The Lazy Wildlife Gardener
A very slow, environmentally friendly approach to gardening.
Collapsed Lilac
A bit of a problem with a tree: October 2021
I had noticed the encroachment of the lilac over a dormant and barely used child's trampoline but I assumed this was simply all down to the tree's growth. One autumn day revealed a more significant problem, however, as a sizeable section of the tree collapsed and was only being supported by the trampoline frame and an old pallet. There was clearly some work to do here and my initial task was to extricate the trampoline.
Summertime Weeding
A little bit of garden toil on a Saturday afternoon: July, 2021
My philosophy of weeding is that I'll only remove weed growth if it interferes with somewhere I want to use, is an invasive species or it competes with a particular plant that I'd like to thrive. I managed about two hours of weeding this afternoon, completing two jobs before a heavy shower brought me inside for tea and biscuits.
Vibrant Growth
It's time for a little bit of taming: late June, 2021
The late spring and early summer growth has produced grasses up to a metre tall, abundant flowers and plenty of weeds. The weeds, of course, are just those (hopefully) native plants that are best suited to the environment of the garden. Some are perennials which have lain dormant and hidden in the soil all winter. Others are new arrivals: annuals whose seeds have travelled in the air or the digestive tracts of birds and other animals.
A lazy wildlife gardener doesn't want to do too much weeding but some pruning and selective removal is necessary to maintain the definition of a garden.
Philosophy
Almost all human activity is damaging to the environment and gardening is no exception. The most wildlife and planet-friendly garden is one in which you do nothing; just let nature gradually take back control. Brambles, nettles and eventually trees will take over. That, however, would no longer be a garden. It would be a re-wilded patch within whatever human settlement you happen to live in.
At the other extreme is the most human-tamed outside environment, a garden of decking, weed-suppressing membranes, concrete or stone. Just a little bit better for wildlife are gardens of carefully manicured lawns, neat borders and arrays of non-native shrubs and flowers.
The lazy wildlife gardener lives at the wild end of the spectrum. Being lazy (or just not having much time for gardening work) means leaving nature to its own devices for much of the time and in many places. Mowing and weeding are two practices that require a constant battle against nature. Many people appreciate the results of these battles but the lazy wildlife gardener would rather walk away from that fight.
The philosophy is one of tidying and weeding in the places where the gardener desires a particular plant to become established or where unruly growth would otherwise impede on the use of the outside space. Sticking to these principles means that a limited amount of mowing is required (for the grass areas that you want to use) and weeding and pruning occurs in moderation, as time and motivation allow.