An Overview of Garden Plant Suggestions for Birds

Julianne Labreche, Master Gardener, Ottawa-Carleton

N= Native Plant

Bird Friendly Shrubs and Small Trees

  • Red-Osier Dogwood (Corus Sercea) N
  • Grey Dogwood (Cornus racemosa) N
  • Pagoda Dogwood (Cornus alternifolia) N
  • Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina) N
  • Wild Rose (Rosa Virginiana, R.carolina) N
  • Bayberry (Myrica pensylvania) N
  • Chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa) N
  • Wayfaring bush (Viburnum lantana ‘variegatum)
  • Arrowwood Viburnum (Vibumum dentatum) N
  • Possumhaw Viburnum (Viburnum nudum) N
  • Eastern Red Elderberry (Sambucus pubens) N
  • Canadian Serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis)N
  • Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)N
  • Inkberry (llex glabra) N
  • Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) N
  • Beautyberry (Callicarpa sp) N

Evergreen Trees for Birds

  • Eastern White pine (Pinus strobus) N
  • Red pine (Pinus resinosa) N
  • Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) N
  • Red spruce (picea rubens) N
  • Black spruce (Picea mariana) N
  • White spruce (Picea glauca) N
  • Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) N
  • Balsam fir (Abies balsamea) N

Deciduous Trees for Birds

  • Bur Oak (Quercus Macrocarpa) N
  • Shumard Oak (Quercus shumardi) N
  • Red Oak (Quercus rubra) N
  • White Oak (Quercus alba) N
  • Silver Maple (Acer succharinum) N
  • Sugar Maple (A, saccharum) N
  • Red Maple (A. rubrum) N
  • Hawthorn (Crataegus flabellata)
  • Black Willow (Salix nigra)- N
  • Flowering Crabapple (Malus magdeburgensis)
  • Balsam Poplar (Populus balsamifera) N
  • American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) N
  • White Ash (Fraxinum americana) N
  • Butternut ((Juglans cinerea) N
  • Black Walnut ( Juglans nigra) N
  • Tamarack or American Larch (Larix laricina) N

Perennials for Birds

  • Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
  • Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium spp) N
  • Perennial sunflowers (Helianthus spp.) N
  • Blazing Star (Liatris) N
  • Black-eyed Susan(Rudbeckia hirta) N
  • Milkweed (Asclepias spp) N

Bird-Friendly Annual Flowers

  • Cosmos
  • Mullein N
  • Fuchsia
  • Aster (some N)
  • Marigolds
  • Salvias
  • Cornflowers
  • Snapdragons
  • Nasturtiums
  • Amaranthus
  • Poppies

Bird-Friendly Vines

  • American Bittersweet (Celastrus scandens) N
  • Glaucous Honeysuckle (Lonicera dioica) N
  • Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) N
  • Wild Grape (Vitisriparia) N

Grasses for Birds

  • Bia Bluestem (Andropogon gerardi) N
  • Indian Grass (Sorghastrum nutans) N
  • Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) N

These are alternatives to Miscanthus, considered an invasive plant species.

www.ontarioinvasiveplants.ca/grow-instead

Groundcovers for Birds

  • Wild Strawberries (Fragaria spp- N
  • Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) N
  • Lingonberry or Bog Cranberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) N
  • Creeping Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster adpressus)

Useful Birding Apps

Merlin Bird ID Website: merlin.allaboutbirds.org

eBird Website: ebird.org/home

Birds Canada birdgardens.ca

References and Reading

Decline of the North American Avifauna, Kenneth V. Rosenberg, et al, Science, 04 October, 2019, Volume 366, Issue 6461, pp. 120-124

Resources

  • Nature’s Best Hope, Douglas Tallamy, Timber Press, 2019
  • Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants, Douglas Tallamy, Timber Press, 2007
  • The Joy of Bird Eeeding: The Essential Guide to Attracting and Feeding
  • Our Backyard Birds, Jim Carpenter, Scot & Nix, Inc. New York, 2017
  • Birds of Canada. Tyler L. Hoar et al, Lone Pine Publishing. 2010
  • The Bird Garden. A Comprehensive Guide to Attracting Birds to Your Backyard Throughout the Year, National Audubon Society. Macmillan, Canada, 1995
  • Gardening for the Birds: How to Create a Bird-Friendly Backyard, George Adams, Timber Press, 2013
  • Welcome to Subirdia, John M. Marzluff, Yale University Press, 2014
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About the Author

Julianne Labreche
Julianne Labreche has been a Master Gardener for over fifteen years. She is also a certified Master Naturalist and a Certified Pollinator Steward. In her own garden, she enjoys not just plants but wildlife too. Her own garden is certified with Monarch Watch and the Canadian Wildlife Federation. She is also the current president of the Ottawa Horticultural Society. In 2023, Julianne was awarded the first ever Nature Champion Award by Ecology Ottawa for her volunteer work as a wildlife gardener, speaker and writer on this topic.

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