» • Attracting Birds to the Yard

• Attracting Birds to the Yard

“If you build it, they will come.”

Autumn is a time when many people find themselves looking up to the sky to catch a glimpse of migrating birds flying south for the winter. It is also a time of year when gardeners contemplate how to attract more birds to their yard. Bird watching is a fascinating activity and is a worth while hobby for a multitude of reasons. One reason being it is a wonderful activity for all ages and is an excellent way to get kids involved and interested in the garden. Bird watching is an educational experience that is inexpensive and easy. The family may even want to plan day trips to the zoo to learn more about birds and even further, a family may plan a vacation to an exotic location to discover a wider array of birds than the ones in their backyard. In fact, according to the Iowa State University extension office, “A government survey found that bird watching is second only to gardening as the most popular leisure-time activity in the United States.” Many people find bird watching quite a stress reliever and highly entertaining.

So, how can a gardener attract more flying friends to the landscape? Quite logically, a bird needs the essentials to be lured to a space: water, a safe place to raise their young, shelter and food.

WATER

Water may be added to the garden space by a simple birdbath or any shallow dish that can hold around 2 inches of water for the birds to drink and bathe in. The preferred spot is a shady area so the water stays relatively cool, the container should be kept clean and the water replenished every few days, and a birdbath should be in an area that a bird feels protected from predators. This is easily achieved by keeping the bath off the ground by 2 or 3 feet and in an open area so a bird can see a predator such as a cat approaching. Water gardens are a fabulous way to enhance an outdoor space and attract the birds as well. Circulating water is ideal because it has a tendency to stay cleaner and it does not freeze over in the winter as easily. However, bird enthusiasts can purchase water heaters for bird bathes to keep a constant water supply over the winter months.

SAFETY

While a gardener wants to lure birds to the yard, he also needs to consider how to keep a feathered friend and her young safe from the predators that lurk and unnecessary accidents. One way to help in a bird’s safety is to place bird feeders and houses in appropriate places. Window collisions are very common for birds, often they are seeing their own reflection and are ready to attack and at other times they see the sky and trees in the window and believe it to be true landscape. These collisions can cause blood clots and other brain damage. A bird lover can practice a couple of precautions in an attempt to avoid window collisions. By placing a feeder or birdhouse very close to the window, around one foot away, this will at least keep the accidents to a low speed and lessen the risk of serious injury. Another option is to place houses and feeders where they can be seen with binoculars or clearly with the naked eye but a fair distance from any windows. It is essential to keep feeders placed in an open space so predators cannot sneak up on a bird and her young yet at the same time have the feeders near some cover so the birds don’t waste energy flying from a feeder to bushes. Some sort of cover from 6 to 8 feet away is the ideal place for feeders. Keep the feeders at varying heights but none less than 5 feet off the ground and try to have feeders and houses sheltered from the wind.

SHELTER

Setting a few well placed bird houses, which they will use for both shelter and nesting, may attract birds to the landscape. A gardener can find bird houses for every type of bird from finches to owls. Look for something that is weather-resistant, well-ventilated and placed so that the entrance hole is facing away from prevailing winds. After each season, take down the bird houses and clean them. A bird will be more compelled to make shelter in a clean house at the beginning of the season rather than a dirty one. Natural shelters that a gardener may provide for the birds are evergreen trees and shrubs, which birds love to live in all year round. When discarding the old dried up tree this holiday season, a bird enthusiast may consider leaving it somewhere in the yard. Birds love to make their homes in old piles of dead trees, limbs and leaves.

FOOD

According to the Iowa State University extension office, there are two main kinds of food for birds. The first are preferred foods which they like the best and will eat quickly. These foods may be provided by man in a feeder or by nature. Second are the persistent foods: a bird’s version of liver and onions. These are the berries, fruits and nuts not eaten right away and there are generally some left around either on the bushes or in the feeders in the winter for the birds to resort to.

October is the time to start fall/winter feeding for birds. The birds are establishing “routes” that they will continue to keep and feed from until April or May when nature will begin to bloom and provide much of the foods they rely on. Providing suet this time of year will attract insect-eating birds, like nuthatches and woodpeckers. Be careful providing suet in the hot days of summer because if becomes rancid quite easily.

Most birds are aficionados of seed. Be sure to purchase commercially bought brands carefully. Many brands will have milo (sorghum) and wheat, seeds not preferred by any birds. Birds are known to throw these seeds onto the ground in search of preferred seeds like sunflower seeds. Iowa State University’s extension office claims a good mix is 50 percent black (oil-type) sunflower seeds, 35 percent white proso millet and 15 percent cracked corn. The all black sunflower is preferred over the black-striped sunflower. This seed attracts a wide variety of birds. White proso millet is a favorite of mourning doves, dark-eyed juncos and most sparrows. Cracked corn is, essentially, filler. Peanut kernels (not hearts) are also a favorite among birds.

