UK Gardeners Urged To Place A Washing-Up Bowl In Their Lawn ASAP

Washing-up bowl in gardenThough it’s been a good year for strawberry growers, 2025′s weird weather (we’re on track for the driest spring on record) has given gardeners much to reconsider. Backyard-proud Brits have been asked to check for footprints on their lawn, place a pan of water on their grass, move their potted plants, and even shuffle some stones around to ensure their greenery is properly hydrated. But speaking to HuffPost UK, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) points out that your garden isn’t just made up of plants. Birds, whose population has been slashed by as much as 50% over the past 50 years, are just one member of a key ecosystem that helps our gardens to thrive (if you need any more motivation, they’re a natural pest control for slugs, chafer grubs, and other unwelcome visitors). One way to help them in this dry spell involves placing an old washing-up bowl or sink in your garden or even balcony, the experts say.It can create a “mini pond” Katie Nethercoat, a member of RSPB’s Wildlife Team, says that the simple gesture can go further than you might think.“Lack of rain, hardened ground and rising temperatures can all bring in challenges for our birds,” she says. “Providing fresh, clean bathing and drinking water is a simple but hugely effective way to help wildlife, as well as leaving areas of damp ground and soil.”That’s partly because slick mud is key for ground-feeding birds like blackbirds and dunnocks, who need to eat invertebrates like worms.“Piles of twigs, leaves and branches in a corner of a garden help keep areas damp for invertebrates,” Nethercoat continues, “our summer visitors, the house martin, also rely heavily on mud to build their nests.“By keeping an area of wet mud available to them, this can mean they are able to build but also restore nest sites. This also lowers the risk of their nests drying out and falling to the ground.” One way to keep these all-important mud patches moist is by building a “mini pond,” the expert adds. It can “seem like a huge task, but a mini-pond is a great addition to a garden or even a balcony.“Using an old washing-up bowl or sink can provide valuable access for wildlife. If the edges are level with the ground, more creatures can get in and out.”If the edges reach above ground, provide ramps with logs, bricks, or rocks.Making a mini pond, completed pond, Potton lower school, Bedfordshire, England, March 2015Birds are far from the only beneficiariesHedgehogs, frogs, and a wide range of other animals will be thankful for the mini oasis. “Even a mini pond in a pot will benefit wildlife,” the Royal Horticultural Society says. This is a key step as our wildlife is desperately struggling in the UK. The RSPB have full instructions on building a mini-pond on their site.Related...UK Gardeners Urged To Place A Pan Of Water On Their LawnUK Gardeners Urged To Do This 'Small Act Of Kindness' In AprilUK Gardeners Urged To Move Stones In Garden This Week

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