FOR SOME YEARS NOW, WE’VE HEARD DISTANT RUMBLINGS THAT WE SHOULD PLANT NATIVE. The very early murmurings seemed valid but not urgent, emanating from obscure voices that somehow smacked of unnecessary saber rattling. Still, some of us squirmed in the face of it, wondering if we were somehow bad people, maintaining landscapes awash with daffodils, tulips, and daylilies, giving nod to purple loosestrife, water hyacinth, and English ivy. We added butterfly bush, burning bush, and yews; and then we merged them with Amur honeysuckle and Callery pears. What could possibly be wrong with pretty plants with masses of pretty flowers? The vague answer always seemed to be something about their being nonnative, introduced species and that they didn’t support wildlife. A few nonnatives apparently were even invasive, and somehow that was worse.
But the message that made us bird lovers squirm the most was the underlying and oft-repeated one that none of these introduced species support our native birds. While the allegation made sense—that native plants would somehow support native birds—the why and how remained vague. Why couldn’t birds find a happy life among the lovely nonnatives? Besides, why change the yard now? It’s worked for years, and lots of birds visit the bird feeders.
Recently, though, more numerous, prestigious, and resonating voices swelled the chorus of commands to plant natives, carrying the weight of the avian research community, including Cornell University’s Lab of Ornithology, American Birding Association, American Bird Conservancy, National Wildlife Federation, National Audubon Society, The Nature Conservancy, and numerous affiliated and related organizations. The unrelenting voices repeatedly belted out the refrain: Attracting birds to the yard is not about feeders and feed. It’s about plants. Native plants.
Some media picked up the message. Magazines offered pithy how-to articles recommending native plants for birds, usually a half dozen or so perennials that produce nectar or seeds birds love. In colorful spreads, we saw the potential for native plants in the yard. Nevertheless, we all had that niggling feeling that a couple of asters and a trio of purple coneflowers probably didn’t answer the cry for native plants.
Books followed. The “why?” part of native plants became more insistent, more personal. And the books included exhaustive lists, boasting hundreds of native plants to make a yard a sanctuary. But which of the 500 natives work where? Which ones attract which birds—and why?
Websites also took up the charge and charted regional compilations that boggled the mind—hundreds of plants that, in theory, attracted hundreds of birds. Wading through the information and recommendations became time-consuming, exhausting, daunting, almost frightening.
Folks who really wanted to heed the call found themselves still with unanswered questions. What, exactly, is a native plant? Isn’t “native” just a nice name for weeds? Why, exactly, do birds need native plants? Why don’t nonnative plants serve them just as well? How many native plants must a yard have to satisfy birds? If the yard has one each of half of the top 10 perennials, will that suffice? Which natives work in a mini yard? How does a person choose among the hundreds of native plants? Which plants are the best of the best?
Here’s what folks need to resolve the conundrum:
A concise and convincing explanation of why—and how—native plants support birds but nonnative plants don’t. Until a clear understanding hits home, there’s little motivation to move forward.
State-specific recommendations for native plants or suitable varieties that best attract birds. Every plant is native somewhere, and plants native in Florida may not be native in Wisconsin. Plants native to a bog aren’t native to a prairie or mountain glade. So “native” depends on place. Still, no matter their native status, not all native plants are created equal in terms of how they support birds.
Recommendations for the full gamut of native plants, the best of the best, including trees, shrubs, perennials, vines, and grasses. Planting native extends well beyond coneflowers and asters. Prior to 1492, this continent was lush with its original—i.e., native—vegetation, from the tiniest orchid to the most magnificent oak tree. Planting native implies choosing from among the many plant families, not just herbaceous perennials.
Recommendations that detail which feature(s) of specific plants make them bird-friendly. A knowledgeable basis for choosing plants springs from knowing which plants provide seed, which ones support year-round shelter, which ones grow berries and when those berries ripen, which ones host bugs, and which ones meet all the other necessities of life for birds.
Recommendations limited to well-behaved plants, the best of the best, that function satisfactorily in specific landscape sizes. Many native plants are rangy, aggressive, or unsightly. Many others are stunningly lovely. Some tower to 100 feet; some need room only to vine and twine; some hang out comfortably in pots on the patio. Guidance makes plant choices easier, more satisfying, and more successful.
But no reference provides all the nuts-and-bolts information for folks who want to heed the call to plant native. Until now.
If you’re a bird-watcher, you may not feel you know as much as you’d like about native plants and how they support the birds you love. And you may not be a gardener, much less a landscape designer.
If you’re a gardener, you may not be a birder. You no doubt want to garden green, but you may not understand clearly how native plants fit in your landscape—or why you’d want them there.
If you’re a botanist, you may not be either a birder or a landscaper. You know plants, where they thrive, how they grow, how they behave. You understand inside out and backwards why natives surpass nonnatives on every measurable botanical scale. Conversely, you may not fully understand how plants support birds—or, especially, which plants support which birds.
If you’re a landscaper, you may not be a birder. Still, your clients request native plants that attract birds. Even once you choose natives suitable for your area’s growing conditions, they may not fit ordinary landscape designs. And they may not attract the birds your clients want. Still, you understand the ecologically sound reasons for moving forward.
In short, there’s an entire gamut of caring folks out there looking to enhance biodiversity and protect wildlife, especially birds.
Here’s the pivotal point for this book: Birders, gardeners, botanists, and landscapers together know more than any one of us alone, and this book has put those folks together, pooling their areas of expertise and offering a set of solid suggestions for transforming your yard and/or garden into a native paradise for birds.
Because this reference can’t address the extraordinary range of plants suitable for birdscaping yards across the entire US, we have limited our discussion to, roughly, the eastern half of the country, states including and east of Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, and Louisiana to the East Coast, and from the Canadian border to the Gulf Coast. Thus, when we talk about the “eastern US,” we’re referring to this broad 31-state area.
To reach the folks in the eastern and central US who want to heed the call to plant native for the birds, this book
explains the relationship between birds, bugs, and native plants;
suggests bird-friendly, state-specific native plants that support birds during the four seasons;
recommends bird-friendly native plants that work successfully in attractive home landscaping, in spaces the size of a pots-and-patio garden to that of a mega estate.
As a hands-on, here’s-how-you-do-it book, lavishly illustrated for inspiration and clarity, this reference should function as a handle for easily understanding why and how to plant which natives to turn your landscape into a biologically diverse and ecologically sound birdscape.
Let’s do it!