Purple coneflower: Great native plant to attract butterflies and birds

Perfect for building a wildflower meadow

Few flowers light up a garden with bees and butterflies quite like Purple Coneflower.

Plant the native species of purple coneflower, spread the seeds around your garden and enjoy the benefits of these strong, upright native prairie-based plants that are truly magnets for swallowtails, painted ladies, monarchs, and an assortment of fritillaries.

Birds like them too, including hummingbirds that are attracted to the plant while it is in bloom and goldfinches, blue jays and cardinals who depend on the plants for its abundance of seed throughout the winter.

Stick with the Native coneflowers

More recently, coneflowers have become so popular that they are now available in a variety of colours including white, yellow, orange, red and even green. Plant them if you wish, but make sure the native species of coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) has a prominent spot in the garden.

The yellow coneflower (Ratibida pinnata) and thin-leaved purple coneflower are perfect companion plants to the more traditional purple cousin. They are also easy to grow, do well in a variety of soil types and are hardy from zones 3-7.

This beautiful yellow swallowtail stops at our purple coneflower to drink in its rich nectar.

A prairie meadow in your backyard for the bees, butterflies and birds

Most of us in southwestern Ontario stretching up into northeastern United States define our living and gardening area as the deciduous forest zone.

While this holds true for the most part, Lorraine Johnson writes in Grow Wild! Native Plant Gardening in Canada, parts of our gardening zones fall in “the most easterly range of the tallgrass prairie ecosystem.”

She writes: “For the gardeners whose lots are treeless and, for whatever reason, have no plans to plant trees, this sunny-meadow model can form the basis of a native-plant garden.”

What better opportunity to experiment with the Coneflower family along with black-eyed Susans and meadow grasses. Even a large sunny area in your woodland garden would be the ideal spot to create a native wildflower meadow garden.

The importance of these gardens cannot be underestimated.

In her book Our Native Bees, (see my article here) Paige Embry explores the concept of turning turf, or at least a portion of the lawn, into a prairie meadow to attract native bees and butterflies. She points to efforts made in the United States by golf courses to take advantage of great swaths of high-maintenance lawn and turn them into low-maintenance native prairie meadow.

“If the idea of flowers growing in the grassy lawn isn’t quite achievable yet, there’s always the golf course route. Take out some of that lawn and convert it into a home and dining hall for bees. It’s all a matter of rethinking normal,” she writes.

As one researcher at the University of Minnesota explains: “the hardest part of getting a bee lawn into use isn’t developing the seed mix; it’s dealing with people’s vision of what a lawn should be….”

If you are interested in creating a naturalized border or mini meadow, be sure to check out my post Fields of Gold: Sunflowers and Goldfinches.

Yellow Swallowtail sips from a purple coneflower.

Plant coneflowers from seed to save money

Don’t be surprised if your plant dies out after a time. In some situations, purple coneflower can be considered a short-lived perennial. Although your main plant may die off, by sprinkling the seed about the garden you should have a nice regular supply of the plants.

The good news is that they are great plants for those looking to save money and don’t mind growing them from seed. (For more ways to save money gardening, check out my earlier story here.)

They are easy to grow from seed. Collect the seed from your own plants, or from a neighbour’s plants (after asking them of course) or you can purchase them at your local nursery.

The seeds benefit from a cold-moist stratification method to break down the hard seed coat and ensure that it germinates at the proper time, however, coneflowers are not dependent on this for germination.

Germination is improved if the coneflower seeds are placed in a container of damp sand and placed in a refrigerator for about two months. In spring plant them directly in the garden or get a head start by using grow lights.

If all that sounds too complicated, just sprinkle them throughout the garden in the fall in areas you would like to grow a clump of them and exercise some patience. Nature will take care of th stratification process and the seeds should germinate in spring provided critters, including birds did not find them first.

Learn to know what the seedlings look like so you don’t mistake them as weed seedlings.

Are Purple Coneflowers easy to grow?

The plants are easy to grow in most soils, are not bothered by pests, require little to know fertilizer and can take some shade. For best performance, a sunny location is best.

The coneflower is hardy from zones 3-9, and native to Eastern and Central United States from Canada into more southern areas.

How large do coneflowers grow?

It grows to about 4-feet high, but can get to 5-feet under the right conditions. Flowering begins in about mid-summer and continues to flower through to the fall. Like Black-eyed Susans, definitely leave the flowers on throughout the winter months not only for their aesthetic value but, more importantly, as a valuable food source for birds.

The coneflowers’ strong stems and spent flowers stand high above even heavy snow accumulation to provide perfect landing spots for birds to feed on the abundance of seeds.

