A Wild Garden Corner for Hedgehogs and Fewer Slugs

Before the age of immaculately mown lawns and crisply defined borders, many people simply left a wild corner at the end of their garden. A pile of leaves, a few branches and some tall-growing plants were often all it took. What once looked more like laziness is now recognised as remarkably clever natural gardening: this small “jungle” attracts hedgehogs, gives them protection and makes slugs and other pests in the vegetable garden far less of a problem.

Why a wild garden corner is irresistible to hedgehogs

Hedgehogs are nocturnal hunters of insects and slugs. In a perfectly manicured, tidy garden, they find very little food and scarcely anywhere to hide. A wild area, by contrast, provides precisely what they need: shelter, food and peace.

A hedgehog can eat up to four kilograms of slugs each year – natural “insect protection” that needs neither packaging nor a warning label.

Food and shelter in the wild corner

A natural area filled with leaves, branches and taller plants shelters countless insects, worms and other small creatures. These provide food for hedgehogs, while the loose pile also serves as a place to sleep, a winter refuge and a nursery.

Hedgehogs as an umbrella species

Naturalists describe the hedgehog as an “umbrella species”: where it thrives, many other animals benefit too. Typical companions include:

• insect-eating birds
• squirrels
• small mammals such as mice and shrews