We have a very small front garden in Freshwater on the Isle of Wight. The garden is roughly 10 by 15 ft, consisting mainly of a patio bordered by a hedge on two sides. We knew from our neighbours that badgers lived in the garden behind us and occasionally we would find their trails. Other than that, we didn't seem to have any other wildlife in our small patch, so we thought about how we could attract more.

Firstly, we purchased a bird feeder and duly hung it by the hedge. Almost immediately we had some nosy sparrows feeding. Shortly after that, we bought a fat ball feeder and sure enough even more birds came to investigate.

Mr and Mrs Blackbird became regular visitors and last year brought their two offspring along as well. We watched avidly as the chicks sat in the hedge waiting none too patiently for dad to pick choice bits off the fat ball and gently feed it to them. I had never witnessed a baby bird being fed before and spent quite a lot of time mesmerised by the whole event. Once fed, the family would take individual baths in the bird bath! We would stand at the kitchen sink and watch it all in wonder.  We kept an eye out every morning for the family. We loved seeing their transformation from babies to fully grown adults, watching the change in their feathers as the male blackbird chick developed.

We now have two seed feeders, one fat ball feeder and a bird table. On a usual day we have about 20 to 25 sparrows at any given time and the hubbub of noise is quite deafening sometimes as they talk to each other; it's so lovely to hear. Mr and Mrs Blackbird are quite tame, and we can walk into the garden without them being scared and flying away. Our feathered family now consists of sparrows, blackbirds, two pigeons (that have taken up residence on the telephone wire above the feeders), a robin and occasionally a crafty rook if we put toast out! This week we even spotted a pair of starlings.

The badgers come and go regularly and have created their own doorways in the hedge and we even had a visit from a weasel the other day who scattered across the patio into the hedge. With just a couple of bird feeders, we have already morphed from having a very boring uninspiring garden devoid of life into one full of wonderful wildlife.

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust are doing a wonderful job making us all aware how vital it is to look after our wildlife. Sadly, many of our familiar wild friends are disappearing. We can all help in our small ways by making our gardens, even our small ones, an attractive haven to encourage as many varieties of wildlife as we can.

Our next challenge is to plant some wildflowers in the garden to attract more bees and some extra hedgerow so the birds can have a varied diet throughout the year. We have definitely caught the wildlife gardening bug!

Sandy from Guyers Road, Freshwater