How and Why to Make a Wildlife Garden - Talk
On Thursday 8 September 2016, one of the UK's leading environmentalists and award-winning writer and broadcaster, Professor Chris Baines, will be giving a free lecture about the importance of wildlife gardens as an urban habitat and giving some practical tips about how to turn your garden into a haven for wildlife.
The lecture is at 6.30pm at Holland Park Ecology Centre.
Chris will be signing copies of a new, redesigned and updated edition of his seminal 1985 book, 'How to Make a Wildlife Garden', published by the Royal Horticultural Society. The RHS Companion to Wildlife Gardening is freshly illustrated and highlights the changes in garden wildlife over the past 30 years. It incorporates the latest research, updates and best practice and addresses a wide range of controversial conservation issues. It includes advice about which plants to choose for bees, birds and butterflies, how to construct the ideal wildlife pond, where to position nesting boxes and how to enjoy wildlife in any size of outdoor space.
As The Telegraph wrote in August 2016, “Today it’s a notion we take for granted, but scroll back to television perennial Gardeners’ World in 1979: you’ll find two new gardens being made side by side – a deadly dull family plot, and the first TV wildlife garden, a gem that hasn’t dated one jot.”
Baines said, “You have to remember that at the time, any wildlife that appeared in the garden was seen as either pest, disease or weed. They were still trapping bullfinches in orchards… When I was studying horticulture at Wye, my chemistry tutor was proud to have been part of the team that invented DDT.”
Featured articles and news
Ebenezer Howard: inventor of the garden city. Book review.
Grenfell Tower fire – eight years on
A time to pause and reflect as Dubai tower block fire reported just before anniversary.
Airtightness Topic Guide BSRIA TG 27/2025
Explaining the basics of airtightness, what it is, why it's important, when it's required and how it's carried out.
Construction contract awards hit lowest point of 2025
Plummeting for second consecutive month, intensifying concerns for housing and infrastructure goals.
Understanding Mental Health in the Built Environment 2025
Examining the state of mental health in construction, shedding light on levels of stress, anxiety and depression.
The benefits of engaging with insulation manufacturers
When considering ground floor constructions.
Lighting Industry endorses Blueprint for Electrification
The Lighting Industry Association fully supports the ECA Blueprint as a timely, urgent call to action.
BSRIA Sentinel Clerk of Works Training Case Study
Strengthening expertise to enhance service delivery with integrated cutting-edge industry knowledge.
Impact report from the Supply Chain Sustainability School
Free sustainability skills, training and support delivered to thousands of UK companies to help cut carbon.
The Building Safety Forum at the Installershow 2025
With speakers confirmed for 24 June as part of Building Safety Week.
The UK’s largest air pollution campaign.
Future Homes Standard, now includes solar, but what else?
Will the new standard, due to in the Autumn, go far enough in terms of performance ?
BSRIA Briefing: Cleaner Air, Better tomorrow
A look back at issues relating to inside and outside air quality, discussed during the BSRIA briefing in 2023.
Restoring Abbotsford's hothouse
Bringing the writer Walter Scott's garden to life.
Reflections on the spending review with CIAT.
Retired firefighter cycles world to raise Grenfell funds
Leaving on 14 June 2025 Stephen will raise money for youth and schools through the Grenfell Foundation.
Key points for construction at a glance with industry reactions.