How to provide bushes for nesting birds
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In the spring, birds choose the best locations to build nests, so why not offer them a safe place to settle?
Many of our prettiest insects feed on nectar, so need flowering plants for their survival. Butterflies, moths, bees and hoverflies all need sources of nectar and pollen to thrive. As they travel from flower to flower, they also pollinate them, enabling them to set seed or bear fruit. So, setting up a nectar café benefits both your plants and you, allowing you to enjoy the flitting and fluttering of beautiful butterflies.
Setting up a nectar café not only benefits your garden, but allows you to enjoy the fluttering of beautiful butterflies too
Setting up your nectar café:
- Choose a sheltered sunny spot
- Place each plant in groups or drifts so that the colour and scent are easy to detect
- Prolong the flowering season – select plants so that you have a show of flowers from early spring to late autumn
- choose flowers with a simple (often flat) structure, like old cottage varieties, as they are the easiest for insects to feed from
- Remember to provide a night-time feast for moths. Plant some night-scented flowers.
- Add herbs to the mix as they are highly attractive to insects, or design a dedicated herb garden
Nectar plant suggestions
| Early season | Mid season | Late season |
| Aubretia spp | Heather - Erica cinerea | Coneflower - Echinacea spp. |
| English bluebell - Hyacinthoides non-scripta | Lady’s bedstraw - Galium verum | French marigold - Tagetes patula |
| Currant - Ribes spp. | Lavender - Lavandula angustifolia | Golden rod - Solidago spp. |
| Grape hyacinth - Muscari armeniacum | Common mallow - Malva sylvestri | Honeysuckle - Lonicera periclymenum |
| Lungwort - Pulmonaria officinalis | Purple toadflax - Linaria purpurea | Ice plant - Sedum spectabile |
| Primrose - Primula vulgaris | Rock cress - Arabis spp. | Ivy - Hedera helix |
| Sweet violet - Viola odorata | Sea holly - Eryngium maritimum | Meadow saffron - Colchicum autumnale |
| Winter aconite - Eranthis hyemalis | Verbena - Verbena bonariensis | Michaelmas daisy - Aster pyrenaeus |
| Wood anemone - Anemone nemorosa | Wallflower - Erysimum cheiri | Common sunflower - Helianthus annuus |
| Alyssum - Alyssum montanum | Red valerian - Centranthus ruber |
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More ways you can help bees
How to help wildlife at school
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Whether feeding the birds, or sowing a wildflower patch, setting up wildlife areas in your school makes for happier, healthier and more creative children.
How to create a container garden for wildlife
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Pots and containers are a great way of introducing wildlife features onto patios, or outside the front door. They are also perfect for small gardens or spaces like window ledges or roofs. Herbs, in particular, make good container plants and attract lots…
Send a 'letter to the Editor'
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Sending letters 'to the Editor' of local newspapers is another great way to speak up for wildife.
How to help wildlife at work
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Attracting wildlife to your work will help improve their environment – and yours!
How to attract butterflies to your garden
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Provide food for caterpillars and choose nectar-rich plants for butterflies and you’ll have a colourful, fluttering display in your garden for many months.