Seed heads: bird food that looks beautiful
Teasel, sunflower, echinacea and grass seed heads hold the garden through winter and feed goldfinches when the borders look empty to us.
A rose past its best is not a failure of care. Leave some hips and spent blooms and you have winter food and a softer close to the season.
Hollow stems and leaf litter
Solitary bees and beneficial insects overwinter inside last year’s stems. Rake leaves off the lawn if you must; leave them under shrubs, where they belong.
What you can still tidy
Paths, edges and the view from the kitchen window can stay crisp. Habitat lives in the back of the border, the log pile and the uncut stem — not in the middle of the terrace.