What Ecology taught me about my Parent’s Garden
“It just looks so messy”
Mum was standing in front of her raised vegetable garden, with her hands on her hips. Staring at the clover, dandelions and long grass between the raspberry plants, she had relocated. She wanted to spend the afternoon weeding, but somehow, I convinced her to let my horse do it instead. Caddy did a brilliant job of eating the “weeds” without touching a single raspberry plant. But mum was still unconvinced this counted as proper garden maintenance.
Before this, I was trying to explain to Mum that the weeds she wanted to pull out were protecting and keeping her soil healthy for future crops. Also, while creating habitat and providing food for insects.
But my mother, who likes everything tidy, was not having it.
Maybe you have had this conversation too. Maybe you’re trying to convince your parents, your partner, or even yourself that gardens don’t have to be pristine to be beautiful. That “messy” can mean healthy. It’s a conversation I need to work on. But I’m getting there slowly but surely.
As I’m studying environmental science and ecology at university, what I’m realising is this. Our gardens, whether on lifestyle blocks, backyards or balcony pots, are more important than we may all realise. Gardens aren’t separate from nature; they connect it. Your garden is either helping or hindering biodiversity wherever you live.
The good news? We can all make small changes to create a massive impact. For the health of us, our animals and the environment all depend on this.
Here are 11 practical ways to turn your garden. No matter the size of a biodiversity hotspot. For the bees who pollinate our food. Or the birds that bring us joy. We all need to protect biodiversity for a healthy future.
Planting for Biodiversity
The best thing you can do for biodiversity? Plant native species. These, when possible, should be plants locally sourced from your region. As they are adapted to your climatic conditions.
Here is why it matters: these native plants have spent thousands of years evolving alongside native animals and insects. It’s like they are old friends who depend on each other. Tūī will flock to your Kōwhai in bloom. Or a gecko could be found hiding in your Ferns. The more diversity you have in your garden, the more species will flock to it.
1. Go Native and Local
Choose species that are native to your local area and try to source them locally as well. As these plants will already be adapted to your temperature, soil and rainfall. Which means they can thrive with less water and minimal fuss. Which is better for your time and the environment.
Not sure where to start? New Zealand Native birds, lizards and insects love:
Large Trees and Large Shrubs- Kōwhai, Cabbage Tree, Pōhutukawa, Harakeke and Rimu.
Smaller shrubs and Ground Cover- Hebe, Muehlenbeckia, Manuka, Kanuka and Kawakawa.

2. Think Year-Round
Just planting one native plant is an amazing start! But a garden that provides food for every season is truly beautiful. Choose plants that flower, fruit or seed at different times of the year so there is always food available. This will help support wildlife throughout winter when food is limited. A bonus is that many of these plants will feed you as well. Spring nectar for the bees becomes summer fruit for your family.

3. Create Layers
Nature doesn’t like monocultures or bare soil. Forest ecosystems, which have the highest biodiversity in the world, have layers. Canopy trees, understory shrubs, ground cover and vines in between. Mimicking this ecosystem creates more habitat, more food sources and healthier soil.
Start by thinking vertically:
Canopy layer- Your tallest trees are planted first
Mid-layer- Followed by shrubs and small trees
Ground layer- Finished with native grasses, wildflowers and low-growing plants.
Are you already dreaming of creating a food forest? Perfect! Just add some native plants into your design. Your fruit and vegetables will benefit from the biodiversity. Creating healthier soils, better pollination and natural pest control. Everyone wins!

Habitat and Shelter
Providing wildlife food is essential, but they need more than just this. They need safe places to drink, nest, shelter and hide from predators. Creating habitat is where your garden transforms from a pretty space to a functioning ecosystem.
4. Add Water Sources
Start simple with a birdbath. Just keep it clean and topped up with fresh water. You will be amazed at how quickly birds will find it and start splashing around.
Want to go further? Create a small pond. It doesn’t have to be fancy. An old sink buried in the ground or a large container works perfectly. Frogs, dragonflies and many other creatures will find it. Add some rocks, sticks and native plants in and around the pond. To help filter the water and create a way for animals can climb in and out safely. Make sure to fence off or supervise children when they are around the pond.
For all the hardworking pollinators, create a shallow drinking station. Fill a small container with water and add pebbles and sticks that break the surface. So, bees can land on something to drink without drowning. Check out 5 ways to create a Bee Friendly Garden for more ideas.

