Renting shouldn't mean sitting out the joy of gardening for wildlife. You may not be able to dig a pond or plant a hedgerow, but a doorstep, a balcony or a windowsill is enough to feed a goldfinch, shelter a frog and keep bees busy from March to October. The trick is to think in containers, and to choose every single thing with moving day in mind.

Start with what you can take with you

Before you buy anything, picture the day you leave. Plants in pots, window boxes, hanging baskets and freestanding water features can all travel in a car or a van. Anything drilled into a wall, planted in the ground or attached permanently to a fence usually can't.

It's still worth a friendly word with your landlord or letting agent. Many are perfectly happy for you to plant into a border, put up a nest box or keep a water butt, especially if you offer to restore the space afterwards. Get it in writing if you can. But build your wildlife garden so that it works even if the answer is no.

Two practical points: use saucers or pot feet under containers on paving, so you don't leave permanent rings, and put heavy pots on wheeled bases if you'll need to shift them. Landlords notice clean patios.

Pots: the workhorses of a rented wildlife garden

Go bigger than you think. A 40cm-wide pot holds moisture far better than a 20cm one, supports taller plants and needs less watering. Terracotta is lovely but dries out fast; glazed ceramic, wood or good-quality plastic hold moisture longer.

Use peat-free compost and fill your pots with native or near-native plants that earn their keep:

• Wild marjoram and lavender for bees and butterflies, both happy in a sunny pot.
• Foxgloves for bumblebees — short-lived, but they'll self-seed into neighbouring pots.
• Oxeye daisy and birds-foot trefoil for a wilder, meadowy look that hoverflies love.
• Hardy geranium and sedum for long-lasting nectar and seedheads birds will pick over in winter.
• Honeysuckle or climbing ivy up an obelisk in a large pot, giving cover and berries.

Skip pesticides entirely, and try not to deadhead everything. Seedheads feed finches, and hollow stems are winter bedrooms for small insects.

Window boxes and balconies: make the vertical count

A window box on a first-floor flat is genuinely useful habitat. Line it with a water-retaining mat, use peat-free compost, and pack in nectar-rich plants: trailing nasturtium, verbena, thyme and night-scented stock, which draws in moths after dark. Watch the weight — a saturated window box is heavy, so fix it safely or use a bracket designed for the job.

Railings and balcony edges are prime real estate. A hanging feeder, a small bird bath clamped to a rail, or a wall-mounted planter of herbs will all bring birds and insects within arm's reach of your kettle. On windy balconies, group pots together to create a sheltered microclimate and to reduce drying out.

A freestanding pond you can move in a wheelbarrow

Nothing beats water for wildlife, and you don't need to dig. A half-barrel, a large glazed pot or a sturdy trug with the drainage holes sealed will do. Place it somewhere with a mix of sun and shade, and away from where children play.

• Fill with rainwater where possible — top up with tap water left to stand, or better still from a small water butt on the balcony.
• Add a couple of oxygenating plants such as hornwort and one or two natives like water forget-me-not or marsh marigold.
• Give creatures a way out: a gently sloping stone or a piece of rough wood from water to rim. Frogs, hedgehogs and beetles all need an exit ramp.
• Never add fish. They eat everything you're trying to attract.

Even a small tub will pull in damselflies, water boatmen and thirsty birds. Frogs will find it, sometimes within weeks — and if you move house, a bucket and a lid will carry the whole thing with you.

Bringing in the birds: food, water and nesting

Feeding works brilliantly in small spaces, as long as you're consistent and hygienic. Sunflower hearts suit almost everything, from blue tits to house sparrows. Nyjer seed in a fine feeder brings goldfinches. Mealworms — dried or live — win over robins and dunnocks. Avoid loose fat balls in netting, which can trap beaks and feet; use a proper feeder instead.

Clean feeders every couple of weeks with hot soapy water and let them dry fully. Rotating feeders and keeping the ground beneath swept up reduces disease. If you spot a poorly-looking bird, take feeders down for a fortnight.

Water matters as much as food. A shallow dish, refreshed daily and cleaned often, gives birds somewhere to drink and bathe, and insects a lifeline in dry spells. In winter, thaw it out each morning.

For nesting, choose a freestanding pole with a box on top, or a box with a hook that hangs from a branch or bracket — no drilling required. Face it between north and east, two to four metres up, and keep it away from the cat's favourite ambush spot.

Moving day: packing a garden in a few boxes

Plan ahead so nothing gets left behind. In late winter, divide overcrowded pots into smaller ones. Trim plants back so they travel tidily. Drain the pond into buckets, keeping the plants damp, and move it the same day.

Sensible things to carry with you: a bag of peat-free compost, a few empty pots, your feeders and nest box. The new place will almost certainly have a windowsill, a doorstep or a patch of concrete that could use a little life. Within a season, the robins will have found you again.