Welcome

We’ve lived in our house for about 10 years, and in that time I’ve never seen a hedgehog in the garden – not once. Why hedgehogs never visit is a mystery to me, because we back onto a copse, have hedging boundaries with our neighbours and there are no solid structures between our gardens to prevent free passage. We never use slug pellets, there are lots of wild (untidy) areas in the garden and we even have a hedgehog house nestled in some undergrowth. In short, our garden should be a hedgehog haven, but still they do not come.

While the plight of our hedgehogs is complex, I am hopeful I’ll spot one in my corner of Essex one day. Our annual wildlife review indicates that urban sightings are increasing and that numbers of urban hogs are stabilising, so I’m optimistic. This good news also indicates that the efforts of gardeners in urban areas is really helping the hedgehog comeback – it seems our hard work could be starting to pay off, which we should be proud of.

So what does our annual review say about how other garden wildlife is faring? The picture is mixed and, like most years, there seem to be winners and losers, creatures that are on the up and those that are in decline – see the full picture on p84. But what is absolutely clear is that we’re a nation of garden nature lovers, with over three-quarters of those who participated in our review taking steps to improve their garden for wildlife in the past year. What a heart-warming and encouraging thought.

Do let me know which creatures visit your garden and, if hedgehogs are regulars, thanks for doing your bit to