Feeding is straightforward but worth getting right. Meaty cat or dog food, or a specialist hedgehog food, is a better choice than bread and milk, which can cause digestive upset. A shallow dish of fresh water left out overnight is just as useful as food, particularly during dry spells in summer.

Hedgehogs are one of the most recognisable mammals to visit British gardens after dark, often covering a surprising distance, sometimes a mile or more, over a single night as they forage. A Garden Wildlife .com that offers a route in, something to eat and somewhere quiet to rest is far more likely to see repeat visits than one that is sealed off and tidied within an inch of its life.

Access is usually the first barrier. Solid fencing and walled boundaries cut a garden off from the wider network a hedgehog relies on. A gap roughly the size of a CD case cut at the base of a fence panel, sometimes called a hedgehog highway, lets them pass between neighbouring gardens without needing to cross open roads or driveways.

Stocking the pond with the right planting from the start makes a noticeable difference to how quickly it settles. A good place to begin is a considered selection of pond plants suited to the pond's size and depth.

Not every beneficial garden insect lives in a hive or a colony. Many UK bee species are solitary, nesting alone or in loose aggregations, and insects such as lacewings and ladybirds shelter individually or in small clusters, particularly over winter. An insect house gives these species something a tidy garden often lacks: safe, undisturbed nesting and overwintering space.

For gardeners wanting an alternative to chemical sprays, a soil-applied option is worth considering as a first step, and a good starting point is a range of slug nematodes for gardens suited to the pest in question.