With bee and hedgehog populations in decline, there is no better time to embrace your inner conservationist and create your own wildlife garden.

One way of transforming your plot into a haven for nature is to update your planting. Did you know that wildlife acts as a natural pest control in the garden, reducing the need for pesticides?

It is true – birds and ladybirds keep aphids under control and hedgehogs and frogs keep down the slugs. By rethinking your planting, you can make your garden more attractive to visiting wildlife.

To increase biodiversity in your garden and give nature a helping hand, be sure to include plenty for insect pollinators.

Do not get too obsessed with natives though – new Royal Horticultural Society research released this month suggests that a mixture of plants from across the globe may be the most effective way to sustain pollinators, rather than indigenous plants alone.

As a rule, when I am designing a wildlife garden I avoid plants with double petal flowers.

Bees find it hard to access these and, in heavily hybridised species, extra petals come at the expense of nectar and pollen.

Often referred to as butterfly bush, the sweetly scented buddleja davidii is a magnet for butterflies, so is a great shrub for a wildlife garden.

Similarly, monarda didyma and verbena bonariensis are irresistible to pollinating insects.

Hedgerows such as ilex aquifolium provide essential cover and wildlife corridors that connect green spaces for small mammals, such as hedgehogs.

Long grass is essential for egg-laying insects such as butterflies, so try to resist the temptation to cut the grass now and then.

And finally, why not include a fruit-bearing tree in your garden, such as a malus sylvestris?

These trees not only give birds somewhere to nest but also provide a snack for hungry greenfinches and thrushes.

Georgina Chahed is an award-winning garden designer and the owner of Touch Landscapes. Visit touchlandscapes.com.