Bring the Birds to You: Create A Native Bird Garden!
This month, in my series of 12 Monthly Tips to Up Your Birding Game, my original plan was to talk about how we can improve our skills as birders by learning to bird by ear. But with orders to "stay at home" firmly in place, I've had a change of plans. Because, if we can't get out to see the birds, surely the next best thing is to bring the birds to us!
Even in normal times (to which I'm sure we will return before long), making our yards attractive to birds and other wildlife ought to be a high priority for any nature-enthusiast or environmentally-conscious homeowner.
My entire town, and by default my yard, is sorely lacking in "good" bird habitat. We have no wetlands, woodlands, grasslands, riparian areas or other natural birdy areas within walking/biking/quick driving distance. But here in the Central Valley, we live in the path of the Pacific Flyway, an ancient migratory pathway, on land that was once a mosaic of grassland, wetland and oak savannah. Winter temperatures are relatively mild, and our area hosts an array of overwintering migratory species. So, while my neighborhood is without much good habitat, it is not entirely without potential.
And when we bought our quarter-acre property - a big yard with a little house in it! - almost two years ago, the first thing we did outside was to set out replacing vast expanses of lawn with a tapestry of native, drought-tolerant, wildlife-friendly plants.
The first and best thing anyone can do to attract wild birds to their yard is plant native plants.
By planting native plants, I don't mean planting Coast Redwoods in the Central Valley (though birds do nest in them), but rather choosing plants that are native to your specific region.
Use this handy tool from Calscape to find plants native to your own neighborhood.
For those of you outside of California, the National Audubon Society has put together a great resource to help users find bird-friendly plants that are native to their region. Check out that tool here.
Native plants provide shelter, nesting sites, places to perch and roost, cover for ground-foraging birds and, of course, food. Food comes in a variety of forms, perhaps the most important (and most overlooked) of which is insects. Non-native plants tend to create food deserts, lacking in native insects and the birds that depend on them. Additionally, non-native plants tend to attract non-native insects (which typically become pests). Plants also produce nectar, fruit, nuts and seeds, all of which are relished by birds throughout the year.
Diversity in plants will produce an abundance of food year-round, attract insects for birds to prey on, and thereby attract a diverse array of bird species. By layering your yard with a mix of deciduous and evergreen plants, including both large and small trees, mid-sized shrubs and low-growing annuals and perennials, you will more accurately recreate natural habitat. Also consider that many birds enjoy scratching around in a layer of mulch or leaf litter on the ground, ducking for cover under brush piles, and foraging for insects and larvae in rotting logs.
California native plants that are particularly attractive to songbirds include:
Hummingbirds are special little birds and merit special attention! While they are well-known for feeding on the nectar of tubular-shaped red, orange and pink flowers, tiny insects and spiders make up an important part of their diet, especially during the breeding season. Hummingbirds also rely on spider silk (webs) as the stretchy and strong foundation material for their nests.
Since hummingbirds are small, to get the most enjoyment out of watching them, position plants that will attract hummingbirds as close to your home, particularly your windows, as possible! They are bold little birds and have no qualms about coming up close for a sip of nectar.
California native plants that are particularly attractive to hummingbirds include:
Because birds consume vast quantities of insects and other invertebrates, you must refrain from using pesticides around your garden, yard and home! This is absolutely critical! Bird populations are falling drastically across North America, and a decline in insect populations is no doubt a culprit. Many birds that predominately feed on seeds and plant matter for most of the year rely on insect protein to raise healthy young during the breeding season. A garden of diverse native plants will attract more than just birds: frogs and toads, bats, and native insect predators like ladybugs, praying mantises and dragonflies will show up to help take care of pests. Just recently, a swarm of ladybugs materialized, seemingly out of thin air, and mobilized to attack an infestation of aphids on one of my salvias, while yesterday I happily watched as a scrub-jay picked beetles off an apricot globe mallow.
Pull invasive weeds diligently, but don't be too meticulous in the upkeep of your bird garden. Let fallen leaves remain on the ground (if you rake them off lawns, use them as mulch in your flower beds and borders) and don't deadhead your flowers, especially coneflowers, asters, daisy-like flowers and grasses with seed heads full of tasty seed. If it's safe, leave standing dead trees as snags for cavity nesting species like bluebirds, swallows and woodpeckers. You can even let fallen logs lie, and consider creating a brush pile in an out-of-the-way corner of your yard.
