The English Cottage Garden Nursery
Attract Bats to your Garden with the Wildflowers Moths Like
Shop (All departments in the shop have plenty of plants for moths - which bats love! Our Seeds section also sells moth plant seeds)
Bat numbers are on the wane, primarily due to
the loss of roosting and feeding areas, and the increasing use of
pesticides which deplete the bats' supply of insect food.
Wildflowers and cottage garden plants, particularly annuals, are attractive
to insects, as are herbs and night-scented flowers. It is also useful to grow
native trees to attract other insects which bats may well find tasty! Piles of logs will also attract a
variety of insects. It goes without saying that you should NEVER use chemicals to get rid of insects.
Another way of attracting bats is to provide them with bat boxes to roost in. They are
similar to bird boxes but with a gap underneath instead of a hole in the front. However, it may
take a while for the bats to discover the box and decide to roost in it, so be patient! If your bat box does have bats taking up residence you must apply to English Nature for a licence to continue checking the box. Bats and their roosts are protected by law and to disturb them is an offence. In 1992, the mouse-eared bat became extinct in England - the first mammal in the UK to become extinct for 250 years. There are now 16 species of bat left in Great Britain - of these, 6 are endangered or rare. Common bats you might see in the garden are the brown long-eared, natterer's serotine and pipistrelle (a mere 4 cm long!).
The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 protects bats and their roosts. Summary as follows - it is an offence to:
- intentionally kill, injure or take a bat
- possess or control a live or dead bat or anything derived from it
- intentionally or wrecklessly damage, destroy or obstruct access to a place bats use for shelter and protection
- intentionally or wrecklessly disturb bats
- sell, offer or expose for sale or possess or transport for the purpose of sale, any live or dead bat or part of a bat
- to knowingly get or use articles capable of catching, injuring or killing bats or knowingly allow such action
- make a false statement to get licence for bat work
The fine, if found guilty of any of the above offences, is a potential �5,000 for each offence and each bat involved.
The following wildflowers will attract moths to your garden
Barberry, Centaury, Cowslip, Evening Primrose,
Foxglove, Golden Rod, Harebell, Hedge Woundwort, Herb Bennet,
Herb Robert, Lady's Bedstraw, Lemon Balm, Lesser Knapweed,
Maiden Pink, Marjoram, Meadow Clary, Meadowsweet, Mullein, Ox-eye Daisy, Primrose,
Purple Loosestrife, Ragged Robin, Red Campion, Red Clover, Red Valerian, Rock Rose, Sea Kale,
Sweet Rocket, Toadflax, Viper's Bugloss, White Campion, Wild Basil, Wild Clematis, Wild Pansy, Yarrow