through to everything from the board of an outdoor space belonging to flats like where I live to councils. You did talk about councils and urban planning in France, so that would be exciting. Your dandelion videos are great, but I’m sure even more on them to turn minds wouldn’t hurt! Best wishes from exceedingly cold Norway ❄️

[@Narnendil]

Great video! On my balcony I usually add leaves (that I've picked elsewhere) to the pots for both plant and insect protection for the winter. I usually cut down my herbaceous plants in late March/early April depending on when the snow is gone and when the spring bulbs start blooming. When the bulbs bloom I want them in full view so I don't want the old perennials blocking that then. Then in my pots where I keep annual plants, I leave the old annuals in the pots until it's time to start sowing new annuals, like in May or so. I also usually keep all my cuttings in a bucket on the balcony until I do my proper spring cleaning, in like May as well, so the herbaceous cuttings stay for longer than April, just in a different spot. (I live in Sweden if some of you think possible April snow is late.)

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

This is perfect, and I expect no less from you :) Great advice and great practice, and I believe you re snow in April! Stay warm, stay safe and keep in touch - best wishes as always, Joel

[@Narnendil]

​@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton Thank you! I do the best I can with the space I have, because I believe even a balcony can do some difference :) It would be fun if you did a balcony video some time if you have the chance, so that more people can realise what they can do with their balcony. And maybe I can get some more advice as well! :D Take care you too and since it's soon now, Merry Christmas Joel! :)

[@lyndalambert9639]

Great reminder Joel! Lovely video,and thanks for the mention on my Goldfinches pic!😊Guess which bird visited my bird bath today the elusive Song Thrush. First since last Winter. 🤗

[@LibertarianGalt]

Got a Crab apple, hawthorn and blackthorn tree down and I have a handful of strawberry plants that have survived the winter so far so if they survive to Feb i'll use them as ground cover for variety. Also got bluebery, gooseberry and raspberry ready to go down! Trying to cut back on blackberry bushes only to add more variety.

[@Eriktheviking66]

Love your channel Joel

[@rebeccaslater1398]

Your delivery and presentation is outstanding. Very enjoyable . Thankyou Joel

[@janne2744]

Here in the U.K. Staffordshire Moorlands we had a v small wildlife garden at the back. There is a small estate behind us and fields and woods over the lane at the front. We're on clay which turned into a bit of a nightmare. Our wildlife pond was on clay...Good but so was the garden...bad. Topsoil was washed into the pond in winter through the rocks and the garden was soggy even in summer. Berries from the pyracantha were sprouting everywhere as was other stuff. It became unmanageable. Pond was raised and lined and part of the garden raised and slabbed. We have a trench between the garden and patio as the water from the garden runs into it even in the summer in wet weather. We took the plants off the walls as it was a muddy nightmare trying to get some order. Fruit bushes dug up. Anyway, after a few years, two pyracantha are back😂. A black elder and a few fruit bushes in tubs are in the small patio area. Tho the back garden was small we did have a variety of birds. Hope we can get some back. We're in our 70s so the front garden is now mainly lawn. A Rowan tree is loved by the birds but the narrow borders have a few plants that wildlife like. For years we've had visiting hedgehogs who still visit..lovely 😊. The badger doesn't come anymore or the selection of birds. The fox still visits and we haven't seen pheasants or hares in the fields for years. Wildlife is diminishing anyway, but if people can keep their gardens wildlife friendly it all helps. We don't welcome wasps. We were inundated with them and their nests for years so now hang fake wasp nests up to deter them from nesting. They're allowed to visit but not stay.

[@friendlymonkey2003]

Interesting ... thank you Joel 👍🏻😃

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Glad you enjoyed it - best wishes, Joel

[@itsmewende]

Not sure how I missed this 2 weeks ago, just showed up today. or again today.? The temps where I live are ridiculously warm, it's like spring during the day, I'm now in zone 8a. Flowers are still blooming, I even see dandelions blooming in the yard. You guys all have a wonderful Holiday.!