Plants grown from seed, either manually or naturally spread around the garden, can bloom in the first year, but expect to wait a full growing season before you see blooms on the plants.

Adirondack chairs: Best choice for a woodland garden?

Resin, wood or steel they are all stylish additions to your garden

I don’t know when I fell in love with Adirondack chairs, but I’m sure it was on one of my early visits to Northern Ontario.

Those early recollections of sitting on a dock watching the sunset and listening to the loons are stamped in my memory. Adirondack chairs (also known as Muskoka Chairs here in Canada) are reminders of those long days camping and spending time at a lodge in the Algonquin Park area.

And then there were the days our young family spent in the Adirondacks on vacation in New York’s Finger Lakes, as well as memories of sitting back and enjoying the beautiful scenery during our week-long vacation at Lake Placid.

I’m sure similar memories are forever stamped in the minds of so many of us who have a certain fondness for these iconic chairs.

In our gardens, Adirondack chairs take centre stage in both the front- and backyard, helping to bring a little of the lake district back home. A pair of bright yellow chairs welcome visitors to our home and make a very clear statement that our gardens are clearly a place to relax.

Our yellow Adirondack chairs welcome visitors and let them know this is a casual, relaxed atmosphere rather than a stuffy, formal garden.

Adirondack chair: Perfect in a woodland setting

The casual atmosphere Adirondack chairs create make them the perfect addition to the woodland wildlife garden.

There’s a reason the iconic Adirondack is so popular.

The Adirondack chair’s rugged design belies its incredible comfort and uncanny ability to provide the perfect horizontal surface to rest your arm, let alone a glass of wine, beer bottle or can of cider. While its ability to hold a drink comfortably certainly plays a role in its popularity today, the design’s long history suggests that there’s more than convenience behind this North American wide love affair.

A short history of the Adirondack chair

The Adirondack chair traces its history back to the early 1900s in Westport, New York, where a fellow named Thomas Lee created the rudimentary beginnings of the “Westport” chair to provide his family with comfortable outdoor seating.

He passed his plans on to a friend and local carpenter, Harry Bunnell, who then ran with the basic design, added a few refinements and began manufacturing the “Westport” chair for all to enjoy. The Westport incorporated much of today’s modern Adirondack chair, but included a solid seating and back surface.

For more suggestions and some of my favourite garden things, be sure to check out my Favourite Things post.

In 1904, Bunnell submitted a patent for the chair and continued to produce the chair for 25 years.

Bunnell’s changes to Lee’s original design included a foot rest (a popular option with today’s Adirondack designs), sideboards to cover the underside of the chair and the use of Hemlock or Basswood instead of Maple.

The main difference between the original Westport Chair design and today’s Adirondack Chair is the incorporation of a slatted design both on the back and seating area of the chairs. The use of the slatted design allows for a more rounded and comfortable form that has translated well with those looking for the perfect place to rest and enjoy their favourite drink, whether that’s a morning coffee, afternoon glass of wine, or evening around the compfire with a favourite craft beer.

Polymer (resin) vs steel vs wood Adirondack chairs

There is no question that the newer, high quality moulded polymer or resin chairs are the best Adirondack chair designs available. Not the cheap plastic ones often available for less than $25 at big box stores (use them as garden accents or chairs that are rarely called on accept at large gatherings).

These high quality Adirondack chairs are seriously heavy and often made from recycled resins. Their colour is true, from the exterior that does not fade in prolonged sunlight throughout the entire piece. That means even a deep scratch is not going to show up. No need for painting – ever. They are virtually indestructible. I don’t know if they are all guaranteed for life, but the good ones might as well be.

Those two yellow Adirondacks that greet our guests are both examples of these indestructible chairs that spend the entire year in our front garden taking on all types of inclement weather. All these chairs ever need is an annual washing with a power washer. They are Canadian made by a Brantford, Ontario company Leisure Line and purchased at Costco several years ago. This company also has matching side tables and ottomans available. While you cannot order directly from the factory, they are sold at a number of locations besides Costco.

Our steel Adirondacks have stood the test of time and continue to perform at the highest level despite being left out throughout our punishing winters.

While our polymer chairs are outstanding in every way, we were also lucky enough to purchase four alloy Adirondack chairs at Costco more than 20 years ago that continue to perform flawlessly despite being left out on their own through our challenging Canadian winters.

They are finished in a lovely shade of brown sand-textured factory paint that has stood up extremely well over the years.

Again, these were high-quality chairs meant to last and have become an excellent investment over the years.

