A little water, A lot of life

In hot, dry weather, even a small amount of water becomes a lifeline for garden wildlife.

The garden has been surprisingly busy in spite of the heat this week. The plants have slowed down, the soil dries out almost as soon as you water it, and the wildlife that usually moves quietly through the edges suddenly becomes much more visible. When the weather turns hot and dry like this, one of the simplest and most helpful things we can offer is a small dish of clean water.

It doesn’t need to be fancy. It doesn’t need to be deep. It just needs to be there.

In hot spells, birds use water constantly, not just to drink, but to cool down and to bathe. Today in our garden, the starlings and sparrows were queueing up at a shallow dish in the centre of the garden. Two starlings drank together, and another bathed while the others waited their turn. It has been busy all day.

A small dish of water can also help insects, especially if you add a stone or two. Bees, hoverflies and other pollinators often come to drink, but they need a safe landing point and a way to climb out if they slip in. A single pebble solves this.

You only need a few things:

• A shallow dish, a plant saucer link this works perfectly

• Clean water topped up daily in hot weather

• A clear space around it, so birds feel safe and can see predators coming

• A stone or pebble, for insects to land on and climb out

• A quick rinse each day or two to keep it fresh

That’s it… it’s tiny action with a big impact.

One of the unexpected joys of putting out water is that it encourages you to slow down too. I ended up sitting outside far longer than planned today, just watching the birds and insects come and go. In weather like this, the garden becomes a gathering place a small, shared refuge and it makes me stop worrying about all the things I ‘should’ be getting on with out there and remember the reasons that we have done everything in our garden. It is all about bringing the interesting things closer to be able to watch them.

If you have a spare dish or plant saucer, it’s worth putting one out. The wildlife will find it quickly, and you’ll probably find yourself watching them too.

See for yourself what a couple of cupfuls of water can bring