Attracting Birds to the Garden
Creating Habitats for Finches, Cardinals, and Other Songbirds
Aug 24, 2009
And according to birding website Birdzilla, bird watching relieves stress and helps introduce kids to the outdoors.
It's no wonder folks seek to invite birds to reside or over-winter in their gardens.
Birds benefit, too. Development pressures have decreased habitat, and not all birds can adapt to the loss. Some species, squeezed into ever-diminishing habitats, suffer much reduced populations. Others, like the Ivory Billed Woodpecker, are now thought to be extinct.
Fortunately, many songbird species have adapted to, and even thrive, in more crowded, suburban conditions. These species, and many marginal ones, benefit tremendously by the creation of more attractive habitat.
Bird Habitat Design Essentials
Creating bird habitat in a garden requires a certain approach. The editors of An Illustrated Guide to Attracting Birds, (1994 Sunset Publishing Company) believe a "refined" look - say a large, meticulously manicured lawn coupled with a limited number of repeated exotic shrub species - results in a high-maintenance garden, one needing constant mowing, raking and pesticide spraying. Most birds won't be interested.
Whatever their land-use goals, gardeners seeking to attract birds should become familiar not only with the needs of species already visiting the property, but also the requirements of birds they'd like to attract.
So what do birds need? Certain essential elements for a balanced habitat - food, water, shelter, and nesting sites.
Create Edge Environments
Stephen W. Kress, in his book The Bird Garden (1995 Dorling Kindersley Publishing, Inc.) says most native plants perform extra duty, serving up nutritional banquets in sheltered thickets that offer cover and protected nesting sites. To create these multi-purpose "edge" environments, gardeners can
- plant hedgerows (consisting of native plants chosen for year-long fruiting) on the borders of their property.
- use fruit-bearing understory trees like dogwoods and serviceberries with shrubs such as viburnums and hollies.
- introduce low growing perennials and dwarf shrubs like creeping juniper and cotoneaster.
- plant vines and ground covers in the foreground.
- leave leaf litter where it falls in the bed for insect eating birds like towhees to scratch through.
- site perennials in a self-seeding patch in the corner of the property.
- plant members of the sunflower family - they're songbird favorites.
- provide bright, trumpet shaped flowers and vines for hummingbirds.
- grow a variety of plants (all sizes and types) producing nuts, seeds, and berries.
Bird Feeders
Gardeners should introduce a supplemental feeding program to address birds' specific nutritional needs throughout the year. According to Mr. Kress, birds can benefit from human-provided food all year long.
- Early spring - birds are ravenous, striving to replenish energy stores lost through migration and winter food shortages. Oil-bearing sunflower seeds are welcome, as well as crushed eggshells, which birds use to replenish calcium for egg production.
- Summer - there's lots of natural food, but energy needs are high, too, as birds forage for themselves and their young. Suet (high in protein) placed in cage feeders, and table feeders spread with fruits and seeds, will help supplement a bird's diet.
- Fall - bird populations are burgeoning as fledglings compete for resources and migrant species fatten up for extended flights. Seeds rich in oil are greatly appreciated.
- Winter - food supplies are at their lowest, essentially from first frost till spring flush. Supply suet mixed with cornmeal and peanut butter at dawn and dusk.
Shelter and Cover for Birds
- thorny plants like roses, hawthorn, cotoneaster and blackberry make good thickets for shelter.
- create grade changes by building low walls or artificial slopes faced with rock and debris. Top with low-growing shrubs.
- on small lots, create safe, unbroken corridors of varied-height shrubs running along property lines from outlying trees to feeder areas.
- provide conifers and broad leaf evergreens in cold-winter areas.
- for a quick bird shelter, build a brush pile.
Water and Bird Baths
Like humans, birds need water for bathing and drinking. Place bird baths within easy reach of shelter. Metal bird baths are best, as they're easier to clean. Other choices are concrete and plastic.
Basins should be no more than 2" deep with shallow, sloping sides and a rough surface so birds won't slip.
Ponds and water features are good water sources. Make sure pond slopes are not steep, and plant aquatic plants around the pond's perimeter.
Birds are attracted to moving water. A drip line installed in the fountain will create surface ripples and will likely attract birds flying overhead. Or install a misting attachment to the bird bath - hummingbirds love to fly through mist.
Nesting Sites
Birds may nest at all levels of their habitat, from the top-most tree canopy to the ground plane. Planting layered shelter plants will provide many secure nesting sites. Using thorny shrubs can help keep cats at bay.
Snags (dead or dying trees) provide holes for cavity dwellers. And supplemental nest boxes, enclosed or open-faced, serve as protected nest sites for many bird species. Make sure bird houses have covers that can be removed to allow cleaning, sloped roofs to shed rain, and protected entrances to discourage squirrels and raccoons.
For attracting birds and creating quality habitat, variety is the gardener's friend. Create an edge environment in layers - tall canopy trees, then understory native trees and tall shrubs, then smaller shrubs mixed with perennials, grading to ground covers and native grasses. Intermix deciduous, broad leaf evergreens and conifers, and make sure flowering plants are balanced with food producers.
This simple arrangement takes care of most food, shelter, and nesting requirements. Watering stations placed in strategic locations complete the habitat.
With a little forethought, home and business owners can create outstanding bird sanctuaries, and send an invitation to their feathered friends that's impossible for them to ignore.
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