However small a front garden we may have, we can make a difference to helping to keep our planet green and preserve wildlife by creating an eco-friendly driveway. For years, we have been paving or tarmacking over our front gardens as parking space on roads becomes scarce. But taking away these small green spaces has a huge detrimental effect on wildlife: no greenery means no insect life, no bees, no butterflies and no birds.
What are the consequences of paving over?
Flooding and pollution
Hard driveways allow rainwater to run straight off, so that oil, brake dust, heavy metals and pollutants from cars wash into the drains and on to pollute the rivers. The surge of rainfall hitting hard surfaces can overwhelm the drains, many of which are old and unable to cope with bursts of heavy rainfall leading to polluted flooding.
But plants catch the rain, absorbing much of the water and slowing the progress of water going to drains. Much rain falling on plants will evaporate or be used by the plant, the remainder slowly passes through the soil where pollutants are filtered out before that water reaches the rivers.
Cooling and oxygen
Only plants and trees absorb carbon dioxide and give out oxygen. The water vapour given off by plants during their version of breathing (photosynthesis), cools the air making our ever-rising temperatures more bearable.
Wildlife and our wellbeing
With no green cover, there is no shelter or food for our wildlife, from bugs to butterflies, meaning these creatures have no sanctuary to live and breed.
Choosing a driveway
There are now many permeable options which allow water to drain through them and are more eco-friendly.
Gravel: Gravel lets water flow through it, reaching the earth underneath. It will eventually become more compacted, giving you a harder surface, that still acts as drainage.
Paving: You can just pave the area that tyres run on and fill in the space between with low growing plants such as thyme, creeping Jenny or ajuga, or pave a larger area. Natural stone is porous, so water will soak through it.
Permeable paving: This is made of a mix of porous concrete and water won’t sit on the drive but run off.
Asphalt: Asphalt allows rainwater to drain through its porous material and into the earth. It will need a proper sub base to be effective.
RHS research has shown that if gardeners pulled up even one paving stone of 1 metre square and planted a shrub or tree for carbon storage this would help to balance the heating of many thousands of homes.
What can you do to your front garden?
Even if your front garden is largely paid over, there are still plenty of things you can do to add greenery.
Hedges
If you’ve got space, plant even a small hedge, which will act as your very own pollution control net. Hedges can shield your home and lungs from at least 50% of the toxic dust thrown up by cars as well as provide wildlife with shelter. Narrow hedges or a neat row of shrubs to line the sides of your drive area will make a difference.
Climbers
Cover your fencing or walls with sweet smelling roses, jasmine or even ivy. Climbing hydrangeas love shade and produce beautiful flowers. The plant holds onto the walls once established, but is harmless to brickwork.
Pot them up
Pot up a small tree in a corner of your drive. A small holly, bay, amelanchier or prunus spire can easily thrive in pots. Or grow pollinator-friendly flowers in pots such as cornflowers, geraniums, marigolds and lavender. Bees are attracted to blue and violet flowers.
Make an insect hotel
Just bunch together twigs, branches, stones, old tiles and bamboo, with different size entrances or holes. Solitary bees and wasps, who do not live within a hive, can make a nest. The different size entrances will attract different insects, such as ladybirds, butterflies and earwigs.
Water feature
You don’t need a large space to create a water feature – even a low container will work well and can attract frogs, newts and other wildlife. And frogs are a great way to keep down slugs. Make sure there’s a sloping edge or a way for frogs to get out easily.
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