Why a Small Garden Is Worth Planting for Pollinators

A courtyard, a balcony, a narrow strip beside the bins — none of it is too small to matter. Bees and butterflies forage by following flowers in a line, and they will happily detour for a well-stocked window box. In towns and cities, gardens of every size join up into a patchwork of feeding stations, and small plots often fill gaps that larger gardens leave. The trick is to pack in the right plants and keep something in flower from late winter right through to the first hard frost.

You do not need a meadow. A dozen good plants in pots, arranged with a little thought, will bring far more wildlife than a tidy lawn and a couple of bedding trays.

Choose Open-Faced Flowers That Earn Their Space

Single, open flowers are easy to land on, and their nectar and pollen sit within easy reach. Doubles, with layer upon layer of petals replacing the centre, look lovely but offer almost nothing. Stick to daisy shapes, lipped flowers and anything with a clear landing pad.

• Cosmos — sow in late April or buy plug plants, then keep deadheading. It flowers until the first frost and is one of the best value annuals for a small space.
• Lavender — 'Hidcote' and 'Munstead' are compact and reliable. Grow it lean in gritty compost in full sun; too much feeding gives you leaves instead of flowers.
• Catmint (Nepeta) — 'Six Hills Giant' keeps going for months if you shear it back after the first flush.
• Verbena bonariensis — tall, airy and see-through, so it never crowds a tiny plot. Butterflies adore it.
• Herbs — oregano, marjoram, thyme, chives and borage all produce nectar-rich flowers and earn their keep in the kitchen.
• Late larder plants — sedum, asters, single dahlias and echinacea feed butterflies well into September.

Plant in groups of three or more of the same variety rather than one of everything. Pollinators spot blocks of colour far more easily than a scattered mix.

Stretch the Season from February to November

Bees emerge on mild days in late winter and need food immediately. A few pots of crocus, grape hyacinth and winter-flowering heather will tide them over, and wallflowers bridge the gap into spring. Flowering currant and mahonia are worth their space if you have room for a shrub.

Early summer belongs to alliums and chives, followed by lavender, catmint and cosmos at the height of the season. Then comes the hungry gap in late summer, when many gardens look tired — this is exactly when sedum, dahlias, scabious and aster matter most. Ivy flowers in October and November and is one of the last decent sources of nectar before winter, so think twice before cutting it back hard.

Sow a few annuals in stages, a fortnight apart, rather than all at once. You will get a longer run of flowers from the same packet of seed.

Water, Shelter and Somewhere to Rest

Bees need a drink, and a bird bath is usually too deep. Sink a shallow dish — a saucer or an old plate works well — into a border or stand it among pots, and fill it with pebbles or marbles so insects can land safely without drowning. Top it up every day or two in hot weather and refresh it completely to stop it going green.

Butterflies bask to warm up before flying, so leave a flat stone or a patch of bare earth in the sunniest corner. A small log pile, some long grass at the back of a border, or a bundle of hollow canes facing south will give solitary bees somewhere to nest. Face a bee hotel slightly downwards so rain runs off, and replace tired canes every couple of years.

If you have space for one pot of nettles tucked out of the way, red admirals, peacocks and small tortoiseshells will lay eggs on it. The caterpillars will nibble the leaves, so keep it away from your best display.

Keep the Sprayer in the Shed

This is the single most useful thing you can do. Insecticides cannot tell a greenfly from a bee, and systemic products are absorbed into the plant, turning nectar and pollen into a poisoned meal. Even organic sprays such as soap or plant oils will kill whatever is sitting on the leaf when you apply them.

Never spray on a warm, still day when pollinators are flying. If you genuinely must treat something, wait until dusk when bees and butterflies have settled, treat only the affected plant, and follow the label exactly. For slugs slugs and snails, reach for nematodes, copper tape, barriers or an evening torchlight patrol instead of pellets.

Allow a little untidiness, too. A few aphids bring in ladybirds and lacewings, and those will do more for your plants than any bottle.

Make the Most of Pots, Walls and Windowsills

Containers are perfect for small gardens, but they dry out fast — line terracotta with a piece of old compost sack, or choose the biggest pots you can accommodate. Use a peat-free compost with added grit or perlite for drainage, and group pots together so they shade each other's roots and make one bold target for passing bees.

Go upwards where floor space is short. Wall pots, window boxes and a simple trellis with jasmine, honeysuckle or a climbing rose add height without stealing a single paving slab. Honeysuckle is especially good for moths on a warm evening.

Water in the morning rather than the evening where you can, feed container plants lightly through summer, and leave the seedheads on teasels, echinops and sedum over winter — they feed the birds and look far better than a bare pot.