We do not have any wood Adirondack chairs in the garden.

Although wood Adirondack chairs are truly representative of the classic design, we have chosen to steer clear of them.

Our Canadian winters are just too harsh for these chairs to withstand. The wooden chairs demand too much maintenance between regular painting, tightening loose connections and dealing with the eventual rot of even the best wood products.

They are available as kits for a reasonable amount of money and with proper care can last a lifetime. I’m not interested, however, having to pack away between 6-10 chairs every fall only to have to pull them out again in the spring.

Like woodland gardening, the idea is to do as little as possible and enjoy the garden rather than become a slave to it.

What better than the comfort of a Adirondack chair to make that happen.

And did I tell you how good the bright yellow Adirondack chairs look in the middle of winter after a major snowstorm.

A reminder that summer is not too far off.

A few of the best chairs to consider

The following are just a few of the Adirondack-style chairs that come highly recommended.

The Keter Adirondack chair includes a built-in cup holder and comes in three colours: Teal, Black and White.

The Keter Adirondack chair, quality and style

If you follow this blog you know my feelings about the high quality of Keter products. I own a number of the company’s products from their impressive sheds (see complete story and review here) to their BBQ table (turned potting shed table) and storage boxes.

While I have not used their Adirondack chairs (Amazon link), I can assure buyers that Keter’s quality levels are of the highest quality.

These chairs are available in three colours: Teal, black and white. Their high-quality, rust-proof, all-weather polypropylene resin does not warp, rot or fade and even includes a convenient cup holder built into the armrest. The chairs are rated for 350 lbs. and, like all Keter products, are easy to assemble.

An Adirondack with all the options

This impressive combination will add style to any yard.

If you are looking for a nice polymer Adirondack complete with matching side tables and foot rests, the Highwood Classic Westport Adirondack chair (Amazon link) in a classic Nantucket Blue is another excellent choice.

This made in the USA chair can be left outside all year without cracking, peeling or rotting and, like all polymers, never needs sanding, staining or painting and is easy to assemble.

The optional chairs and side tables are a nice touch that are not necessarily available with other Adirondack chair manufacturers.

An exquisite lounger from Gardener’s Supply Co.

A beautiful lounger for any garden

While I’m not a huge fan of using wooden Adirondack chairs in the garden if you are leaving them out unprotected throughout the winter, there are certainly situations where nothing delivers the look of an expensive high-end lodge look like an exquisite wood lounger. These elegant hardwood Adirondack chairs with built-in ottoman (link to Gardener’s Supply Company) is the perfect addition to a covered porch, glass house or pergola.

Gardener’s Supply Company describes the chair as a plantation-grown Brazilian eucalyptus chair finished with a beautiful brown umber stain for long lasting outdoor use and exceptional durability in all climates.

“The Adirondack chair provides extra wide and curvy seat for incredible comfort! The built-in sliding ottoman can be used in multiple positions or stowed away completely under the seat.”

Will this require some upkeep, absolutely. It the upkeep worth it, absolutely.

• As an affiliate marketer with Amazon or other marketing companies, I earn money from qualifying purchases.

Foliage and texture in a woodland garden design

Jack in the Pulpit shown in lovely light in our front woodland garden.

Three native plants to consider: Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Solomon’s Seal and Mayapple

Woodland gardeners know that not all flowers need to be colourful, but all gardens benefit from incorporating highly textured foliage plants.

In fact, some of the most interesting woodland plants are very understated: flowers are often green and are even hidden beneath the plants’ own leaves.

Unlike the often bright colours found in many traditional perennial gardens, woodland gardeners have learned to appreciate the subtle beauty of these foliage-based plants. They know that it is the highly textured foliage of these plants, the different shades of green, leaf shape, fall colours and even the colourful berries, that make these understated plants extremely valuable in the woodland landscape.

When it comes to understated plants that rely on textures and foliage, three plants come to mind: Solomon’s Seal, Jack in the Pulpit, and Mayapple. But there are many others that add interest to our woodland floor that often go unnoticed.

Ferns, mosses, stonecrops, and so many other plants help to build the tapestry that make up a woodland garden.

In her book Foliage & Garden Design, garden writer Marjorie Harris turns her focus on the importance of using foliage as the star in garden design.

“The foliage garden is a restful place where beauty unfolds more slowly than in a perennial garden,” Harris writes. “It’s a place where the textures of leaves are far more important than the colours of flowers. Foliage plants can have blossoms and berries, lure butterflies and birds and provide a sanctuary and a shelter.”

She goes on to explain an important concept in a shaded woodland garden.

