Fowey

Woodland Wildlife Garden

Woodland Wildlife Garden created in Fowey. The garden was designed by replicating natural woodlands, canopy plants such as; Betula utilis var. jacquemontii (Himilayan Silver Birch) are littered with foxgloves and ferns at their base. The garden contains a native hedge which includes, sloes, bird cherries and hawthorn to provide habitat for birds and a log pile to provide habitats for invertebrates and small mammals. Bare soil in the scheme has been covered with directly sown Pictorial Meadows mix 'Purple Haze.' Feature plants include: Digitalis purpurea and Prunus padus.

Betula utilis var. jacquemontii provides structure as the 'canopy layer' in the scheme. The trees also compliment ferns and foxgloves as they are all key woodland themed plants. Combined with a Wildflower meadow, this merges the woodland and meadow habitats.

Before:

Preparing the space:

Prior to being designed and planted, the Woodland Wildlife Garden was effectively a giant pile of garden waste. The waste was removed and what was left can be seen above; uneven ground saturated with with Petasites pyrenaicus (winter heliotrope.) The plants and tap roots needed to be removed by hand (no chemicals were used!) and then areas designated for paths and beds, marked out and levelled. 

After:

Woodland Wildlife Garden: Structural plants are combined with directly sown meadow seed mix 'Purple Haze' by Pictorial Meadows.

After planting the structural plants - the rest of the ground was prepped for seed sowing

Pinks and Purples take centre stage with 'Purple Haze' meadow seed mix by Pictorial Meadows.

Myosotis - the Forget-Me-Not flowers in spring at the Woodland Wildlife Garden.

Bench and Bee Posts at the top of the Woodland Wildlife Garden. The Bee Posts have holes drilled in, to provide habitats for solitary bees.

Silene dioica the red campion is a key plant in the Woodland Wildlife Garden.

Merging woodland and meadow habitats:

The Woodland Wildlife Garden was created by first marking out a path and beds and then by planting the structural plants such as; Betula utilis var. jacquemontii and the ferns. Afterwards, the rest of ground designated for planting was prepped for wildflower meadow seed sowing. The ground was dug over and a layer of seed compost layered on top as a mulch, which acted as a seed bed for the meadow mix (See Left.) 'Purple Haze' by Pictorial Meadows was selected as a wildflower meadow seed mix for its colour scheme as well as its tolerance for semi shade. 

The Woodland Wildlife Garden changes and evolves throughout the seasons. In Summer, purples and pinks dominate the scheme.

Sowing from seed creates a densely planted, biodiverse, meadow ecosystem.

Foxgloves provide nectar for pollinators

Lush pinks, whites and purples and the primary colours in the Woodland Wildlife Garden.

​"Zac has a wonderful combination of enthusiasm, plant knowledge, skill and care which he has used to great effect on our garden in Fowey. He has recently planned and planted a small area of woodland with native species, and is working to improve the planting elsewhere to encourage more wildlife into the garden. He works very hard and is as excited as we are by the improvements that he has made."

Liz and Malcolm Wall

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