[@keithroberts42]

Yes I left mine last year, and I’ll do the same again this year. I had a rare visit from a song-thrush last winter, such a thrill seeing something rarer or unusual visiting the garden.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

That's great Keith, we have two song thrushes here and a mistle-thrush or two in the large tree at the end of the garden (they really do sing loudest after a storm) - we also have many "empty" snail shells which means they get what they need and help me out as a gardener too :) Best wishes, Joel

[@albigensian4655]

only time of year i have ever tidied up my garden is in mid spring, only exceptions is rose or fruit tree pruning. sparows have been stripping the bonariensis most of the winter, not much left seedwise but i still will not prune them back till it warms up and things start to get going

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Fantastic, great to read this, beginning of spring is fine too but you're proof that the birds really do really on a lot of the seedheads :) Thank you, best wishes - Joel

[@lynnrushton7458]

Love being able to forget about the garden for winter……it’s a great excuse haha.

[@Ginger_shot]

Wonderful video. Thank you 🙏

[@UkAmphibians]

Another great video Joel thanks so much for sharing 🐸💚🐸

[@colintmd]

Love your videos and the things you talk about; great information and tips. This winter one has made me feel good about my garden, because right now it looks untidy with lots of old stems and remnants from summer. I will leave it as it is for the insects that might be lurking. I will cut back some vegetation in April. Cheers!

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Thanks Colin, so much. I really appreciate you taking the time to write such a positive comment, and it's lovely to read on a Monday night after a heavy day at work in the rain :) Very best wishes to you and yours - Joel

[@jamescunningham1973]

Great information Joel

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Thank you James, appreciated :) Best wishes, Joel

[@catherinehenderson627]

I live in Scottish Borders. My husband calls all the fields around us a wildlife desert. Farmers flail all the hedges frequently at least twice a year. Our garden is an oasis for the wildlife. We leave all our garden plants shrubs and trees to die back naturally. We love to sit and watch the birds we have hundreds of birds visit every day.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

So good to read this, and your husband is right - although as individuals we maybe cannot influence people on a large scale, we certainly can provide that vital habitat that is being lost in the wider area in our own private spaces - so many gardens in this country could make such a difference to so many creatures. Thanks for caretaking one of them! Best wishes, Joel

[@geo.m1639]

Great vid

[@mytidygarden1236]

Thanks for the video, the wildlife garden even with all the mess, is beautiful! There is nothing I enjoy more in my day than when a Robin comes to visit whilst I am working. However, as somebody who earns a living from tidying gardens, I am facing an unfortunate conflict of interest with this approach to gardening. Perhaps due to lack of knowledge on my part. Many of our customers want the leaves cleared from their lawns, perennials cut back, waste removed, etc. If they didn't, I'm not sure that I would have much work. Many will prefer exotic plants over native varieties, paved areas, artificial lawns, etc. A few of them may perhaps tell me they want to do no mow May (sounds like no pay May); I won't be best pleased about it because the grass will be growing like mad and when they then want it short again in June, they don't realise the extra work involved. Not to mention the stress on the grass. Later in the year, they will complain about the weeds in the lawn. I would like to find a way to 1 introduce more of a balanced approach to how I operate as a commercial gardener, educate customers, and be more wildlife friendly. Hopefully, without sabotaging my means of making a living and providing for my family. Any suggestions appreciated. I look forward to watching more of your videos and continuing to learn.

[@CheshireCat6639]

Great stream Joel as per🎉 i am selling my house and the Estate Agent said " what about the garden"? I said "what about it"? He said,will i be doing it? I said NO its a wild garden and it will kill all habitat that is over wintering! Honest ta god 😢

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

I love the "what about it?" part of your comment! To think that a garden with astro-turf and glass and chrome is a greater selling point than a habitat diverse garden still baffles me, but that's trends for you. Only trouble with contemporary, as we know, is that it means "now" and we've seen those brutalist 1960s estates that look awful now - let alone what will happen with the discarded astro-turf and other adornments when this is no longer fashionable. Hope you find another space that you can transform and I hope you find buyers that appreciate a ready-made wildlife garden that will bring way more interest than any urban desert. Best wishes, Joel

[@CheshireCat6639]

@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton Agreed 100% to your reply..thanku...why are folk so hung up on grass stripes? Yes my new place has a lovely spot for my wild nature garden..my gardener has already asked where will it be..( I shared your video to my Estate Agent) it must be a 1st for them..but I needed to do it..😉🤔🤣

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

@@CheshireCat6639Striped lawns... no dandelions.... I have been researching this over the last year and hope to do a video on this over winter - I did a thread on Twitter about dandelions earlier this year and converted at least a thousand people (not exaggerating) on how they were viewed and why. A little too lengthy to explain here but you've reminded me that I should also do a short video on this as it will help a lot of people fight these old-fashioned views I think. In short, it all stems from an overt display of wealth, having the money to employ gardeners in big estates to keep lawns barren and shorn, to hand-weed dandelions etc - others followed as it meant status/wealth to have an immaculate garden. We need to change this image that has been instilled in us, and it sounds like you're doing your part! Best of luck with the move, and do keep me updated on the new garden. Best wishes, Joel

