It’s Hedgehog Awareness Week! Every year, the charity – British Hedgehog Preservation Society – aims to raise the profile of Britain’s only spiny mammal, asking people to create their very own hedgehog haven in their gardens.

Our hedgehogs travel approximately one mile every night through our parks and gardens, so creating a hedgehog hole or ‘hedgehog highway’ so they can pass freely, will greatly assist them in their nightly quest to find enough food and a mate. A simple 13cm x 13cm square gap in the bottom of a fence or wall will do the trick. You can pledge to make a hole and map your hole on the Big Hedgehog Map.

Our UK hedgehog population is declining, the main reason for this is because our garden fences and walls are barriers, thereby reducing the amount of land accessible for hedgehogs. If we can make a little hole in our garden fence or wall, this will allow hedgehogs to safely pass, away from roads, and in due course hopefully increase our hedgehog population!

You can take it one step further and swap your fence or wall for a hedge. This is the ideal solution as hedges provide shelter, food, and a route into and out of gardens for our hedgehogs. Hedges also attract other wildlife such as birds and bees.

Other things you can do during Hedgehog Awareness Week to help our hedgehogs along their way: Check grassed areas before mowing, cover drains, avoid pesticides and ensure there is an easy way out of ponds. Create a compost heap and log pile – hedgehogs love compost heaps and log piles, they offer shelter and natural food, but do check before moving logs and compost with forks and other equipment!

Farm Tech Supplies has equipment to help make your garden, estate or smallholding hedgehog friendly with log splitters for log piles and hedge cutters to maintain hedges. Get in touch today – sales@farmtechsupplies.co.uk or tel 01420 520510.