Read more about how to create a bird friendly yard from Audubon.
The second trick to transforming your yard into attractive habitat is to add water.
Water features come in a variety of forms, from natural ponds and streams (the pinnacle!) to simple bird baths, with or without running water. Running water is best, as birds are attracted to the sound and movement. Try a small fountain, bubbler, mister or drip tube. My birds do just fine with a few ultra-basic bird baths, crafted from terracotta saucers. The most important thing is to keep them clean - a regular scrub with a wire brush does the trick - and filled with fresh water.
The last tried-and-true method to attract birds to your yard is to install and maintain bird feeders.
Admittedly, maintaining bird feeders is not for everyone. It requires a bit of effort to keep them clean and full, and a budget for birdseed. But if you're home a lot (like we all are right now) or you tend to be a natural homebody, work from home, are home with kids, or just can't get out much, setting up a bird feeding station in your yard, where you can see it from a window, is a great way to bring birds closer to you.
Bird feeders come in a staggering array of designs (and prices) but one or two basic types is enough to get started. Platform feeders and hopper feeders are great for offering black oil sunflower seed and millet blends, which are readily available and favored by most backyard feeder birds. Avoid inexpensive "budget"mixes that contain a lot of milo seed as filler; most birds won't eat it. Special thistle feeders for Nyjer seed (which is from a yellow composite flower, not a thistle) attract goldfinches and Pine Siskins.
The most important thing is to clean your feeders regularly, to prevent the build-up of unsightly and smelly bird gunk as well as prevent the transmission of avian diseases. Every couple of weeks, I let my feeders become empty, take them down and either spray them with or soak them in a diluted bleach solution, give them a quick scrub with a stiff-bristled brush, rinse them off and set them in the sun to dry.
Additionally, hummingbird feeders are a popular way to bring these dazzling little jewels up close. My favorite design (from Amazon) is simple, inexpensive and easy to clean. Most importantly, the hummingbirds seem to prefer it over the more fancy models!
The only recipe for hummingbird nectar is as follows:
* DO NOT use any other type of sweetener in hummingbird nectar: NO brown sugar, raw sugar, organic raw cane sugar, stevia, sugar substitute, corn syrup, maple syrup, molasses, agave nectar, honey, etc. as these can harm hummingbirds. (For one thing, hummingbirds can't process the iron found in some of these products.)
* USE ONLY plain refined white table sugar
* DO NOT ADD RED FOOD COLORING OR DYE. This can also harm hummingbirds, and the red on the feeder should be enough to attract them. If it's not, try tying a red ribbon to the feeder for an extra flash of color instead.
For more - so much more! - on setting up and maintaining bird feeding stations in your own yard, take a look at Bird Watching HQ, the site of a very dedicated backyard bird watcher in Ohio. I've gleaned a lot of good information from him and recommend checking out his live-stream feeder cams!
In less than two years, I have counted fifty-five different species of birds in and around my yard. Of course, many were just passing through, but those that came to stay - the House Finches, goldfinches, Mourning Doves, sparrows, scrub-jays, mockingbirds, bushtits, warblers and hummingbirds - provide me with endless entertainment and delight as I watch them go about their lives, making their home so very close to my own.
Even in normal times (to which I'm sure we will return before long), making our yards attractive to birds and other wildlife ought to be a high priority for any nature-enthusiast or environmentally-conscious homeowner.
My entire town, and by default my yard, is sorely lacking in "good" bird habitat. We have no wetlands, woodlands, grasslands, riparian areas or other natural birdy areas within walking/biking/quick driving distance. But here in the Central Valley, we live in the path of the Pacific Flyway, an ancient migratory pathway, on land that was once a mosaic of grassland, wetland and oak savannah. Winter temperatures are relatively mild, and our area hosts an array of overwintering migratory species. So, while my neighborhood is without much good habitat, it is not entirely without potential.
