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The Wildlife Garden Podcast

The Wildlife Garden Podcast

A monthly podcast on how to garden for wildlife right at home with top-tips, plant ideas and even a book club!

wildlifegardenpod.substack.com
  • 34 episodes
  • Updated Apr 1, 2024

Episodes34

  • Apr 1, 2024 · 8 min

    Podcast Update

    Hi all! It’s been nearly a year now since the last episode of The Wildlife Garden Podcast. We’ve had a lot to deal with in our personal lives so it has had to take a back seat. Ellie and I (Ben) are no longer working together, but Ellie is still going strong with her business, Ellies Wellies Organic Gardening. Although we’ve headed our separate ways, we’ve decided that we really want to keep the podcast going. You’ll have a little longer to wait, but we will return this summer for a new series! If there are any topics you want us to cover, let us know. You can always contact us via the comments on Substack or email us at hello@wildlifegardenpod.com. Over the next few months I will be walking around 1,400 miles from the tip of Scotland at John O’Groats, right down to the furthest reaches of Cornwall at Lands End. Wish me luck with the weather and I hope to make some interesting botanical sightings along the way. Ellie is having an adventure of her own. As a Francophile, two weeks wildlife spotting around the French countryside can’t get much better, that’s if she finds time amongst drinking wine and eating cheese! She is particularly looking forward to her stay at Le Moulin De Pensol in the Limousin area near Limoges. With 8 hectares of rewilded land, they have an amazing array of wildlife. They are listeners to the podcast too, so get a big thumbs up from us 👍. If you’re interested in staying there yourself, you can find out more here Rural Holiday Accommodation In France - Le Moulin De Pensol. While we have been away, other wildlife gardeners have been busy. Huge congratulations to our friends at The Wildlife Garden Project who have just launched the amazing Wildlife Garden Directory. The directory is a simple website where people looking for a wildlife friendly gardener can put in their postcode and find like minded professional gardeners near to them. If you are looking for a gardener, or you’re a gardener yourself and want to be listed on the directory, follow this link for more information Find a Wildlife Gardener - Wildlife Garden Directory. We are both looking forward to getting back behind the mics this summer. Until then, we hope you have a fabulous spring and enjoy the sunny months to come. Ben and Ellie This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wildlifegardenpod.substack.com

  • Jun 3, 2023 · 58 min

    Ep. 33 Let It Bloom June! And a Spectacular Speedwell

    As we head into June we encourage you to leave the mower alone, with a little help from Plantlife. Then we have the second part of our interview with the fabulous Dr Abigail Lowe, talking about the preferred food for pollinators. And we polish things off with a stunning garden speedwell as our Native Plant of the Month, Veronica spicata ssp. spicata. Help us keep the podcast running by making a donation! Every penny goes towards our running costs, and means there are no adverts or sponsors messages to listen to. We're grateful for any donations to PayPal. Our Links Find the podcast in your podcast app The Wildlife Garden Podcast | Facebook The Wildlife Garden Podcast (@thewildgdn) | Twitter Ellie’s Wellies – Organic Gardening | Facebook The Wild GDN | Youtube Websites for Wildlife Gardeners Garden Wildlife Recording Schemes Buzz Club Big Butterfly Count Big Garden Bird Watch BTO Garden BirdWatch Nature Overheard Bugs Matter Sightings Blackbird White-tailed Bumble Bee Poplar Hawk Moth Hedgehog Grey Heron Carrion Crow Wood Pigeon No Mow May Plantlife Guide To Liberating Your Lawn No Mow May The Right Way Wildlife Garden Forum Symposium Dr Abigail Lowe Nature Overheard Project Urban Nature Project Plants, pollinators and their interactions under global ecological change: The role of pollen DNA metabarcoding Shifts in honeybee foraging reveal historical changes in floral resources Using DNA metabarcoding to investigate honey bee foraging reveals limited flower use despite high floral availability Seasonal progression and differences in major floral resource use by bees and hoverflies in a diverse horticultural and agricultural landscape revealed by DNA metabarcoding Spiked Speedwell - Veronica spicata ssp. spicata Biological Flora of the British Isles: Veronica Spicata Botanical Society for Britain and Ireland Plant Atlas 2020 RHS - Veronica spicata Gardeners World How to Grow Veronicas Early Bumblebee Buff-tailed Bumblebee White-tailed Bumble Bee Pantaloon Bee Yellow Legged Mining Bee Heath Fritillary This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wildlifegardenpod.substack.com