A fern glen in the woodland garden creates a large exapanse of texture in a sea of green.

“Establishing a foliage garden means entering a more sophisticated world both aesthetically and visually,” she explains.

Compared to the perennial garden that is often so dependent on great drifts of colour, gardens based on foliage are more muted and subtle. “Verticals and horizontals; distance and perspective; positive and negative spaces; mass and shape – these become your tools,” Harris explains.

If you are interested in pursing more about designing a garden with foliage, the Harris book is still available on the Amazon.com used market here.

Why are some plants’ flowers so understated?

In a world where colour plays an important role in attracting pollinators, birds and butterflies for a plant’s survival, the question needs to be asked: Why are some woodland wildflowers so understated? It’s possible that many plants in the woodland are understated for their own survival. By staying under the radar, they are able to escape many of the animals that might want to browse on them for dinner.

Whatever the reason, it’s important for gardeners to learn to appreciate their presence in the shady areas of our woodlands.

Three subtle plants that add interest through foliage

Jack-in-the-Pulpit stands above the crowd: Arisaema triphyllum, commonly named Jack In The Pulpit is a favourite in our garden as much for its unusual shape, as it is for its bright red berries that emerge in the fall.

The plant, which is found throughout the north-eastern United States and stretching into Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes, earned its name for its resemblance to a preacher standing in a pulpit.

Dominated by a large, cylindrical and hooded flower that grows almost unnoticeable at first from beneath two large, glossy leaves, this mostly green flower with brown stripes can grow to between 1-3 feet tall.

By late summer, the flower is replaced by a large cluster of bright red berries that is an attractive meal for many birds and mammals. (Note that the roots and berries of this plant can cause blisters on the skin and irritation in the mouth and throat if ingested.)

Each berry in the cluster contains 1-5 seeds that are attractive to wood thrushes and wild turkeys as well as squirrels and even box turtles.

A 1980 study found that fungus gnats may be the most effective pollinators of these unusual plants. Pollination is performed when the gnat or other small insect makes its way to the spadix or column often referred to as the “Jack.” The columnar ends with a sheath called a spathe. The spadix contains male or female flowers (or both). Pollinators crawl beneath the hooded spathe, down the spadix collecting pollen from the flowers.

According to the Nature Conservancy of Canada, Jack-in-the-pulpit is being threatened in natural woodlands by invasive alien species such as garlic mustard and buckthorn.

Solomon’s seal is a favourite for shade gardeners

The arching stems of Solomon’s Seal rising above other plants in our front woodland garden is always a welcoming site in spring.

Polygonatum, also known as King Solomon’s-seal or just Solomon’s seal, is known for its zig-zag arching stalks that can grow up to 5 feet long and sport nodding, greenish-white, tubular flowers that hang in pairs below the stalks.

Their tubular whitish flowers, often among the earliest flowers to bloom in the woodland, droop down beneath the stalk and are attractive to hummingbirds.

Check out my complete article on Solomon’s seal.

Butterflies are also attracted to the delicate spring blooms of the Solomon seal flowers.

The green flowers eventually transform into large blue berries that are favoured by the Veery, American Robin, Wood Thrush and Bluebird

Solomon’s seal prefer a woodsy soil of moist, rich acidic soil but can also be found growing in more sandy or even clay loam.

If you are looking for a plant to grow at the base of a tree, consider growing a clump of them at the base of a tree.

Mayapple: An ideal shade-loving ground cover

The Mayapple earned its name from the large, apple-like fruit that grows under the umbrella of its large leaves where it often goes completely unnoticed by woodland gardeners.

The early spring wildflower, which can be highly poisonous provides much needed nectar for pollinators and the large, “apples” are eaten (only when competely ripe) by raccoons, skunks, opossums and even box turtles.

The mayapple can spread to incorporate large swaths of woodland where the conditions are right and are therefore excellent for use as a large, bold groundcover.

Mayapple is one of the first Carolinian zone wildlflowers to emerge in the spring in the woodlands of southern Ontario and the northeastern United States, so it became a magnet for many of us photographers just looking for something, anything, to focus on in the early spring woodlands.

So, you can imagine that it didn’t take long for me to start growing a clump in my yard. Turns out it was so successful that I was able to spread it around where it continues to thrive in swaths throughout the garden.

The Mayapple is actually in the Barberry family and grows naturally everywhere in the eastern half of the United States stretching as far north as Quebec and south to Florida and Texas.

For more on the Mayapple, go to my earlier post located here.

• As an affiliate marketer with Amazon or other marketing companies, I earn money from qualifying purchases.