5. Embrace the “Mess”
Remember how my mum thinks weeds in her garden look messy? She also thinks the same way about leaves and sticks. I would like to try to change your mindset.
Try to leave logs, branches and fallen leaves to decompose naturally. You can put them into piles in the back of your garden, but please leave them on the soil. I know leaving this mess goes against everything we have been taught about our gorgeous, manicured gardens. But rotting wood and leaves aren’t a mess; instead, it’s a thriving ecosystem. Insects lay eggs in it. Fungi break it down. Skinks and geckos shelter underneath. The nutrients slowly return to your soil.
I’m not asking you to tend to your garden again. But when you do prune or pile up autumn leaves, don’t take them away. Put it back on the soil as it will be a natural cover, fertiliser and habitat. Helping to create healthier ecosystems.

6. Building Biodiversity Hotels
If you are short on space or want a fun school holiday project to do with your kids. Build a habitat while waiting for it to form naturally.
Insect Hotels: Use hollow wood, bamboo canes, and straw bundled together. Put these on the ground around your garden. Native solitary bees (the gentle, non-stinging kind) will move right in. They’re incredible pollinators and need our help.
Bird Hotels: A classic for a reason. Different native birds need different-sized entrance holes, so have a search for what species are in your area. Making and painting these bird houses with kids creates lifelong memories. I can still remember building ours with my brother, dad and grandad!! Just remember to use non-toxic paint. Then let your creativity run wild!
Lizard Hotels- This is my favourite because it’s so simple and effective. Take a square 30x30cm piece of corrugated iron. Place it under one of the native shrubs you have planted. Then, put 4 small rocks in each corner to create a gap, then add another layer of iron to the top. The skinks and geckos love the warmth and shelter where predators can’t get them. Our native lizards are struggling, and this small action goes a long way in helping to protect them.
Want a step-by-step guide for any of these? Let me know, and I’ll create a guide in a future blog post!
The amazing part about creating habitat is that it almost costs nothing. Use materials you have lying around to create an immediate impact. If you build it, the wildlife will come!

Change Maintenance Habits
Sometimes, to increase biodiversity, it isn’t about adding more things. It’s about stopping the things that harm it. Small shifts in how you maintain your garden can have huge impacts on the health of your soil, your family and the wildlife living there.
7. Ditch Chemicals: Protect Garden Biodiversity
Pesticides, herbicides and synthetic fertilisers don’t just kill the bad stuff. They kill everything. The bees are pollinating your vegetables. The monarch butterflies your kids adore. The beneficial insects are eating the actual pests. The microorganisms in your soil create a healthy, living soil.
These chemicals also don’t stay where you spray them. They run off into waterways, accumulate in soil, and move up the food chain. Which affects the birds, the lizards, and yes, us too. If you care about environmental and human health, this is one of the most important changes you can make.
Going chemical-free might feel scary at first. What about the pests? The weeds? But the healthier an ecosystem, the more it can naturally balance itself. More biodiversity means more predators for pests, healthier plants that resist disease, and soil that feeds your plants instead of depleting them.
For a deeper dive into why this matters and practical alternatives, check out my post: Regenerative Earth: Food, Health, Hope

8. Start Composting
Compost is magic. You are turning kitchen scraps and garden waste into rich, living soil. Which feeds you plants, holds water and supports a whole underground ecosystem.
No need for fancy bins or complicated systems. Just pile organic matter up and let it break down. Turn it occasionally if you want to speed things up, but nature will do the work either way.
The bonus? Compost piles themselves are a habitat. Worms, woodlice, beetles, and millions of microorganisms move in and do the decomposing for you. You’re creating life while eliminating waste and building soil health. That’s a win for you, a win for your garden, and a win for the planet.

