Do you love watching wild birds in your backyard? Keep them coming back with flowers that provide food and nectar. Learn how you can create a bird-friendly flower garden with these easy tips and different flower varieties.
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This past weekend was the last weekend I filled the bird feeder for the season. According to Google, April 1st is the recommended time you should cut off feeding the birds for spring and summer. We usually stop feeding the birds in the spring anyway. With the weather warming up again and plants and insects becoming more readily available, it's a good time to encourage birds to start foraging for food again.
I wanted to make sure our backyard remained a safe and familiar place for the wild birds to hang out. I've built them a new birdhouse (to go with the nesting box I built last year) and I'm fully embracing my bird nerd status by planting flowers that will keep our feathered friends happy and frequenting our yard. The plus about this is that these flowers will also attract other pollinators such as bees and butterflies. It's a gardening win all around!
How to Create a Bird-Friendly Flower Garden
The main thing a bird-friendly flower garden needs is the right plants to attract birds and keep them well-fed. So make sure to choose some native plants. Do some research on what plants are native to your area and also which birds are attracted to which variety of plants. But, in general, you'll want to choose plants that will provide plenty of seeds and also attract insects to the plants that the birds feed on.
Early Blooming Flowers
If you're like me and can't wait to start your flower garden as soon as spring begins, consider planting some of these early blooming flowers. Not only do these flowers provide early color in your yard, but they also provide nectar and seeds for wild birds.
- Bluebells
- Snowdrops
- Grape hyacinths
- Bleeding hearts
- Lilacs
- Peonies
- Pansies
- Lupine
- Primrose
PERENNIALS
I've been trying to add more perennials in our yard and garden. Perennials come back year after year unlike annuals, which you have to replant. Most of the early spring flowers listed above are perennials. If you're looking to add some color to your summer garden that will also benefit the wild birds in your yard, consider planting these flowers.
- Coneflowers
- Yarrow
- Cardinal flowers
- Coreopsis
- Blanket flowers
- Salvia
- Columbine
- Black-eyed Susan
- Jasmine
- Sedum
- Milkweed
- Stokesia
ANNUALS
Annuals are always fun to shop for and many annual flowers also provide a source of food to wild birds and other pollinators. These are some of my favorite annual flowers to add to our yard and garden each year.
- Marigolds
- Zinnias
- Sunflowers
- Dahlias (considered an annual in colder climates)
- Fuschia
- Petunias
- Calendula
- Cosmos
- Verbena
- Nasturtium
- Lantana
- Impatiens
- Calibrachoa
- Snapdragons
A Few Extra Bird-Friendly Garden Tips
- Now that you have a list of plants to choose from to create your bird-friendly space, you might want to plant a variety of flowers that bloom at different points in the season (early spring, summer, fall, and winter).
- Plant trees and shrubs that offer birds protection from predators. If you don't have room to plant on a large scale, consider hanging a birdhouse or two instead. Just make sure they're hung high up off the ground to protect them.
- Plant a variety of flowers, shrubs, and trees to attract a variety of different birds to your yard.
- Provide a water source for the birds such as a bird bath or small shallow drinking dish. Change the water often, especially during the summer.
- Practice natural gardening (like attracting beneficial pollinators that will naturally take care of pests for you) to avoid pesticides that can harm wildlife.
- Planting an herb garden? Herbs like lavender, fennel, thyme, pineapple sage, and even rosemary may attract birds to your yard.
- If you decide to plant flowers like sunflowers, consider saving the seeds once the season has ended. Not only can you enjoy the seeds (either by eating or saving to plant the following year), but they can easily be added to bird feeders during the winter months or used to make homemade suet.
Looking for more ways to attract wild birds to your yard? Check out this post!