Bird feeding station ideas (Five of the best feeders)

Advanced Pole System offers bird feeding solutions

If you are serious about birds, purchasing or building a comprehensive bird feeding station is likely one of the best decisions and investments you’ll make.

Twenty years ago, I would never have thought our single pole bird feeding station would continue to be the central focus of our bird feeding station today.

But it continues to perform as well, if not better, than it did the day I purchased it.

A high quality, comprehensive bird feeding station not only helps to focus the feeding in a specific area of your garden where you can watch the birds, it allows you to customize it with optional feeders to attract a greater variety of birds and easily adapt the feeders to seasonal needs.

While I get great enjoyment from my bird feeding stations, providing natural food sources to our feathered friends is always the goal we should aspire to in our gardens. I have written a comprehensive post on feeding birds naturally. You can read about it here. If you are looking for high quality bird feeders, consider spending a little more and purchasing recycled resin feeders like the ones in the photo below. Be sure to check out my post on why resin feeders are better than wood.

Our Advanced Pole System from Wild Birds Unlimited with the dual baffles and a couple of Wild Birds Unlimited recycled resin feeders. For more on the resin feeders go to my post on why resin feeders are better than wood ones.

The pole system I use, for example, changes throughout the year depending on what I am feeding. Smaller optional feeders that easily attach to the main pole are used at different times of the year to provide fruit, while others are ideal for offering meal worms, peanuts or jelly for orioles.

Other optional accessories provide different landing and perching spots for the birds as well as add-on trays to catch seed and provide an area for larger birds to feed.

Here you can see the Advanced Pole system in action. Five Baltimore Orioles take advantage of their many options with oranges, jelly and nectar all available to them in addition to a compresses seed cylinder (top), and suet. The “Decorative Branch Perch” provides them with an ideal place to land and feed.

There are many systems available that offer an array of options, but one of the most comprehensive and customizable systems is the Advanced Pole System from Wild Birds Unlimited. (Check out WBU on-line brochure of the entire system)

If you are not familiar with the franchise, it offers brick and mortar stores throughout Canada and the United States as well as a comprehensive on-line store.

Another, simpler, but convenient and high quality pole is available through Gardener’s Supply Company on-line store. It is particularly adaptable for decks or other locations where you may want a feeder close to a window.

Gardener’s Supply describes it as a kit that includes five 16-inch sections of 1-inch diameter pole. you can use as many sections as you like for the desired height. The kit also includes two adapters that allow you to mount a wooden or metal item at least 3-inches square on the bottom. Black, powder-coated steel pole is unobtrusive, letting your feeder or birdhouse take center stage.

Gardener’s Supply also offers some of the finest bird feeders you could find to hang from the pole system. The company’s on-line store has a complete offering of bird feeders that are certainly worth checking out here.

I purchased our bird feeding station pole from a local Wild Bird Unlimited store at least 20 years ago and it has performed exceptionally well since then. Even after several moves around the garden, it continues to stand up to the rigours of a host of heavy, seed-laden feeders, birds, squirrels and difficult Canadian winters.

To see the pole in action, check out my earlier post on attracting blue Jays and my article on my two favourite Blue Jay feeders. And, be sure to check out my post on why seed cylinders are a must for any feeding station.

This woodpecker is feasting on a seed cylinder on the Advanced Pole feeding system in our backyard.

Five of the best optional bird feeders for your pole system

1) The Spike: By far my favourite option is a simple spike that fits on top of the feeder pole to hold compressed seed cylinders. The seed cylinders are woodpecker magnets but they also attract Blue Jays, nuthatches, chickadees and cardinals just to name of few. The key to the cylinders is that they not only attract the birds, the birds stay longer because they have to work at removing the seeds from the cylinder.

2) Catch Tray Feeder: WBU offers a catch tray that attaches directly to the pole and catches much of the feed that is cast aside by birds that are more interested in their prized sunflower seed. The tray is perfect for feeding larger birds by offering shelled peanuts and other larger snacks to our feathered friends.

3) Suet cage: The built-in suet cage that attaches directly to the WBU pole is just a simple way to offer suet or compressed seed cakes to the smaller birds throughout the year. Although I also use a separate WBU suet feeder complete with a tail feather prop for larger woodpeckers, the pole mounted cage offers convenience and is used to provide nesting material to birds in the spring. Spent grasses, and other goodies are stuffed into the cage for the visiting birds to take with them after their snacks.

4) Half ball: For special treats, including oranges in the spring and suet balls in winter, WBU offer optional, clip-on, steel half balls that are perfect for holding dried fruit and other smaller offerings including a handful of meal worms. They are available in basic black and orange to attract orioles.

