This weekend marks the RSPB’s Feed the Birds Day – which has been set up to remind us all about all the things we can do to help birds and other garden wildlife through the winter.

The RSPBs Top 5 Tips for helping your friendly garden neighbours are as follows:

We’re pretty good at providing fast food for birds and this is certainly a life saver in the cold snow covered countryside. But what about ‘slow food?’ There are so many things you can do in your garden to provide food for all wildlife. And Autumn is a great time to plant something great for wildlife.

Over the winter, there are other things you can do and we’ve a top five for you.

• Plant native plants such as hawthorn, ivy and honeysuckle that will provide berries in the winter for adult birds,    and insects for young birds in spring
• Make a log pile – it will be the ideal place for insects, fungi, mosses and lichens
• Provide an insect home – insects will spend the winter in these
• Install nesting boxes for birds such as house sparrows, winter hibernation places for hedgehogs, and roosting boxes for bats
• Create a water feature such as a pond or bog garden – much wildlife relies on a regular supply of freshwater

If you are interested in wildlife and conservation why not take a look at our Swaziland Game Reserve Gap Year Project in 2010.