  • Apr 10, 2023 · 1 hr 10 min

    Ep. 32 Interview: Dr Abigail Lowe and Windflower

    This month we are thrilled to interview Dr Abigail Lowe, Community Science Officer at the Natural History Museum and an expert on plants and their pollinators. We also have a brief clip from the British Trust for Ornithology and a wildlife gardening correspondent too! If that’s not enough, we then look at a spring delight, the charming Windflower or Anemone nemorosa. Help us keep the podcast running by making a donation! Every penny goes towards our running costs, and means there are no adverts or sponsors messages to listen to. We're grateful for any donations to PayPal. Our Links Find the podcast in your podcast app The Wildlife Garden Podcast | Facebook The Wildlife Garden Podcast (@thewildgdn) | Twitter Ellie’s Wellies – Organic Gardening | Facebook The Wild GDN | Youtube Websites for Wildlife Gardeners Sightings Hairy-footed flower bee - Bumblebee Conservation Trust Lacewings Two-pronged Bristletails Red Dead-Nettle Greenfinch Wildlife Garden Forum Symposium All WLGF talks Rob Jaques - Observing extreme weather events through weekly garden wildlife records Dr Abigail Lowe Nature Overheard Project Urban Nature Project Plants, pollinators and their interactions under global ecological change: The role of pollen DNA metabarcoding Shifts in honeybee foraging reveal historical changes in floral resources Using DNA metabarcoding to investigate honey bee foraging reveals limited flower use despite high floral availability Seasonal progression and differences in major floral resource use by bees and hoverflies in a diverse horticultural and agricultural landscape revealed by DNA metabarcoding Anemone nemorosa Wood Anemone (Anemone nemorosa) (plantlife.org.uk) Anemone nemorosa L. in BSBI Online Plant Atlas 2020 Bilberry bumblebee - Bumblebee Conservation Trust Melanostoma mellinum | NatureSpot Platycheirus discimanus | Flickr The Fern | UKmoths Endophytus anemones [Hymenoptera: Tenthredinidae] in Leaf and stem mines of British flies and other insects (ukflymines.co.uk) Flax Tortrix Cnephasia asseclana | UKmoths Save The Trees Of Armarda Way STRAW Plymouth (Save the TRees of Armada Way) This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wildlifegardenpod.substack.com

  • Mar 2, 2023 · 1 hr 7 min

    Ep. 31 The Garden Jungle and Holly

    Join us in our Garden Jungle with a fabulous book by Professor Dave Goulson. If that's not enough, we have brand new research from Professor Goulson's team on garden birds and we look at a fabulous tree for wildlife, the native Holly. Find all the in...

  • Dec 28, 2022 · 1 hr 3 min

    Ep. 30 A Riotous Rainbow of Winter Colour

    Gardens should be full of flower all year round! In this episode we prove you can have every colour of the rainbow brightening your garden this winter. Then pucker up for our Native Plant of the Month: Mistletoe. Find all the information and links me...

  • Nov 28, 2022 · 1 hr 1 min

    Ep. 29 The Deadwood is ALIVE! With Silver Birch

    It's sometimes said that wood is most alive when it is dead. In this episode we delve deep into the rotten world of deadwood and discover the fascinating range of creatures that rely on it. We then pick one tree in particular, the stunning Silver Bir...

  • Nov 2, 2022 · 54 min

    Ep. 28 Should we Rewild our Gardens? Plus...the Hart’s Tongue

    A big question many wildlife gardeners may have asked themselves...should we Rewild our gardens? After a chat about our opinion, we get 'fernatical' about the Hart's Tongue, the first fern as part of our native plant of the month! Find all the inform...

  • Oct 16, 2022 · 1 hr 1 min

    Ep 27. A Festival of Fruit with the Humble Hawthorne

    In this episode we ask...what is fruit? And what fruits are good for wildlife? Then, as our native plant of the month, we take on the thorny yet fruity staple of the British garden and countryside, the humble Hawthorn. Find all the information and li...

