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Crab apples can be popular with over-wintering birds © Morag Shuaib

There are still many wildlife-friendly features I want to add to my garden, but even in its current simple state, there are things to do to help wildlife. So when the leaves fall from the tall birch tree at the back of the garden, I'll rake them into a pile and leave them over the winter. They'll be perfect shelter for invertebrates. And having pruned some wildly overgrown overhanging roses, I will create a small pile of twigs with some of the prunings. They will shelter slugs, centipedes and woodlice, and could even be attractive to the occasional visiting frog or toad.

A certain amount of tidying up is inevitable, and most gardeners probably cannot resist it. But I'll let perennials remain standing, so they can shelter invertebrates - and even provide fixed points for spiders' webs. I will leave untouched the glorious wall of ivy at the back of the garden. It's full of nooks and crannies and is a possible haven for overwintering butterflies and other insects.

A possible haven for butterflies and other insects © Morag Shuaib

Food is also still important. My bird feeder is stocked up, and as the weather gets even colder I'll be making some bird cake, too. In the front garden, Verbena bonariensis, Welsh poppies and Caryopteris all provide nectar sources for any insect flying at this late stage of the year. While my crab apples don't appear to be as popular with the birds as I had hoped, I notice the colourful berries of a Pyracantha down the road are a favourite with wood pigeons.

I also know that apple and pear trees in neighbouring gardens will still be providing windfall nectar as their fruits disintegrate on the ground; and the huge holly tree on the corner, with its red berries, will be a magnet for and fieldfare when they come flying through.

This neighbourhood network of gardens is the name of the game. It's not just about what I do in my garden, it's not just about what you do in yours - it's about what we all do together. Many of us can't fit all the wildlife-friendly features into our own gardens - but between us all, we can.

So if I don't have a pond, I know a neighbour who does. My ivy, though mature, doesn't flower - but I know a house where it does. I don't have foxes in my garden - but I know they visit gardens a few streets away. There are no hedgehogs in my garden - but I know they've been seen the other side of town.

The Wildlife Trusts have . Elsewhere, the RSPB has a guide to what you can do in , the BTO has an excellent page on wildlife gardening, and the RHS's is well worth a read.

As always we'd love to hear from you. What do you do to get your garden ready for winter? Any tips, successes, failures?