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  you are in: ADVICE > FAQs > FROGS AND TOADS > HOW TO ENCOURAGE? 



Advice and Resources

Frequently Asked Questions about...

Frogs and toads

How can I encourage them?

Quick answer
Creating frog-friendly features like ponds, compost heaps and log piles will encourage amphibians into your garden if it is accessible to the local population.

Further information
Amphibians require ponds to breed, so adding a pond to your garden is the best way to encourage them. Consider size, shape and location of your pond before starting work; avoid adding fish as they will feed on spawn (see Just Add Water).

If you do not have a pond (or space to create one), your garden can still benefit amphibians and they may make use of it if there are water bodies near by. You could think about a bog garden or small water feature instead.

Amphibians spend the majority of their life on land and make use of a variety of habitats in which they forage, shelter and overwinter (hibernate). They will use log and stone piles, long grass, compost heaps and even nooks and crannies under your shed, decking or greenhouse. Habitats that provide shelter, stay damp and provide a good source of insects and slugs to feed on are particularly beneficial.

Common toads usually migrate to ancestral breeding ponds in spring and are associated with larger ponds (fish ponds, reservoirs and farmland ponds) but are known to breed in some garden ponds. Toads lay their eggs in long chains which they wrap around submerged vegetation.


More information:
O Making your garden frog-friendly.
O Identifying amphibians.
O Just Add Water.