5) Covered plastic dishes: The plastic, removable dishes are ideal for offering special treats that benefit from being somewhat sheltered from the elements. The roof is separate and can be adjusted to suit the heights of the birds you expect to be attracting or to ensure the food is properly covered. Fresh berries and meal worms are perfect offerings for these small dishes. Because they are easily removed from the steel carrier, they can be brought in the house for a quick cleaning.

Give birds a place to land near your feeders

There are two excellent accessories that I consider almost essential to my Advanced pole system.

The first is the Decorative Branch Perch that serves not only as an additional source to hang various feeders, but more importantly a comfortable perch for birds to land on before moving in on the feeders. The perch fits directly on the Advanced Pole and allows easy positioning 360-degrees around the pole.

The wire “leafs” are the ideal spot to squeeze in large orange halves for orioles or hang smaller feeders.

One of my favourite options on the pole system is a simple, small, open cylinder that fits on the pole and provides a holder for a good-sized natural tree branch. The option is perfect for photographers looking to capture natural images of birds at the feeder. The ability to position the branch anywhere in the 360-degree circle around the feeders is perfect for taking advantage of different lighting situations and backgrounds.

It’s also super easy to swap out different branches so that not all of the bird photographs contain the same branch images.

Why use a pole system to feed birds?

A key benefit to using a single pole system as your primary feeding station for birds is the ability to keep unwanted visitors from eating all your seed. Squirrel and raccoon baffles are a must to keep the critters from getting up and feasting on your expensive feed and potentially destroying expensive feeders.

With the single pole system, you can focus all your efforts on deterring the squirrels and other mammals rather than fighting to keep them away from various parts of the garden with expensive feeders designed to spin-off squirrels or close down feeding opportunities for our non-feathered friends.

Placing the pole system in an inaccessible spot is vital to success. Keep the pole system about 10 feet away from trees and other structures (including your home or a shed) where squirrels can jump aboard.

Depending on the athletic ability of your backyard squirrels, you may have to move the pole even farther away. I have an Olympic-calibre black male squirrel that can jump vertically higher than most of my baffles. I’m hoping all the high-quality seed he is feasting on will eventually cause him to get too fat to continue these medal-winning high jumps.

There is no doubt that a concentrated feeding area can bring in unwanted visitors to your feeders, including mice and rats. There are important steps you can take to keep these unwanted visitors from your yard. Be sure to check out my comprehensive post on Keeping Rats and Mice out of your yard.

Check out my best birding buys article for more on bird-feeding poles and other optional feeders

• As an affiliate marketer with Amazon or other marketing companies, I earn money from qualifying purchases.

Why kids need more nature in their lives

Benefits of outdoor education: Teachers, parents, experts speak out

How important is it to teach our children about birds, butterflies, pollinators and the natural world in their own backyard?

Extremely important, according to experts in the field from professors in Environmental Science to on-line educators, authors and millions of parents who want their children to grow up knowing as much or more about the environment and the natural world around them than they did when they were growing up.

The learning opportunities for young children in even a small garden are endless whether it’s watching the life cycle of a monarch, seeing a fawn feed from its mother, or becoming familiar with local bird species and how they survive throughout the seasons. Outdoor education has never been a more important component in a child’s physical and mental development whether its a few hours spent in a woodland garden or a walk in the woods.

“Children have a natural affinity for the living beings all around them,” says Nancy Lawson, author of The Humane Gardener. “Cultivating that sense of wonder is as easy as walking out the front door and encouraging them to explore things at their level – the shape of a fallen leaf, the sound of a bee buzzing on a flower, the busy ants carrying seeds to their nests,” she adds.

A child gets a close look at daisies in the garden.

What’s the value of Outdoor Education for young students

“Just a little bit of awareness during those early years will stay with them for a lifetime.” says Lawson, who also operates an informative website The Humane Gardener, Cultivating Compassion for all Creatures Big and Small.

“I find it amazing that almost everyone I talk to in this line of work has a vivid memory of some spark that was lit during a camping trip with their parents or while helping their grandma in the garden. It may subside for a while during the growing-pain teenage years but then somehow takes over again in adulthood. It’s like that early exposure to nature just gets in your bones,” she adds.

Julia Daly, who works at Saanich Native Plants in Victoria B.C. and has extensive experience in plant identification, species at risk management, ecological restoration, and native plant gardening, knows first hand how important early childhood learning and backyard environmental science is to young children.

