Food for butterflies and caterpillars
| Butterfly |
Food plant for caterpillars |
| Red admiral, peacock, small tortoiseshell, comma |
Nettle |
| Meadow brown, hedge brown, wall brown, marbled white, gate keeper |
Grasses such as meadow grass, false brome, cocksfoot and Yorkshire fog |
| Orange tip |
Ladies smock, hedge garlic, and hedge mustard |
| Common blue |
Bird's-foot trefoil |
| Painted lady |
Thistles, nettles, viper's bugloss |
Wild plants providing nectar for butterflies
Ivy flower, bramble, knapweed, teasel, thistle, sallow catkin, dandelion and many other wild flowers.
Native trees and shrubs
Provide food and shelter for birds and insects all year round.
Gravestones and church walls
These are important sites for lichens and mosses as they vary according to the type of stone, its age and exposure to sun and weather.
Lichens
Churchyards are of major importance in lichen conservation. Many churchyards have well over one hundred species of lichens, some of which can be quite rare. The varied geology of churchyard monuments: limestone, sandstone, marble, brick, mortar, slate, granite each has its own distinctive lichen communities.
Cracks and crevices
Ivy leaved toadflax and ferns such as wall rue and rusty back fern like to grow in cracks and crevices. They also make great homes for spiders and solitary bees.
Meadows
Old meadow flowers such as ox-eye daisy, meadow buttercup and knapweed provide valuable food for butterflies and insects. Un-mown grass provides cover and food for small mammals.
Bird boxes
Put boxes on the shady side of trees away from places where predators might attack.
Nettles
Nettles in sunny spots provide food for the caterpillars of many of our native butterflies.
Log piles
A pile of logs in a damp, shady corner will feed beetle larvae and shelter many other animals including frogs, toads and slow worms.
Leaf piles
Leaf piles left out of the way in a shady place in autumn will rot down and provide a good source of worms and other food for hungry birds in winter.
Ivy
Ivy is one of our most important native wildlife plants, providing nectar and pollen for many insects. Its berries are an important source of food for blackbirds, thrushes, wood pigeons and several other birds in late winter.
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