And when we bought our quarter-acre property - a big yard with a little house in it! - almost two years ago, the first thing we did outside was to set out replacing vast expanses of lawn with a tapestry of native, drought-tolerant, wildlife-friendly plants.
 |
| Little house in the native bird garden |
The first and best thing anyone can do to attract wild birds to their yard is plant native plants.
By planting native plants, I don't mean planting Coast Redwoods in the Central Valley (though birds do nest in them), but rather choosing plants that are native to your specific region.
Use this handy tool from Calscape to find plants native to your own neighborhood.
For those of you outside of California, the National Audubon Society has put together a great resource to help users find bird-friendly plants that are native to their region. Check out that tool here.
 |
| 'Jelly Bean' Monkey flowers |
Native plants provide shelter, nesting sites, places to perch and roost, cover for ground-foraging birds and, of course, food. Food comes in a variety of forms, perhaps the most important (and most overlooked) of which is insects. Non-native plants tend to create food deserts, lacking in native insects and the birds that depend on them. Additionally, non-native plants tend to attract non-native insects (which typically become pests). Plants also produce nectar, fruit, nuts and seeds, all of which are relished by birds throughout the year.
Diversity in plants will produce an abundance of food year-round, attract insects for birds to prey on, and thereby attract a diverse array of bird species. By layering your yard with a mix of deciduous and evergreen plants, including both large and small trees, mid-sized shrubs and low-growing annuals and perennials, you will more accurately recreate natural habitat. Also consider that many birds enjoy scratching around in a layer of mulch or leaf litter on the ground, ducking for cover under brush piles, and foraging for insects and larvae in rotting logs.
 |
| This male American Goldfinch appreciates perching on a strategically-placed fallen branch. |
California native plants that are particularly attractive to songbirds include:
- Oaks (there are many, but try valley, blue, and interior live oak in the valley; coast live oak on the coast; black oak in the mountains)
- Fremont cottonwood
- White alder
- Box elder
- Redbud
- Blue elderberry
- Coffeeberry
- Toyon
- Manzanita
- Ceanothus
- Oregon grape
- Coyote brush
- Currants & Gooseberries
- Bush lupines
- Honeysuckle
- California wild grape
- California wild rose
- Asters
- Buckwheats
- Salvias
 |
| Native California asters |
Hummingbirds are special little birds and merit special attention! While they are well-known for feeding on the nectar of tubular-shaped red, orange and pink flowers, tiny insects and spiders make up an important part of their diet, especially during the breeding season. Hummingbirds also rely on spider silk (webs) as the stretchy and strong foundation material for their nests.
Since hummingbirds are small, to get the most enjoyment out of watching them, position plants that will attract hummingbirds as close to your home, particularly your windows, as possible! They are bold little birds and have no qualms about coming up close for a sip of nectar.
California native plants that are particularly attractive to hummingbirds include:
- California fuchsia
- Salvias (especially hummingbird sage!)
- Monkey flowers
- Manzanita
- Currants & Gooseberries
- Penstemon
- Red monardella & coyote mint
- Pink fairyduster
- Chuparosa
- Honeysuckle
- Cardinal flower
- Western columbine
- Coral bells
 |
| California native coral bells |
Because birds consume vast quantities of insects and other invertebrates, you must refrain from using pesticides around your garden, yard and home! This is absolutely critical! Bird populations are falling drastically across North America, and a decline in insect populations is no doubt a culprit. Many birds that predominately feed on seeds and plant matter for most of the year rely on insect protein to raise healthy young during the breeding season. A garden of diverse native plants will attract more than just birds: frogs and toads, bats, and native insect predators like ladybugs, praying mantises and dragonflies will show up to help take care of pests. Just recently, a swarm of ladybugs materialized, seemingly out of thin air, and mobilized to attack an infestation of aphids on one of my salvias, while yesterday I happily watched as a scrub-jay picked beetles off an apricot globe mallow.
Pull invasive weeds diligently, but don't be too meticulous in the upkeep of your bird garden. Let fallen leaves remain on the ground (if you rake them off lawns, use them as mulch in your flower beds and borders) and don't deadhead your flowers, especially coneflowers, asters, daisy-like flowers and grasses with seed heads full of tasty seed. If it's safe, leave standing dead trees as snags for cavity nesting species like bluebirds, swallows and woodpeckers. You can even let fallen logs lie, and consider creating a brush pile in an out-of-the-way corner of your yard.