Over the past year, her 4 and 6-year-old daughters helped turn a 2x5 meter section of barren lawn space outside their backyard fence into a diverse native plant pollinator meadow that is now teaming with life.

“My children have found that if they provide quality habitat, wildlife will come and benefit. They are coming to understand that if each of us does something, we can make a difference on a large scale. And this gives them a sense of power and hope,” she explains.

“Young people are faced with the overwhelming task of remediating environmental damages passed down by previous generations (e.g., climate change, habitat loss, pollution, and invasive species). Introducing children from a young age to outdoor play and the relationships found in nature, within their own backyards and neighbourhoods, provides them with the knowledge and confidence to better understand and care for their local and global environment.”

“Outdoor play holds a child’s interest because it is always changing (weather, seasons, etc). Children instinctively value nature,” Daly explains. “Outdoor learning is accessible and low cost. For families without a backyard, regular walks to a local natural area to observe seasonal changes, and learn about native plants, insects, and the diversity of wildlife that depend on them, can have a huge influence.

Dealing with Nature deficit disorder

In an article from the Child Mind Institute, author Danielle Cohen states: The national panic about kids spending too much time indoors has become so extreme that the crisis has a name: Nature deficit disorder.”

She explains that the shift is largely due to technology: “The average American child is said to spend 4 to 7 minutes a day in unstructured play outdoors and over 7 hours a day in front of a screen.”

Recent studies illustrate the importance of being outside. In fact, “most of the studies agree that kids who play outside are smarter, happier, more attentive, and less anxious than kids who spend more time indoors. While it’s unclear how exactly the cognitive functioning and mood improvements occur, there are a few things we do know about why nature is good for kid’s minds,” she writes.

These benefits include: increased confidence, creativity and imagination, and responsibility. Exposure to nature also provides a different stimulation activating more senses – such as hearing, smell and touch.

“As the young spend less and less of their lives in natural surroundings, their senses narrow,” explained Richard Louv, author of the book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder.

Giving children “experiential education” in the environmental sciences by getting out into our own backyard and local parks is critical, explains Jessica Slomka, a lecturer at the University of Toronto with a Phd. in Earth Sciences.

“The outdoors is a natural laboratory where students and children can experience nature first-hand in all of its complexity (something a textbook cannot accurately capture), she explains.

“Providing children with the opportunity to explore the natural world in their own backyard and neighbourhood green spaces allows them to observe interactions between species, such as a bees buzzing around the flowers, and processes in natural systems, such as sand rolling along a stream bed, ask questions about what they see (why? how?), and follow their curiosity and interests to seek out answers by continuing to observe and interact with these natural systems.

“As a result, children develop a personal connection to the natural world and their local environment, which may, in turn, foster a lifelong sense of responsibility, passion, and respect for nature,” Slomka explains.

Helping children discover nature

Debra Toor, an on-line educator, is doing her part to teach young children about everything from the life cycle of monarch butterflies to the importance of the Turkey vulture in the natural world.

And, although she works out of her home in Burlington Ontario, her message is carried around the world from Canada and the United States to Singapore, South Africa, Poland and Belarus. She’s also touched the minds of thousands of children in Ireland, England, India and even the United Arab Emirates.

Spreading the word to the world

In the United States she has taught on-line classes to students in Michigan, California, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, New York, Tennessee and Texas. In Canada, her backyard wildlife courses have reached school children in British Columbia, Newfoundland, Ontario and Quebec.

Debra Toor in her backyard checking out a Monarch chrysalis in her milkweed patch.

And the list continues to grow as more educators and concerned parents discover the value of educating young students in the importance of the natural world and the steps that these students and future leaders can take to protect native flora and fauna.

The former communications director for Earth Day Canada, an environmental communications non-profit organization, has been involved in environmental communications for more than 10 years. So, it was only natural for her to start her own company, Conservation Scientists in Action.

“My mission is to educate about ecosystem services of wildlife and how scientists are using tools and methods to learn about declining wildlife populations,” she explains, adding that she also works to explain “how scientists use scientific data to advocate for wildlife recovery programs and to support legislation.”

What does all this mean to the students who take her courses?

“Each topic is designed to get students to think about the roles of wildlife, specifically, how do they help the earth?  I place an emphasis on how wildlife benefits humans, not to be human-centric, but to drive the message home that we cannot survive without wildlife,” she explains.

In my 25+ years of being an environmental educator, I have learned that the way to get people to be more open to wildlife is to see the big picture of how we are all interconnected.”

Children get to experience nature up close

A tall order for sure, but one she tackles by focusing on school children primarily in Grades 1-7, but also high-school-aged students. Her presentations are far from dry. Children interact with her live and are entertained with videos showing nature in action.

