Fresh water for drinking and bathing rounds out a decent set-up. Gardeners building out their feeding station for the first time typically start with a good spread of bird feeders to cover the different food types birds look for.

Plant choice shapes how much a garden offers wildlife across the year, and it is about more than flowers alone. Shape, structure, timing and what a plant offers after flowering, whether berries, seed heads or dense cover, all matter as much as bloom colour.

For gardens without much bare soil to spare, a ready-made shelter is a simple addition. Many gardeners start with bee hotels positioned in a sheltered, sunny spot close to nectar-rich planting.

Hedgehogs are one of the most recognisable mammals to visit British gardens after dark, often covering a surprising distance, sometimes a mile or more, over a single night as they forage. A garden that offers a route in, something to eat and somewhere quiet to rest is far more likely to see repeat visits than one that is sealed off and tidied within an inch of its life.

A pond set up with the right planting and shelter from the outset tends to attract amphibians naturally over time. Many gardeners begin with a considered selection of pond wildlife equipment chosen to suit the size of pond they are working with.

Shelter is often overlooked. Many UK bee species are solitary rather than hive-dwelling, and a patch of bare, undisturbed soil in a sunny spot can serve as nesting ground for gardenwildlife.com mining bees, while hollow stems and drilled wood blocks suit species that nest above ground. Choosing biological pest control over chemical sprays around flowering borders also helps protect the insects visiting them.