Living with SW France Nature - The Local Buzz

Living with SW France Nature by Sue Sargeant

It’s no surprise that those who are keen gardeners like Sue also love wildlife. Here she highlights how gardens and wildlife (including pests) can live in harmony to create a perfect place where plants thrive and pests survive.

The challenge is not an easy one and there will always need to be compromises. Here are some ideas to help meet the “visitors” half way.

Sue Sargeant

First of all, fencing is a must to keep the “bad guys” such as Sanglier (Wild Boar) and Blaireaux (Badgers) out of the garden. These animals will certainly rotavate your garden if left unchecked. Chevreuil (Deer), in particular, love to eat roses and will make a meal out of your vegetables.

More welcome visitors might be the birds and, the more trees there are in and around the garden, the more birds you will have. The trees provide safe landing sites, protection from predators, and perfect nesting places.

The thrill of a garden full of wildlife is not to be missed and to extend the range of species and enjoy Living with SW France Nature you could:

Leave some areas “au naturel” to allow wild flowers to flourish and insects to hide.
Plant flowers and shrubs that are particularly attractive to bees and butterflies such as Echinacea, Verbena Bonariensis, Cerinthea Purpurea, Nicotiana Fragrant Cloud and Viburnum Oculus, Spirea and Pyracantha.
Stagnant water is a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes so avoid it wherever you can and use a pump to keep water flowing in ponds and fountains.
Log piles are a perfect place for insects and other small animals to hibernate.
Learn to love insects by adopting a companion planting scheme.

First published in the July/August 2019 issue of The Local Buzz

Images: Sue Sargeant and Shutterstock