  • Sep 4, 2022 · 58 min

    Ep 26. Beguiling Bees and Knockout Knautias

    Have you ever wondered what all the buzz is about in your garden? This episode we get to grips with some of the wild bees you are likely to find, with the help of 'The Secret Life of Garden Bees' by Jean Vernon. We then learn about a knockout Knautia...

  • Jul 24, 2022 · 1 hr 14 min

    Ep 25. Compost, Worms and the Flowering Rush

    This week we dive deep into the musty world of your compost bin and look at the wildlife you could find there. We are also joined for the second time by worm expert Dr Emma Sherlock. Then, we cover our first native pond plant, the charming Flowering ...

  • Jun 5, 2022 · 1 hr 2 min

    Ep 24. Purple Moor Grass and Dr Emma Sherlock on Worms

    In a jam packed episode we ask: Is spring coming earlier? We then take a closer look at earthworms with Senior Curator of Annelids at the Natural History Museum, Dr Emma Sherlock. Finishing the episode, a favourite grass, Molinia caerulea or Purple M...

  • Jan 31, 2022 · 1 hr 12 min

    Ep 23. Happy Birthday to Yew (and us)!

    We've made it! One year of the podcast and 24 episodes later, we have a chat about our own way into gardening and test ourselves on what we've learned so far. Then we look at our most ancient native tree, the Yew. Find all the information and links m...

  • Jan 14, 2022 · 1 hr 10 min

    Ep 22. Delightful Dog Roses and Dr Ian Bedford pt. 2

    A new year is upon us and we start in style by taking a break from our own rules and discuss wildlife we've seen outside gardens over the Christmas holidays. Then we return to the fantastic Dr Ian Bedford who tells us exactly why there is no need for...

  • Dec 6, 2021 · 1 hr 11 min

    Ep 21. Interview: Dr Ian Bedford and Incredible Crab Apples

    As winter comes on more birds start to visit our garden and we discuss some of the plants looking good right now. Then, our guest Dr Ian Bedford tells us about how he gardens for wildlife and insects. We also discuss a botanical mystery about the fab...

  • Nov 23, 2021 · 48 min

    Ep 20. Pollination perfection and ‘The Gin Shrub‘

    Book club is upon us so we delve deep into the world of pollination with a fantastic book by ecologist Professor Jeff Ollerton. After that, Ellie takes a sip of our homemade Sloe Gin while Ben waxes lyrical about the fantastic (if thorny) shrub Prunu...

  • Nov 2, 2021 · 57 min

    Ep 19. Spiky characters: Hedgehogs and Teasels

    As Hedgehogs roam the British countryside looking for a place to nestle down and hibernate for the winter, we discuss how you can help them in your own gardens. Then we take a look at a favourite wildflower of ours that looks fantastic in any garden:...

  • Oct 6, 2021 · 1 hr 2 min

    Ep 18. Farewell Horse Chestnut...Hello Field Maple!

    Sad news at The Wildlife Garden Podcast HQ as the largest tree on our terrace was felled by a neighbour. We lament its loss then tell you what you can do to protect trees in your area and how to choose one for your own garden. We also host Helen Bost...

  • Sep 22, 2021 · 1 hr 11 min

    Ep 17. Interview: Helen Bostock and Oregano

    We host the head wildlife gardener at the RHS, Helen Bostock, as our guest this week. We chat all about the work behind the scenes on the Plants for Bugs and Plants for Pollinators projects as well as her ongoing work encouraging us all to garden wit...

  • Aug 30, 2021 · 1 hr

    Ep 16. Magnificent moths and Guelder Rose

    Moths are stunning and fascinating creatures that share our gardens. This episode we talk about what they are, why they are important and how we can help them! We also share our enthusiasm for the year-round beauty that is Viburnum opulus, or the Gue...

  • Aug 6, 2021 · 1 hr 1 min

    Ep 15. Meadow making and beguiling Brambles

    For our latest book club we read the charming guide to 'Making a Wildflower Meadow' by Pam Lewis. We also chat about the beguiling Bramble which is a boon for your autumn crumbles and wildlife too! Find all the information and links mentioned in the ...