Gardeners 'can attract wildlife into the backyard

18:06:20 8th June 2010

Avid gardeners can sign up to the Royal Horticultural Society's (RHS) campaign entitled Variety for Life and help attract wildlife into the garden.

The RHS is supporting the International Year of Biodiversity through the campaign and will give those who sign up in the next ten days two packets of free seeds.

Tips that can help gardeners promote wildlife in the garden include building a compost heap, installing a hedgehog hibernation box, planting some wildlife friendly plants and flowers and creating a leaf pile.

David Bellamy, British botanist and author, said: "Be proud of your solar powered compost heap. It buzzes with biodiversity the year round while reducing, reusing and recycling garden waste."

Other ideas include building a bee hotel, digging a pond and collecting rain water.

This year was declared the International Year of Biodiversity by the UN and in a bid to raise awareness of biodiversity.

Biodiversity can be defined as the collection of ecosystems that support life on earth. It is hoped that the UN scheme will encourage humans to do more to protect the environment.

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