Log Piles
In several parts of the garden and meadow various piles of dead logs and branches have been piled together to provide shelter and food for insects and mammals as well being as a suitable medium on which mosses and lichens grow. These piles are tucked away behind clumps of nettles, under bushes and the hedgerow, are rarely seen and never disturbed so we don't know exactly what is there but we know it is 'home' and 'dinner' for various plants and creatures. Dead wood is one of the most important habitats for a healthy food chain. The male Stag Beetle pictured (right) emerged this year after 3 years of eating dead wood in our wildlife heap.
Pictured (below) are log piles of harvested Elm and Apple branches providing shelter and food in one of the hedgerows. Adjacent to it is a pile of Apple and Ash twigs and small branches, used as a bottomless source of kindling for the wood-burning stove and a shelter and nesting spot for small birds. Insects and snakes also appreciate the facility.
