As August draws to a close, the change in temperature can make it feel as though the growing season is beginning to wind down. At Jekka's, however, a second season is beginning.

After the heat and dry weather of this summer, cooler days and hopefully a little more rain bring new opportunities in the garden. The soil is still warm, plants are responding to the changing conditions and there is plenty we can still grow and enjoy over the months ahead.

Seed heads are also ripening and we are beginning to see birds joining the bees and other pollinators in the garden. This week, we look at how the changing season benefits wildlife and share what we are sowing now.

Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum pilosum), Pomegranate (Punica granatum) and Creeping Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium 'Cunningham Mint’)

Birds, Bees & Biodiversity

We often talk about growing herbs for pollinators, but their value to wildlife does not end when the flowers fade.

In Jekka's Herbetum, we have been watching birds feeding from the seed heads of our Fullers Teasels (Dipsacus fullonum) and Elecampane (Inula helenium). It is a lovely reminder not to be too quick to tidy the garden at the end of summer.

Leaving some flower and seed heads standing allows us to enjoy their structure and height for longer, while also providing valuable food and shelter for wildlife. What can look like a plant that has 'gone over' to us can still be doing a very useful job in the garden.

Herbs can support biodiversity long after their flowers have finished, so sometimes one of the best gardening jobs is simply to leave things alone!