About this website and its author
(and a bit about our meadow)
I originally set up the website several years ago simply to provide information for visitors to our garden open days. Because of growing interest in wildlife gardening, and comments from some visitors that they found it difficult to find information, I recently decided to expand and develop the site. There’s a lot of information out there relevant to wildlife gardening, but it can be difficult to find and access without spending a lot of time and effort.
Having expended that time and effort myself, I thought it would help others if I put all the information and sources of information I can find in one place on my website. Having visited wildlife gardens and wildlife gardening websites that are a disappointment, I have decided to concentrate on listing those of good quality.
This site is particularly aimed at garden designers and plants-people who have grown up in the world of horticulture rather than the world of ecology, and don’t know, for example, where to find suggested plant-lists for a wildlife- friendly garden, or what books to read to expand their knowledge of ecology in relation to gardens, and don’t have time to wade through the internet trying to find the right sites or the right books. (Answer: go to my bibliography and do a keyword search, then read my notes about each book; and have a look at my 'links' page).
About the author
My first major garden project was at the age of 12, when I dug, raked and re-sowed a lawn in our then back garden. Enthused by the success of that project I never looked back, and plants and gardening have been a passion ever since. I have followed organic methods since the early 1980s. I'm still enjoying re-seeding lawns as you can see from the picture, but this time (September 2005) I was lifting an area of turf to re-seed it with a mix of native grasses and wild flowers....
And here's the same lawn in 2007:
There's an art to turning lawns into mini-meadows. It needs patience and perseverance, but I think I've got the hang of it now. I'm going to be writing more about this subject later in the year (after the latest meadow expansion project has been completed), but until then if you'd like any advice about how to do this please email me. Late summer (August to October) is the time to prepare the site and sow. - Marc Carlton
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© Marc Carlton 2007.