Most businesses, large and small have some degree of land around their premises, is yours wildlife friendly? Often larger companies have well manicured gardens with short mowed grass and well manicured flower beds, these of course, are not really ideal for wildlife, that being said they do often have a large water feature, which can be a haven for frogs, water based insects and the birds who feed on them. It’s the smaller companies who tend to have a smaller scrap of land which is left overgrown who can provide the most benefit to wildlife.
Consider a few examples, firstly the office which is built on a bit of land, the front is kept tidy or even paved for the benefit of visitors, however it’s a rare occurrence that a building fits perfectly within the plot on which it stands. This means there will be a strip of land running around the building, which unless sprayed off, is usually overgrown with weeds, this is a great natural habitat for wildlife with small invertebrates populating it, it probably has some old bricks or wood which has been left there for some time too with small nooks and crannies where frogs, newts and toads can hide or even hibernate provided there is a suitable breeding ground not too far away (perhaps that big corporate companies pond).
Another good example is a builders yard or even a scrap yard, it’s pretty common for them to have areas where things have been left for so long that they are of no use any more and soon become completely abandoned and again are full of wildflowers and insects and can again provide great hibernating spots for amphibians and hedgehogs, or even suitable nesting sites for birds.
If you work for a company who have an area like this, why not try to enhance it, most businesses are happy for this to happen with land which is otherwise unused, and in some instances may even give you a small budget for some equipment to enhance wildlife areas, it could even be seen as part of the companies eco policy, give it a try and see what they say.
If you need help and advice about how to help nature along in urban environments, you need to decide which species are best suited to the area you have available to you, there are numerous wildlife conservation groups dotted all over the country, many specialists in particular species. They have a wealth of knowledge about how to improve habitats to attract specific species. Budlia is great for butterflies and can be absolutely alive with them when flowering, or consider some bee friendly flowers in the flower beds, or even just chuck a handful of seed over a scrap of waste land, if nothing else it will give a splash of colour come summertime.