Niger thistle is enjoyed by American Goldfinch. These birds are year round residents whose males lose their bright yellow breeding plumage in the winter and become a duller olive color much like their female counterparts. Place the thistle in a tubular thistle feeder and it should attract Goldfinch as well as house finches, purple finches and pine siskins. To attract northern orioles, a bird lover would want to put out slices of oranges. The northern orioles spend winters in areas where citrus fruits are abundant and they become accustomed to fruit as a diet staple over the winter. When the northern oriole comes to the Midwest in the spring it begins to eat insects because there is no citrus fruit. The trick is to provide fruit during their migration when the northern oriole’s diet is still in transition. Apples, oranges and raisins provided throughout the spring and summer will attract bluebirds, mockingbirds, woodpeckers, jays, grosbeaks, waxwings and robins.

Some preferred food source plants that will surely lure a bevy of birds to any landscape are the common elderberry, serviceberry and common chokecherry. All of these plants will provide fruit in the summer for a bird’s diet. American mountain-ash and American plum will produce preferred food in the fall for the birds. According to the US Fish and Wildlife Service pamphlet, “Homes for Birds”, there are seven types of plants that are important for a bird habitat.

1. Conifers: conifers, evergreen trees and shrubs that include pines, spruces, firs, arborvitae, junipers, cedars and yews. These plants are important in order for the birds to have some escape cover. They provide an excellent place for winter shelter and are great for summer nesting sites.

2. Grasses & Legumes: grasses and legumes can provide cover for ground nesting birds, but do not mow during nesting season. Some grasses and legumes provide seed as well.

3. Nectar-Producing Plants: nectar-producing plants are very popular for attracting hummingbirds and orioles. Flowers with tubular red corollas are especially attractive to hummingbirds.

4. Summer-Fruiting Plants: summer-fruiting plants include plants that produce fruits or berries from May through August. Examples are various species of cherry, chokecherry, honeysuckle, raspberry, serviceberry, blackberry, blueberry, grape, mulberry, plum and elderberry. Birds that are often attracted to summer-fruiting plants are brown thrashers, catbirds, robins, waxwings, woodpeckers, orioles, cardinals, towhees and grosbeaks.

5. Fall-Fruiting Plants: This landscape component includes shrubs and vines whose fruits are ripe in the fall. These foods are important for both migratory birds, which build up fat reserves prior to migration and as a food source for non-migratory species that need to enter the winter season in good physical condition. Fall-fruiting plants include dogwoods, mountain ash, winter-berries, cottoneasters and buffalo-berries.

6. Winter-Fruiting Plants: winter-fruiting plants are those whose fruits remain attached to the plants long after they first become ripe in the fall. Many winter-fruiting plants are not palatable until they have frozen and thawed numerous times. Examples are glossy crabapple, snowberry, bittersweet, sumacs, American highbush, eastern & European wahoo, Virginia creeper and chinaberry.

7. Nut & Acorn Plants: This category includes oaks, hickories, buckeyes, chestnuts, butternuts, walnuts and hazels. The meat inside of broken nuts and acorns are eaten by a plethora of birds. In addition, these plants provide a good nesting habitat.

BENEFITS

Now that the basic four elements needed to attract birds to the garden are established, what is the payback to creating a sanctuary for these feathered friends? The US Fish & Wildlife Service has compiled a list of ten benefits that a gardener receives from landscaping with the intent to attract birds:

Increased wildlife population, a home owner could possibly double their population with a good plan.
Energy conservation, for example conifers planted around the home reduce heating bills in the winter and shade trees reduce cooling costs in the summer.
Soil conservation
Natural beauty
Wildlife photography
Bird watching
Natural insect control
Food production
Property value
Habitat for children

If it all seems a bit overwhelming, a good place to start is by setting some priorities. A bird novice should establish what types of birds they want to attract. First ask the question, what birds frequent the area? Incorporating native plants is a good starting point for a landscaping plan and should prove to be a great long term investment. A gardener should draw out a map of the property to get a feel for the space. With that map, establish the sunny and shady areas, draw the plants desired to scale so that when they are fully grown they won’t be over crowding a space, and keep in mind spots that will make good observation points to view the wide array of birds. Lastly, review the seven types of plants mentioned earlier and take a revised list to the local nurseries. With a list of possible plants in hand, talk to one of their professionals. At that point, a gardener is well on his or her way to making a back yard sanctuary for our flying friends.

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