These are some little spot illustrations from a brief that I'm working on with OUP. I haven't included the text here, but eventually I'll be able to.
An unkempt British garden can be home to many different kinds of native flora and fauna. My favourite to watch is the poppy. The way its flower bursts out of its bud feels almost a bit violent, and dramatic in its intensity.
There are a variety of butterflies native to these isles, perhaps one of the most notable of which is the immensely colourful peacock butterfly. We also have the shy little European hedgehog, which sadly isn't as common as it once was, due to encroaching human life and urbanisation.
The red fox is another common visitor to British gardens in both rural and urban areas. Foxes are generally shy, timid creatures, and, contrary to old wives' tales, will almost never attack cats- often it's pet cats who can be seen chasing foxes away from their territory. If a garden has a pond, there's a chance of also seeing common frogs, as well as their frogspawn in the spring.
The waxwing bird enjoys feasting on berries from the Rowan tree, which is a fairly common British species.
Apple trees are also popular additions to gardens that are big enough. They take about 10 years to produce fruit, and can grow up to 10 metres tall.