[@CheshireCat6639]

@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton great reply Ty..I have always loved dandelions..what is not to like..I've never seen them as a weed ! Yes do some shorts Joel....maybe more folk will get it..eventually!?🤔🦔🐌🦋🐛🐜🐝🐞🕷🕸

[@consultingdesign0225]

YaHooooo, I'm yr 100th comment. Soooooo cool. 😉🤭☺️ I just found yr channel 2day. Love that u know yr insects, birds and natural wildlife. Love yr pond too of course. Sooooo I had 2 subscribe and click like!!! I totally agree, I c so many people cleaning up and I ask why and the only reason they give me is so they get ahead start in Spring. So I try 2 give them reasons not too in a gentle way! I've seen Yellow Finches going 2 the Echinacea seed heads already! Going 3 plant more 4 sure! Now 2 watch yr wildlife pond in Rain video! Wish we had those cute hedgehogs here across The Big Pond in NS. 😍🤭

[@waynejones1054]

Brilliant.👍👍 Thamk you.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Thanks Wayne, appreciated :) Best wishes, Joel

[@kevinking7860]

I leave all my plants and grass esp around the pond Insects hide in the flower heads

[@-Pol-]

I copied this to my gardening diary from wikipedia - there's often something to learned from the old ways... "Many Roman festivals and religious observances reflect the Romans' agrarian way of life in their early history. In his treatise on farming, Varro divides the agricultural year into eight phases, with Spring beginning officially on February 7, when Favonius the west wind was thought to start blowing favorably and it was time to ready the fields. The grain fields were to be weeded, vineyards tended, and old reeds burned. Some kinds of trees were pruned, and attention was given to olive and fruit trees." "The agricultural writer Columella says that meadows and grain fields are "purged" (purguntur), probably both in the practical sense of clearing away old debris and by means of ritual."

[@blue2mato312]

I never really tidy for winter, but plenty do and it’s an important subject to leave vegetation for wildlife survival in winter. It’s so cold now (minus 14 Celsius) I have upped my birdfeeding on my little balcony and I have guests all day during daylight. I think you said that birds don’t usually put their droppings in the food but this has become a little problem with the sparrows who definately do that in the saucer I fill several times a day for them, I really don’t know why they jus5 sit their and shit and empty the food around n the ground. But feels like they might all die if I don’t feed them, they should have several gardens to go to but it dosen’t seem like others are feeding birds near by. Got a new winter robin 🧡taking his chances to survive the cold i stead of flying south to the UK or other countries. And Hermes my blackbird from last winter with unusual white feathers on each side of his head came back today haven’t seen him since last speing. Just made homemade fat-balls last night , or you know fatball fillings in a milk carton and a fatball tube. Last one I lined with plastic before hanging it out to freeze, now I have no idea now how to get the plastic off! They hardly touch the store bought fatballs and home made are ususally much more popular.

[@MUSTASCH1O]

Seed heads and long grass look beautiful when covered in frost. That way it feels like winter, rather than a lifeless no man's land.

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Couldn't agree more, this is exactly what makes them not just interesting and architectural with a dusting of frost, but it's also knowing that the plants, shrubs etc are providing late food and cover still. Best wishes, Joel

[@MrC-ov1ht]

Hiya Joel I have just moved house and I have a garden with zero planting, just a blank canvas. I’m looking for fast growing evergreens to provide height, privacy and interest for wildlife. Any help would be brilliant. I appreciate you’re busy so no worries if you don’t see this post. Love the channel.

[@LouciferFlump]

A third of my rudbeckias are dead, a third are frozen in a weird semi-flowering/semi-dead state 🙃and the other third are flowering like it’s midsummer. What’s going on..??! 🥴 I worry about my pond freezing over! I have newts, toads, caddis fly larvae, whirligig beetles and pond snails. Will these have suffocated through the night coz the top of the pond is frozen? I dunno what to do for the best?!!? HELP!

[@BeautifuLakesStreamsBiologists]

I actually agree with this idea. But don't make a place too messy either. Quality ecological design makes the difference.

