How to Attract Birds to Your Yard!

Thursday, May 25th, 2023

Disclaimer: Product stock, prices, and information is subject to change after blog publish date.

We can find joy in our gardens in every season! We can enjoy the beauty of the plants that we have grown and the wildlife that they attract, in particular, the birds that visit us.

Aside from using bird feeders, we can attract a variety of birds by purposefully planting what they need for their nesting sites, food, and shelter from weather and predators.

To encourage birds to visit your home you can plant trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals that provide food in the form of fruit, berries, nuts, seeds, insects or nectar producing flowers. It is ideal to grow plants that bloom and fruit in different seasons, providing food for birds throughout the entire year.

Trees and shrubs to consider for fruit include mulberries, crabapples, dogwoods, serviceberries, sumacs, viburnums, cherries, elderberries, bush honeysuckle and small fruit shrubs like raspberries, currants, blueberries and blackberries.

Deciduous trees such as maples, oaks, hickories, and white birch provide good nesting locations as well as seeds, nuts, and insect-hunting sites.

Conifers such as pines, spruces, fir, larch, and hemlock provide cover, sap, seeds, and nesting sites. Yews also provide berries to attract birds!

Some ornamental grasses can be left to stand for winter to supply seeds, as well as perennials such as black-eyed susan, echinacea, and baptisia. Annuals that supply seeds and can be left in place for winter include red salvia, sunflowers, cosmos, zinnias and asters.

Hummingbirds prefer flowers that are tubular in form and red in colour. They are also attracted to orange and pink flowers! It is ideal to have mass plantings of these plants to meet the hummingbird’s requirement of sweet nectar.

Annual flowers that attract hummingbirds include petunias, snapdragons, zinnias, etc.

Perennials preferred by hummingbirds include agastache, hollyhock, butterfly bush, delphinium, heuchera, summer phlox, bee balm, bleeding heart, columbine, penstemon, etc. Preferred shrubs and vines include rose of Sharon, weigela, trumpet vine and red honeysuckle.

If you’d prefer to attract birds to your yard with a bird feeder, we have hummingbird feeders that range from $29.99 to $55.99 and oriole feeders that range from $27.99 to $50.00. We also have bird feeders that attract cardinals, chickadees, finches and nuthatches that range from $34.99 to $84.99. While we do not sell bird seed, we do have some liquid hummingbird and oriole nectar. Regularly $25.99 per bottle, but you can now get two bottles for $30.00!

Lastly, providing a water source is essential for attracting birds. If your property does not include a pond or stream, providing water in the form of a birdbath or a large saucer will bring birds to your garden and keep them coming back. We currently have some ceramic bird baths for $128.00. We also have some unique concrete bird baths starting at $180.00.

While we do carry many of the tree, shrub, perennial and annual examples mentioned in this blog, we do not have all of them in stock. Please contact us via phone (905-735-5744) or email for latest availability.