Feeding our Feathered Friends

 

 

You may not see this classified ad in local newspaper, but right now wild regional birds are already deciding where they’re going to spend the winter months. What you do as the days grow shorter lets birds know that you want them to take residency in your home as the weather becomes severe. The key to making a perfect invitation to your feathered guests is how you prepare your yard. Choosing the right combinations ensures your winter will be filled with entertainment and interest right outside your window.

 

If you want to encourage more birds to make your home theirs, there are many plants that you can add to create a yummy habitat for our beaked buddies, and at the same time add beauty and value to your property. 

 

Birds love berries, and there are a few trees and shrubs that set berries during the fall for their winter feasting. A few of our favorites will feed your feathered friends and look good in the landscape.

 

Snowberry (Symphoricarpos) ‘Charming Fantasy’ and ‘Scarlet Pearl’ are two beautiful shrub options for your landscape. Both deciduous shrubs are fast growing that can reach a size of about 4 feet high and wide. In the summer the Snowberry produces small white-pink flower that transform into berries, or fruit in the fall. As fall transforms into winter the leaves drop leaving the abundance of attractive berries on the bare stems.  These stems of berries are not only a treat for birds, but are a beautiful addition to floral and holiday arrangements. Hungry birds are not picking, but the berries do come in two fantastic colors. The berries of the ‘Charming Fantasy’ are shell-pink and the ‘Scarlet Pearl’ offers dark pink berries. Performs best in full to partial sun.

 

Crabapple ‘Prairie Fire’ is one of Jack Bigej, owner of Al’s Garden Center favorite trees. Jack loves plants that offer more than one season of interest. The fact that birds like it is just another plus. This moderate growing tree is great for a smaller landscape reaching 15 to 20 feet high and prefers full sun. In the spring it blooms vibrant dark pinkish red flowers. In the fall the purple to green foliage transforms to yellow-orange as it sets small, dark red-purple fruit, yummy delights for local birds. The ‘Prairie Fire’ has an excellent resistance to rust, mildew and fireblight.   

 

We can’t forget about ‘Satomi’ Dogwoods (Cornus kousa 'satomi'). Another great tree for any size landscape this Dogwood at maturity is only about 20 feet tall by 20 feet wide. Fantastic four petal pink blooms fill the tree in the spring. In the fall the foliage evolves from green to purple. During this transformation more mature Dogwood will set fruit that look like strawberry growing from the branches. What bird could resist these?

In addition to these trees and shrubs think about leaving the seed heads available on your Echinacea, Rudbeckias, Ornamental Grasses and other perennials for your birds to enjoy.

While bird feeders can potentially attract the widest variety of birds to your yard, not all bird seed mixes suit all birds. Some birds such as finches and grosbeaks only eat seeds and nuts. Others such as chickadees, nuthatches, and woodpeckers rely on both the feeder, plants you have in your garden, and insects or suet. 

 

The best all purpose mix to add to your feeder is black oil sunflower seed. The seed boasts a high concentration of oil which is especially important in the winter.  Black oil sunflower seed will disappear first in your feeding station. If you have ever offered a wild bird seed mix to your birds, you may have noticed that your birds will push aside the other seed in pursuit of the sunflower seed. Birds will use their oil glands to spread the oil over their feathers to keep them buoyant, dry and warm. 

 

In addition to seed mix, insect eating birds such as nuthatches and chickadees will benefit greatly from suet in the winter time when there are fewer insects available.   Suet is a high energy snack for birds that has high concentrations of animal fat and other ingredients. Suet provides an important source of heat and energy for birds. Suet is generally square or rectangular in shape and comes in a variety of colors and flavors to suit the look you and your winter guests will like. Offering suet in a wire cage is a low-maintenance bird feeder. You refill only once every week or so, you never need to scrub the feeder, and you can leave it in your yard year round. Presenting suet in your backyard will also attract a greater variety of birds for your enjoyment.  [Visit our birds shop in our Woodburn and Sherwood store for all your bird feeding and housing supplies.]

 

In addition to providing the food and shelter found in natural habitat, birds will remember you and your yard based on the kind of feed you provide. Birds return based on past experience and instinct. There are some universal rules that ensure good word of beak when you are providing feed through the winter:

 

 

 As you become more and more interested in the visitors in your yard, many volunteer opportunities exist through the Audubon Society’s local chapters. These local chapters provide excellent learning opportunities and events. Several local chapters are currently sponsoring many habitat restoration projects in communities throughout Oregon. [www.audubon.org]   The Oregon State Extension program also offers lots of great advice and tips for creating a bird habitat at home. [www.extension.oregonstate.edu]

 

So go out there and answer that ad and prepare for a winter full of fun and interesting antics performed by your new yard guests!