Gardeners are being urged to leave a bucket of grass and water in their gardens this November for a really important reason.
The deeper the bucket the better, such as a large tub you would normally use for gathering cuttings – because it will give you much better chances of handing your garden a boost for wildlife.
While normally gardeners are told to help feed the wildlife in the hot summer months, there’s also a really good reason to hand a boost to nature in November too.
That’s because frogs hibernate in gardens in winter, and both frogs and toads are a vital part of your garden’s ecosystem and, helpfully, they eat pesky problem slugs too.
While the best place for frogs and toads is a garden pond, if you don’t have a pond, you can create an unofficial pond with a bucket of water instead.
Wildlife experts Plantura said: “Many frog species like to hibernate in water, such as at the bottom of a garden pond.
“A pond must be at least 1 metre deep for it to be a suitable hibernation spot, as this is the only way to guarantee that it will not freeze over completely. To ensure good oxygen levels in the water, plant reed grasses or underwater plants in your pond or install a pump. Once the water surface is frozen, do not break up the top layer of ice, as this can stress the hibernating animals and can lead to their death.”
But if you can’t make a pond, getting a deep bucket and filling it with soil, then placing fully grown grasses and reeds in the soil, before filling the rest of the bucket with water can be a good way to make a makeshift hibernation spot, as long as it’s at least one metre deep and one metre wide.
Freshwater Habitats said: “Frogs, and occasionally newts, quite often hibernate at the bottom of ponds among the leaf litter and plants. They can tolerate very low oxygen levels but will survive only a few days if the pond becomes completely de-oxygenated. To minimise the risk of this, make sure that your pond plants are getting some light and can go on producing oxygen under the ice.
“Ultimately, good water quality, and allowing plenty of submerged plants to grow is probably the best way of making sure that your wildlife survives well overwinter.
It’s not just ponds or makeshift ponds, though – many amphibians will also hibernate in other custom built spaces like under piles of leaves, piles of rubble or piles of wood to attract frogs, toads, newts and other amphibians to hibernate.
Freshwater Habitats adds: “Purpose built hibernacula can also be a great help to the overwintering amphibians in your garden. These can be piles of wood, rubble or other material, that are then covered by turf to provide a damp, but sheltered habitat.
“Amphibians prefer to hibernate in small spaces, so packing in loose soil or wood chippings will make hibernacula more attractive to them.”
