The time to consider hedgehogs

Meticulously tidy gardeners may recoil at the idea of doing less gardening and leaving grass long and piles of leaves all over the place. But if you want to provide habitat for a range of species, to ensure the hedgehog has a varied diet, that is what will encourage wildlife.

Leaves can be mounded up to turn into mulch or leaf mould, while leaving grass longer will help biodiversity – if need be, cut paths through the long grass to make a potentially scruffy-looking, hedgehog-friendly environment more appealing to fussy humans. A well-positioned pond will provide drinking water and, as long as they can escape were they to fall in, make a valuable addition to the hedgehog-friendly garden. If you have not room for a pond a shallow bowl of water will suffice.
Hedgehogs are a delight to have in the garden eating slugs and other garden pests, and if healthy are not riddled with fleas. If you are lucky enough to have them in the garden enjoy their antics, they are adorable. Just be careful when lighting a bonfire, turn over the leaves or rubbish to check the hedgehogs are not asleep inside. Also never feed them milk as they cannot digest it and it gives them terrible tummy ache. Peter Hughes, vet tells me that if you wish to feed them the best thing is a tin of dog food as they can digest this.
Anybody with any lovely photos of these dear creatures?
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