FORTUNATELY for hedgehogs and many other species of wildlife, the last 20 years has seen “wildlife friendly gardening” gaining in popularity.

Following the First World War, Britain saw a big shift away from traditional grazing of pastures towards arable (crop) farming. Horses made way for tractors and hedgerows were removed to accommodate larger machinery and maximise available crop growing space along with chemical warfare waged on invertebrates that fed many species of wildlife

But urban areas with wildlife friendly gardeners are fighting back. A good example was a meeting held by Dorset Wildlife Trust last year in Upton to encourage the wellbeing of hedgehogs locally. I attended and was pleasantly surprised to see so many of my neighbours there. The locals mapped out the number of hedgehogs visiting their gardens. And it appears in Upton we are bucking the national trend of seeing the hedgehog, which is now on the amber list for conservation, becoming an endangered species– at last for the time being.

MIKE FRY

Moorland Crescent, Upton