ATTRACTING BIRDS AND BUTTERFLIES TO THE LANDSCAPE

By Brian Pirtle

The needs of birds and butterflies are similar to our own basic needs. · Food · Water · Cover and a place to raise there young

Food: Birds like a wide variety of food so if you provide them with seeds, berries, and other healthy treats you will attract more birds to your yard and they are more likely to stay.

Seeds -Birds like seeds from perennial and annual flowers, as well as from ornamental grasses and vines

Berries –Trees and shrubs provide large quantities of berries at different times of the year

Insects – Insects from dead tree stumps and brush piles are another good source of food

Nectar – Butterflies like clusters of small flowers and daisy type flowers. They also need plants for their larva to feed on. Fennel, parsley, lovage, and butterfly weed are some of the larva host plants.

Hummingbirds like bright colored trumpet shaped flowers

Feeders – Feeders are a good way to bring wildlife closer to seating areas and windows.

A good basic seed mix is ·black oil sunflower ·millet, · safflower. This mix will attract a wide variety of birds. Suet mixes are a healthy winter treat but will spoil over 70 degrees. Oranges, bananas, raisins, apples, and tangerines are a great summer treat

Hummingbird feeders are very effective and come in many different styles. Make sure to clean your feeder with scalding hot water every 3 days. Hummingbirds are very territorial and will fight over their food so make sure to place feeders and flowering plants in different locations in the yard.

Water: Adding water to your landscape will increase the frequency that birds and butterflies visit and nest in your yard (can be a simple birdbath or a pond with a waterfall)

· Birds are wary of water that is more than 2 “ – 3 “ deep

· Keep the water source out in the open (15’ away from trees and shrubs) so they can see their predators.

· Never use cleaning chemicals in and around your water feature

·Butterflies prefer moist, soggy soil or sand as a water source · hummingbirds like a fine mist

Cover: Birds and butterflies need cover and protection from the elements and from their predators.

· Mixing evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs provide cover as well as food throughout the year.

· Plants with thorns provide extra protection from predators

· Large perennials, grasses, and vines provide cover as well as food.

· Stumps, hollow logs, and brush piles are other good ways to provide cover.

· Perennials, grasses, and vines also provide nesting materials for birds. Hummingbirds use grasses, pussy willow and thistle down, moss, and milkweed all held together by spider webs.

(more on back)

· Different species of birds have different requirements for birdhouses. From the size of the entry hole to how high it’s hung. Keep in mind their environmental needs outside the birdhouse as well (some birds like an open area, some like it wooded. Different birds also like the entry facing specific directions.

(for more information on this subject try www.birds.cornell.edu)

Plants That Attract Birds, Butterflies, and Hummingbirds

Trees

● Desert Willow & Chitalpa ● Japanese Cedar Yoshino ● Arizona Cypress ● Eastern Wahoo

● Choke Cherry ● Buckthorn, Carolina & Fernleaf ● Soap Berry ● Chase Tree ● Holly ● Green Giant Arborvitae ● Deodora Cedar Shalimar ● Weeping Alaskan Cypress

Shrubs

● Abelia ● Chokeberry ● Beautyberry, dwarf and native ●Summer Sweet Clethra ● Autumn Olive

● Rose of Sharon ● Possum Haw Holly ● Virginia Sweet Spire Henries Garnett or Little Henry

● Northern Bayberry ● Nandina ● Sumac ● Rose (especially Knock Out) ● Elderberry ● Spirea

●Viburnum ● Wiegela ● Yuca red ● Butterfly Bush

Perennials

● Yarrow Anthea ● Agastache ● Anemone ● Butterfly weed ● Threadleaf Bluestar ●Blackberry Lilly

●Coreopsis ● Foxglove Spanish Peaks ● Echinacea ● Joe Pye Weed ● Indian Blanket Flower, Gailardia

● Heliotrope hardy ● Daylily ● Red Hot Poker ● Liatris ● Sea Lavender ● Flax ● Cardinal Flower

● Catchfly ● Bee Balm Petite Delight ● Cat Mint Walkers Low ● Sun Drops Comanche Campfire & Lemon Drops ● Pink Primrose Siskiu ● Beard Tongue (Penstemon) Husker Red & Red Rocks

●Russian Sage regular & Little Spire ● Fleece Flower (Persicaria) Lance Corporal ● Phlox David

●Obedient Plant Miss Manners ● Black Eyed Susan, maxima & Viettes Little Susy ● Salvia, Autumn Sage & May Night ● Soapwort, Rosa Plena & Max Frye ● Live Forever (Sedum) Autumn Joy & Matrona ● Cup Plant ● Goldenrod; Bluestem, Ohio, & Golden Baby ● Stokes Aster ● Verbascum

● Verbena ● Iron Weed ● Veronica Royal Candles

Annuals

● Asclepia annual ● Cosmos ● Cypress Vine ● Dahlberg Daisy ● Gaillardia Red Plume ● Geranium

● Gomphrena ● Hibiscus tropical ● Zinnia Mexican ● Lantana New Gold ● Flowering Tobacco

● Petunia ● Plumbago annual ● Tithonia Fiesta del Sol ● Verbena ● Salvia annual ● Wishbone Flower

Grasses

● Pampas Grass ● Maiden Grass ● Fountain Grass ● Mexican Feather Grass ● Sedge Grass ● Millet

● Northern Sea Oats ● Blue Stem and other natives

Herbs

● Parsley ● Fennell ● Lovage ● Dill ● Anise ● Rue