9. Rethink Your Lawn
Lawns are ecological deserts. They are a monoculture of a single grass species. Mowed constantly, often drenched in chemicals. It offers almost nothing to wildlife.
But here’s the good news: you don’t have to dig up your entire lawn (unless you want to). Small changes make a difference:
Option 1: Mow less often. Let your grass grow longer. Suddenly, you’ve created habitat for insects. Let the “weeds” stay—clover, dandelions, and daisies are vital food sources for struggling pollinators.
Option 2: Plant out sections. Replace part of your lawn with native wildflowers or tall native grasses. Start small if it feels overwhelming—even one garden bed makes a difference.
Option 3: Embrace the “weeds.” That clover your parents always tried to eliminate? It’s fixing nitrogen in your soil and feeding bees. Those dandelions? Early spring food for pollinators emerging from hibernation. Shift your perspective, and suddenly your “weedy” lawn is working hard for biodiversity.
I know this is the hardest sell for a lot of families. Believe me, I’m still working on mine. Mum was out there on the ride-on mower as I was writing this. Because the lawn was too long (she mowed it two weeks ago). But once you see a lawn as a choice. Realising some options require less work, less water, no chemicals, and support life. It gets easier to let go of that perfect green carpet.

The Predator Problem
This is a difficult topic, and I understand if it makes you uncomfortable. As an animal lover myself, I’ve struggled with this. But here’s what I’ve learned through my university studies. To protect our beautiful native species in New Zealand. We have to be willing to eradicate the invasive species that threaten them.
It’s not about hating rats or possums or hedgehogs. But the reality is that our native birds, lizards, and insects evolved without mammalian predators. They nest on the ground, they’re flightless, they have no defences. Introduced predators are driving them to extinction.
In New Zealand, we mainly deal with rats, mice, possums, stoats, ferrets, weasels, wasps, and hedgehogs. If we want the tūī in our gardens, the skinks under our rocks, and the native insects pollinating our plants, we need to manage these threats.
I want to show you the most humane ways to do this, because if we’re going to take action, we should do it as ethically as possible.
10. Humane Trapping Options
These are just examples of humane options available. Do your own research to find what works for your situation.
For mice indoors: Goodnature’s A-class humane-rated mouse trap kills instantly, automatically resets up to 100 times, uses non-toxic lures, and is safe around pets. An app notifies you of kills.
For rats, mice and hedgehogs: Goodnature’s Rat & Mouse Smart Trap is also A-class rated, automatically resets 24 times, and is DOC-recommended for hedgehogs too. Install these away from where children and pets can reach them.
For possums (and rats/stoats): The AT230 trap has microchip detection to protect your pets, only operates at night, and humanely targets possums and other predators. It auto-resets up to 100 times and connects to an app.
For wasps: German and common wasps are invasive and devastating to our native insects. EcoSmart Wasp and Hornet Killer uses natural ingredients, is safe around pets and children, and kills quickly on contact.
For invasive weeds: Non-toxic options like EcoSmart Weed and Grass Killer avoid the harm of chemical herbicides while still managing problem plants. Manual removal is always best when possible.

11. Protect your Cats and Biodiversity
I know this is sensitive, as cats are family. Most wildlife predation comes from feral and stray cats. But our domestic cats do have an impact, especially on ground-nesting birds and lizards.
If you have cats, here are ways to reduce their impact:
- Bell collars help alert birds (though some cats learn to hunt quietly anyway)
- Keep them inside at dawn and dusk when native birds are most active
- Make sure they’re well-fed so they’re not hunting from hunger
- Build a catio—an enclosed outdoor run where your cat gets fresh air without accessing wildlife.
This isn’t about judgment. It’s about finding ways for our beloved pets and struggling native wildlife to coexist.
Why Predator Control Matters for Biodiversity
I know this section is heavy. But protecting biodiversity sometimes means making uncomfortable choices. Our native species didn’t ask to be defenceless against introduced predators. We brought those predators here. If we care about the survival of New Zealand’s unique wildlife, this is part of the responsibility we must take on.
Do it humanely. Do it thoughtfully. But do it, because our native species are running out of time.

Thank You for Reading!!
Bringing biodiversity back to your garden isn’t something you do alone. It’s a collective effort, and every garden matters.
I’m still learning, still making mistakes, still convincing my family that “messy” can mean healthy. But our garden is coming alive. With more birds, more insects, more life returning each month.
You don’t need a degree or a big budget.
You just need to start. Pick one thing from this list and try it. Then tell me how it goes. Let’s keep learning together.
Georgia xoxo
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