Gabions
Using steel mesh Gabions(Baskets) to create wildlife havens and green walls/screens.
Steel mesh baskets have been used in the landscape industry for many years, primarily for soil stabilization, where they are filled with either stone or aggregate, exposed of screened with soil. They can be seen on many of our motorways particularly where they are used to support embankments. The characteristic galvanised wire mesh basket is usually filled with stone.
If you have a little space in your garden and want to either create a wildlife haven or a different dimension of planting then you might like to try using one or more of these ‘gabions’ towards the boundary of your garden
IOWA
There are numerous products on the market specifically designed to encourage Lacewing flies, Ladybirds, Bumble Bees, and other insects. Using a ‘Gabion’ you can cater for many other beneficial visitors to your garden. They are available in a range of sizes but the most commonly available is about a metre cube.
To have an idea how it should look and what should go into it, have a look around the woodlands of your Local Park or nature reserve. You will see what look like abandoned piles of wood, leaves and tree debris. These are what we call ‘Habitat piles’, they do exactly the same job as what we will call the Gabion Wildlife haven. Using a mesh basket has the advantage of containing the logs, branches and leaf litter without it spreading or collapsing.
If you prefer a more attractive feature then there is no reason why you can’t fill the ‘gabion’ with soil and plant it with ferns, perennials and low growing shrubs to create a green wall instead of a hedge. This will give you the opportunity to grow a wider range of plants providing seasonal interest, needing only annual trimming or cutting back and maybe watering during dry spells.
