Plain-English field notes
Understand the language of a living garden.
Search the terms that appear across wildlife gardening guides, from bare ground and pond shelves to food webs and overwintering.
26 terms
- Annual
- A plant that completes its life cycle in one growing season, often flowering and setting seed quickly.
- Bare ground
- A small open patch of unmulched soil. Some solitary bees use sunny, well-drained bare ground for nesting.
- Biodiversity
- The variety of living organisms in a place, including plants, animals, fungi and microorganisms.
- Blanket weed
- Long strands of algae that can grow rapidly in nutrient-rich pond water.
- Caterpillar food plant
- A plant eaten by the caterpillar stage of a butterfly or moth. It may be different from the flowers used by adults.
- Connected habitat
- Gardens and green spaces linked by safe routes so wildlife can move between feeding, nesting and shelter areas.
- Dead wood
- Fallen or cut timber left to decay. It supports fungi, beetles and many other organisms.
- Deciduous
- A plant that loses its leaves seasonally, usually in autumn or winter in the UK.
- Escape route
- A shallow edge, ramp or stable structure that lets wildlife climb out of water or another potential trap.
- Food web
- The linked feeding relationships between plants, insects, birds, mammals, amphibians and other organisms.
- Ground cover
- Low-growing plants that protect the soil and create cool, sheltered routes for small wildlife.
- Habitat
- The place and conditions that provide an organism with food, water, shelter and space.
- Hibernation
- A period of greatly reduced activity used by some animals to survive colder months and limited food.
- Host plant
- A plant on which an insect lays eggs or its young feed. In butterfly gardening this often means a caterpillar food plant.
- Marginal plant
- A pond plant that grows around shallow edges with its roots in wet soil or water and leaves above the surface.
- Native plant
- A plant that arrived and established naturally in a region over a long historical period. Native status alone does not guarantee suitability for every garden.
- Nectar
- A sugar-rich liquid produced by flowers and used as an energy source by many insects and some birds.
- Overwintering
- Surviving through winter in a resting stage, shelter or protected location.
- Peat-free compost
- Growing media made without peat extraction, helping protect peatland habitats and stored carbon.
- Perennial
- A plant that lives for more than two years and usually returns across several growing seasons.
- Pollen
- Fine grains produced by flowers that contain male reproductive cells and are also an important food for many insects.
- Pollinator
- An animal that moves pollen between flowers. Bees, hoverflies, butterflies, moths and beetles all pollinate plants.
- Pond shelf
- A level area at a chosen depth used to support baskets of marginal or aquatic plants.
- Seed head
- The dried flower structure containing seeds. Leaving some standing can provide food and winter shelter.
- Solitary bee
- A bee that nests independently rather than living in a large social colony. The UK has many solitary bee species.
- Wildlife corridor
- A connected strip or sequence of habitat that helps wildlife move safely through a wider landscape.