Read more about how to create a bird friendly yard from Audubon.
 |
| 'Margarita BOP' Foothill Penstemon, in full glorious bloom! |
The second trick to transforming your yard into attractive habitat is to add water.
Water features come in a variety of forms, from natural ponds and streams (the pinnacle!) to simple bird baths, with or without running water. Running water is best, as birds are attracted to the sound and movement. Try a small fountain, bubbler, mister or drip tube. My birds do just fine with a few ultra-basic bird baths, crafted from terracotta saucers. The most important thing is to keep them clean - a regular scrub with a wire brush does the trick - and filled with fresh water.
 |
| These House Finches enjoy splashing around in their humble terracotta saucer bath-on-a-stump. |
The last tried-and-true method to attract birds to your yard is to install and maintain bird feeders.
Admittedly, maintaining bird feeders is not for everyone. It requires a bit of effort to keep them clean and full, and a budget for birdseed. But if you're home a lot (like we all are right now) or you tend to be a natural homebody, work from home, are home with kids, or just can't get out much, setting up a bird feeding station in your yard, where you can see it from a window, is a great way to bring birds closer to you.
 |
| A migrating male Black-headed Grosbeak visits a platform feeder filled with millet and black oil sunflower seeds. |
Bird feeders come in a staggering array of designs (and prices) but one or two basic types is enough to get started. Platform feeders and hopper feeders are great for offering black oil sunflower seed and millet blends, which are readily available and favored by most backyard feeder birds. Avoid inexpensive "budget"mixes that contain a lot of milo seed as filler; most birds won't eat it. Special thistle feeders for Nyjer seed (which is from a yellow composite flower, not a thistle) attract goldfinches and Pine Siskins.
 |
| American Goldfinches flock to feeders offering black oil sunflower seed (left) and Nyjer seed (right). |
The most important thing is to clean your feeders regularly, to prevent the build-up of unsightly and smelly bird gunk as well as prevent the transmission of avian diseases. Every couple of weeks, I let my feeders become empty, take them down and either spray them with or soak them in a diluted bleach solution, give them a quick scrub with a stiff-bristled brush, rinse them off and set them in the sun to dry.
 |
| A passing Chipping Sparrow investigates (but rejects) the simple dish-of-meal-worms-on-a-stump feeding station. |
Additionally, hummingbird feeders are a popular way to bring these dazzling little jewels up close. My favorite design (from Amazon) is simple, inexpensive and easy to clean. Most importantly, the hummingbirds seem to prefer it over the more fancy models!
 |
| A female Anna's Hummingbird visiting the feeder hung outside our kitchen window. |
The only recipe for hummingbird nectar is as follows:
- Boil 4 cups of water
- Add 1 cup of plain white table sugar*
- Stir until the sugar is dissolved
- Let the nectar cool before filling your feeders
* DO NOT use any other type of sweetener in hummingbird nectar: NO brown sugar, raw sugar, organic raw cane sugar, stevia, sugar substitute, corn syrup, maple syrup, molasses, agave nectar, honey, etc. as these can harm hummingbirds. (For one thing, hummingbirds can't process the iron found in some of these products.)
* USE ONLY plain refined white table sugar
* DO NOT ADD RED FOOD COLORING OR DYE. This can also harm hummingbirds, and the red on the feeder should be enough to attract them. If it's not, try tying a red ribbon to the feeder for an extra flash of color instead.
For more - so much more! - on setting up and maintaining bird feeding stations in your own yard, take a look at Bird Watching HQ, the site of a very dedicated backyard bird watcher in Ohio. I've gleaned a lot of good information from him and recommend checking out his live-stream feeder cams!
 |
| A male House Finch relishes my offerings of black oil sunflower seed |
In less than two years, I have counted fifty-five different species of birds in and around my yard. Of course, many were just passing through, but those that came to stay - the House Finches, goldfinches, Mourning Doves, sparrows, scrub-jays, mockingbirds, bushtits, warblers and hummingbirds - provide me with endless entertainment and delight as I watch them go about their lives, making their home so very close to my own.
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