How to Make
your Garden Frog Friendly
The best way to make your garden frog friendly
is to provide a wetland habitat for frogs such as a pond. Immature
and female frogs hibernate under logs, piles of stones and amongst
leaves under hedges, so don't be too tidy in the garden and the
frogs will thank you for it. Even if you already have a pond,
there are some points you need to remember to make it frog friendly.
 Frog Friendly Ponds
1 The pond should have an irregular perimeter and the sides should
be very
shallow so frogs can get in and out easily.
2 There needs to be plenty of algae for tadpoles
to eat. Don't include fish because they eat tadpoles.
3 There must be plants near the edge of the pond for spawn to
be laid in and for tadpoles to hide and feed in.
4 One part of the pond should be at least 60cm deep so that hibernating
frogs won't freeze to death.
5 The pond should be dug in October/November in a sunny, open
place away from trees, because
tadpoles need warm water to develop into frogs. Don't have the
pond too near your house as the constant movement of people will
disturb frogs and wildlife.
6 If there are young children around, incorporate protective
grilling just under the water surface of the pond.
7 Let the grass grow long around the edge of the pond because
froglets need long grass to hide in when they first emerge from
the pond.
8 Plant the pond in mid spring-summer with insect-loving plants
to attract feeding frogs and other animals.
9 Introduce wildlife two weeks after planting e.g. frogs, water
snails, pond skaters, dragonflies,
flatworms.
 10 Collect a bucket of water and associated
wildlife from an established pond, canal or stream to start you
off.
11 If the pond freezes for a long time in winter, frogs may suffocate.
This can be rectified by using a pan of water to melt the ice
- smashing the ice can cause shock waves and harm the pond's
inhabitants.
12 Top up the pond regularly with small volumes of tap or rain
water from a water butt in dry weather.
13 Provide hibernating sites for frogs and
other pond animals in the garden surrounding the pond such as
a log pile, compost heap, pile of stones or autumn leaves.
Frog Friendly Plants
Submerged: grow under water e.g. water
starwort, hornwort, willow moss
Floating: drift on pond surface e.g. frogbit, duckweed,
water soldier
Deep Water: roots on pond floor with leaves floating on
pond surface e.g. water violet, yellow pond lily, white water
lily
Marginal: grow in the shallows e.g. marsh marigold, yellow
flag iris, bog bean, water mint
Marsh: grow in waterlogged ground e.g. bugle, ragged robin,
lady's smock, meadow sweet, valeriana
Here are a some other fact sheets prepared
by IPCC which contain details on how to make your pond or garden
wildlife friendly and make garden compost- just click on the
link to go there -
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