[@Vikface1978]

Music to my ears 😂

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Brilliant! Sitting back and watching all the different creatures turning up and appreciating what's been left is far more satisfying than clearing everything away and looking at a winter "desert". Best wishes - Joel

[@Ultimatewildlifegardens-ng7mw]

All excellent advice Joel and couldn't agree more. My own channel, (ULTIMATE WILDLIFE GARDENS), carries the same type of messaging. I do subscribe to your channel and would love you to see my "attempts" to encourage wildlife gardens. I have also given you a mention regarding sources of hedging species! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK and best wishes. Chris

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Hi Chris, thanks so much - I've just watched the beginning of your "Myths" video and this is *exactly* why the book and channel are "Wild Your Garden" rather than "Re-Wild Your Garden" and I couldn't agree more with your sentiments and reasoning that gardens can be made more wild, but certainly not re-wilded. Will try to watch a few more when I get a chance, but brilliant stuff - best wishes, and thanks for your support, Joel

[@george-1961]

My wife the other day said that the garden is messy. She still doesn’t get it 😢

[@krisbaker9427]

Talk respectfully to her. Offer her some information. Don’t be scornful.

[@george-1961]

@@krisbaker9427 I’m always giving advice and never scornful, otherwise I’d get a black eye mate 😵‍💫

[@blue2mato312]

Maybe show her Joels video of how much life you will be helping with the «mess» ?

[@sbffsbrarbrr]

I used to think that until three years ago, when I learned about leaving everything natural. I find I now enjoy the more "rustic" winter landscape, especially after a snowfall. The other thing I've noticed is that my soil is getting better and better and I don't need as much mulch since I've been blowing all the leaves on to the garden beds. In the spring, any leaves that haven't decomposed are covered up by new growth. All said and done, it's so much less work for me and so much better for the soil and nature.

[@Cringeage]

Think you’ve got an edit error with your butterfly pics around 13:00 mate

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Yes! Was quite gutted when I watched it back, been working all hours and rushing to get videos edited at the same time, with all the admin that comes in the evenings too, but so disappointed when I watched it back and saw that I'd clearly not concentrated enough! It takes around 2 hours to upload a short video, then checks via YT etc so I couldn't do it again. Best wishes, Joel

[@MrGerrards23]

In short look at what nature does and you can't go far wrong

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

Exactly this :) We just have to convince more people! Best wishes, Joel

[@strato-squirrel5741]

Just want to say iv learned alot from you, I now have 3 foxes, squirrels, headghogs, black birds, starlings, blue tits, great tits, coal tits, goldfinch, sparrows and sparrow hawks. And I haven't started the wildlife pond yet. I've probably missed loads😅

[@strato-squirrel5741]

Robins, wrens, magpies and crows aswel, no badgers yet but maybe one day.

[@Lacking_something]

I often find poo in my garden, but i think it is too enclosed for hedgehogs to access. Must do some research, and gate a night vision camera!

[@ChrisJohnson-pd4hh]

A wildlife garden is all very well but . . . Who wants mice and rats?

[@LucyLeaf]

We have mice in the garden and I’m glad there’s food for the tawny owls and kestrels in the area.

[@ChrisJohnson-pd4hh]

​@@LucyLeafBut what happens if rats move in. They are wildlife too so do you welcome them with open arms?

[@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton]

I think, to be fair, that rats are attracted to discarded food and they can be attracted to a neat and tidy garden where birds are fed and food left on the ground, this goes without saying though. If you have a wildlife friendly garden you'll likely attract foxes too that will utilise a pond for example, and foxes are renowned for predating rats and other rodents. A proper wildlife garden with many habitats will encourage all forms of wildlife and achieve a balance. I have foxes that visit (not tame nor encouraged) but I have never seen a rat. On the other hand I have wood mice who do utilise the bird feeders, particularly fat balls and I have no problem with them at all. Hope this helps and that you will consider wilding an area of your garden. Best wishes, Joel

[@LucyLeaf]

@@ChrisJohnson-pd4hh I understand your concern, we do actually get the odd rat, as does everyone in our village regardless of wether they have a normal/neat/wildlife garden & I dare say most towns and cities have the same. Everything needs food and shelter and they’re going to live along side us when that’s available. I found it’s not the wildlife garden that’s attracting them but usually a food source. So we’ve had to be careful with bird food and putting food out for hedgehogs.

[@helenhawkins4054]

Thanks for the reminder of what not to do.🤔🐝🐛🐞🪰🐭🐦‍⬛🦔

[@kevinking7860]

Thanks