What is wildlife gardening? Here’s a very useful discussion from the Wildlife Gardening Forum.
We provide educational support to group members (and LHS members more generally) in benefitting wildlife and increasing biodiversity in their gardens.
We aim to show that realistic wildlife-friendly gardening can be accessible, affordable and enjoyable for all.
The group was formed in August 2025, and has a programme of
- visits to organisations with expertise in wildlife gardening, and
- meet-ups at different members’ gardens to learn from what they are doing and provide advice and ideas.
- In the winter the visits programme is replaced with monthly Zoom meetings on different topics (e.g Garden ponds).
We work closely with local environmental and community groups. We’re keen to collaborate, and share knowledge and resources.
Pollinating insects are an important component of wildlife-friendly gardens, both in their own right (there are about 4000 species in Britain) and as food for vertebrates, such as Blue tits and some small mammals. Butterflies (59 species can be seen in this country) and bumblebees (24 species) receive a lot of attention in wildlife gardening discussions and information resources, and are the best known pollinators.
Less well known (out of sight, out of mind), but at least as important, are moths. There are about 2,500 species in Britain. The WGG is undertaking a one-year survey (using a non-lethal moth-trap) of the moths present in a handful of members’ gardens. We’ll publish the results by the end of 2026.
This is our ‘mascot’, Minnie the mint moth.
Minnie appeared only a few days after a pot of mint in a member’s small, nature-depleted garden started flowering. The Mint moth is one of many species of pollinating insects that depend on just one or two specific plant species.
We’ll check back in summer to see how the member’s garden has transformed in 12 months, as they seek to make it more wildlife-friendly.
Joining WGG is easy and free to members of Lambeth Horticultural Society.
Activities Planned in 2026
- Visits to sites of interest, including Bell House garden (March) and Palace Road Nature Reserve (April)
- Zoom talks & discussions, including Gardening for Moths (February)
- Visits to members’ gardens, from April
- Moth trapping project Year 2
We will also be present at the Society’s Flower Shows.