Not many of us realise that having frogs in our gardens is a great asset, as they busy themselves eating insects. If you live in an area where frogs are frequent visitors, then why not attract them to your place? I recently did this at my house up north by taking an old water trough and altering it to make it hospitable to the local frogs. Follow these tips for happy frog adopting:
Create a shallow pond or find an old bath tub or large children’s sandpit.
Fill with rainwater (not tap water in urban areas) and leave to get a bit mucky. Don’t worry about organic matter growing in it – frogs love that.
Add a few water plants, such as lilies, to provide cover.
Arrange bricks and upturned pot plants in the water and around the pond. This provides different levels so the frogs can get in and out.
Plant wildflowers and vegetation around the frog pond to provide some ground cover from predators.
Install a couple of solar lights which will shine at night and attract insects for the frogs.
When you spy tadpoles in your pond, add a net covering so that birds such as herons won’t eat them.
In hot weather, keep the pond topped up, not only for the frogs but other thirsty wildlife.
Do not introduce tadpoles from the pet shop. Imported species will not survive and can introduce diseases. You need to attract the frogs which already exist in your local environment.
