Status: 25.09.2023, 17:30 p.m.
By: Joana Lück
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When winter approaches, you should not tidy up the garden too much, as this is counterproductive for animals looking for winter quarters.
Already at the end of September the days become much shorter and if at the end of the coming month the time is also set back one hour, the sun sets accordingly earlier. This is not only a change for humans, but also for wildlife. Hedgehogs, birds, amphibians and bats start looking for suitable accommodation from autumn.
Piles of dead wood, walls and nesting boxes are a good hiding place
Piles of leaves serve as hiding places for many animals. © Virginija Vaidakavic/Imago
In general, the more natural a garden is, the more shelter it offers. As GEO reports, the following winter quarters are helpful for animals:
- Piles of leaves: For animals and insects, piles of leaves provide a safe shelter or a source of food. Mice, lizards, spiders and beetles can also be found here. Therefore, it is best not to dispose of leaves.
- Piles of deadwood: The animals mentioned above also like to settle in green cuttings and dead branches. As the German Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU) knows, bird species such as the wren or the robin also build their nests in the heaps.
- Cairns: Walls or stacked cairns also provide a hiding place for amphibians, reptiles and insects. The condition is that the stones were loosely stacked and not bricked with cement.
- Garden pond: Not only fish can hibernate in the pond if it is deep enough, dragonfly larvae and eggs also survive in natural ponds during the cold season.
- Nest box: Birds that do not spend the winter in the summer resort freeze quickly in this country. A nest box is suitable for almost any species of bird and is easy to build.
- Wilted plants: Plant stems that have withered should not be removed, as they are used by insects for wintering. GEO describes the stalks of evening primrose, mallow and coneflower as particularly suitable.
You can find even more exciting gardening topics in the regular newsletter of our partner 24garten.de.
