5 Small Actions To Keep The World Wonderfully Wild

Today we’re celebrating the beautiful and diverse fauna and flora that make this world a wild and majestic place to live in. We depend on biodiversity for health, happiness and survival. Of all days, make today a day you do one small action to help wildlife.

Across the globe, up to 200 different plants and animals go extinct every day. Never to return. Wildlife is facing its biggest crisis. Threatened at all angles: habitat loss and degradation, climate change and pollution are for starters.

We’re all responsible for the future of our planet. KiteNest believes that the greener and wilder, the more wonderful.

Here are 5 simple actions you can take today to make a difference to wildlife.

1. Plant a tree

Trees are magicians of the word. They breathe in carbon dioxide - one of the biggest contributors to climate change - and breath out oxygen. They also stabilise soils, help prevent flooding and give life to wildlife. They provide jobs to over 1.6 billion people and are key ingredients in 25% of all medicines. Ever taken an Aspirin? It comes from the bark of a tree! We don’t need to go on why trees are pure magic.

So, when you plant a tree, you’re actually growing a mini magician. Trees offer shade, a natural windbreak and a little more privacy. Even the smallest of gardens can accommodate one. They will also provide food and shelter, helping to boost wild visitors to the places closest to you. Native trees are best. They will best help native insects and animals to thrive. In the UK we recommend planting:

Alder - Alnus glutinosa Blackthorn - Prunus spinosa Crab Apple - Malus sylvestris Elder - Sambucus nigra English Oak - Quercus robur Field Maple - Acer campestre Hazel - Corylus avellana Holly - Ilex aquifolium Rowan - Sorbus aucuparia

We also have some exciting news! From March 1st, for every order placed on our store, will receive a FREE Tree Bomb. Working with Tree Bombs, we’re giving away handmade seed balls, containing native UK Alder Tree seeds. These trees are marvellous at creating biodiverse habitat and grow quickly into strong carbon-capturing trees. How exciting!

2. Rewild your garden

It’s true. You can turn your garden into a wildlife haven. Wave goodbye to manicured lawns and toxic chemicals. This job is easy. Do less tidying! When leaf litter falls, don’t be in a rush to clear it. Pile it up into a corner or brush under hedges. These make great homes for the beloved hog. Leave the edges of your garden unmowed. Sprinkle down some wildflower seeds. And most importantly, plant things for wildlife to eat. Wild marjoram is great for insects, and you can eat it too. Butterflies love buddleia.

Take a more relaxed approach to weeding. Allow teasel, buttercup and deadnettle to grow. They will supply wildlife with extra nectar, pollen and seed heads.

3. Switch to 100% renewable energy

Power your home with sun, wind and water. The days of burning fossil fuels (which produces dangerous pollutants) should be long gone. Switch to 100% renewable energy provider. It’s one of the biggest actions you can take to reduce your impact on the environment. It will also help to invest in developing renewable generation and creating a bigger platform for clean energy within the UK. Good Energy, Octopus Energy and Ecotricity are three we recommend switching to.

4. Curb your single-use plastic consumption

Did you know on average, we are eating the weight of a credit card every week (5g) in plastic. Over the year, that is 0.5 pounds - a huge health concern. Since the 1950s, humans have produced 8.3bn tonnes of plastic. To put that into perspective, the weight of one billion elephants will choke earth forever. And the production of it isn’t slowing down either.

Sadly, plastic never goes away. It breaks down into smaller pieces (microplastics). So, ditch those plastic carrier bags, straws, toothbrushes, disposable coffee cups and crisps packets. Invest in some long-lasting reusables. We’ve got packaging-free shampoo bars and soaps, Konjac sponges and bamboo toothbrushes to help you go plastic-free in the bathroom.

When hitting the supermarket, be mindful of plastic-free alternatives. Lots of products come packaged in glass jars, tins and cardboard. Once you find them, it’ll get easier to eliminate plastics from the trolley each time.

For any single-use plastics you can’t avoid like crisp packets, Terracycle’s website is worth a visit. They provide free recycling points all over the UK for crisp packets, contact lenses, baby food pouches, pet food packaging etc. See the full list here.

5. Create a home for your favourite garden wildlife

The easiest of them all: find a space in your garden underneath a shrub or bush and pile up some moist twigs, bark or small logs. Beetles and other invertebrates will make it their home. As a result, your more exciting animals will move in - hedgehogs, bats, birds and even badgers! If you have room, create a little pond. Dragonflies will visit, amphibians will spawn and birds will clean and drink. There are also bird and bat boxes to install. Starting a compost bin is also a win-win situation. Recycling your food waste into compost will enrich your soil and provide homes for worms, woodlice, frogs, toads and even slow worms.

So, there you have it. 5 ways to help Wilderness thrive around you. Which will you try first?

You can watch the campaign video for 2020’s World Wildlife Day here.