“My classes are interactive expeditions that allow students to become Jr. Biologists as they investigate videos and images of wildlife interacting in habitats, and conservation scientists as they use scientific methods and tools.”

Based on feedback from parents and teachers, students love the videos clips, Toor explains.

“I make sure to include videos of incredible scenes that they have never witnessed before. Students also really enjoy using their voices in the expeditions to make observations and inferences, and to ask and answer questions.”

She tells a story about childrens reactions during a video of a bald eagle stealing carrion from a group of vultures.

“There is one vulture video I show where a bald eagle snatches a dead animal away from squabbling turkey vultures.  The kids are always fascinated with the scene.  We discuss why it is that the eagle, although a hunter, stole the vultures’ food.  Answers range from “the eagle is lazy” to the eagle is hungry…” One day, a Grade 5 student answered “Bald eagles will also scavenge because it takes less energy to scavenge than it does to hunt.”

That’s one smart student.

Teaching the children is a logical extension from her earlier work in the field: “One of my roles was to collaborate with researchers and experts to create publications, including community guides for schools, employee groups and community groups,” she explains.

In love with the Turkey Vulture

Her expertise and quest for knowledge led her to a fascination with one of nature’s – shall we say less-loved birds – the Turkey Vulture. That eventually led to a book publishing in 2015 entitled Survival Secrets of Turkey Vultures. That publication eventually led to her beginning to make presentations as a Microsoft Educator to advance literacy of wildlife ecosystem services with a focus on vultures. The Microsoft program folded during the pandemic, but Toor had already began using the experience and knowledge gained in the program to start her own business. So, when the program ended, she was able to spend more time working on her own on-line business.

A focus on Monarch butterflies

Much of her focus has been on the fascinating story behind the adventures of Monarch butterflies. But Toor doesn’t just talk about the incredible story behind the Monarch – she lives with it everyday in her backyard.

“My yard is monarch waystation. It’s a challenge because I live in a neighbourhood where manicured lawns are the norm,” she says, explaining that she shares a front yard with a neighbour so is unable to tear out the grass.

“My yard, as far as I know, is the only one in the entire neighbourhood with a front yard milkweed patch,” she explains."

The sign on Toor’s front lawn supporting monarchs has proven to be a great way to meet her neighbours and pass along her enthusiasm for monarchs.

“I love the sign because it educates people.  In the spring, a father and his young daughter approached me to say they love my butterfly garden.”

Toor encourages everyone who is interested to join the Monarch Way Station Program by going to https://www.monarchwatch.org/waystations/

The process is fairly simple, she explains:

• Fill out a registration form, and agree to grow milkweed and mostly native nectar sources, refrain from using pesticides and herbicides, etc.

• There is a fee for certification, and registrations get a certificate recognizing their property as a monarch waystation, and a yard sign.

• There are downloadable resources for beginners.

Monarchs certainly take centre stage in her courses.

Toor’s Nature courses for students

In one of her courses, Monarch Butterfly Expedition, which is available year round, students get to see Monarchs in the fall fuelling up on goldenrod in Ontario as they begin their migration south to Mexico. Students get to see them arrive in Mexico after the long journey where they gather in massive numbers and “hug the branches and trunks of the oyamel trees” to keep warm. The students get to see monarch eggs hatching, forming a chrysalis and eventually emerging from that same chrysalis.

Along the way they learn about monarch habitats, adaptations, life cycle and great migration, how monarch butterflies help the earth (ecological niche), food webs, human impacts as well as conservation and citizen science.

It’s a learning experience not available in most schools.

In addition to the Monarch Butterfly Expedition, teachers and home-schooling parents can pick from a myriad of other educational courses including:

• Backyard Animal Expedition, where students are exposed to the often misunderstood Opossum, skunks and racoons and learn about their habitats, adaptations, how they help the earth as well as information on human-wildlife conflicts, wildlife rescue and rehabilitation, and conservation and citizen science.

• Monarch Butterfly Adventure, where the class is encouraged to find and hatch their own monarch butterfly.

• Vulture Expedition where students investigate vultures in their habitats and meet the conservation scientists who work with them.

• Pollinator Expedition where students meet the little things that run the earth from bees to butterflies, moths and bats. Students are able to watch video of bumble bees emerging from their ground nest, Cavity nesting bees emerge in the spring and a leaf-cutter bee build her nest.

There is also a course on the changing seasons and how animals adapt.

Toor operates a website www.conservaction.info  where teachers, homeschooling parents and families can register for the courses or just gather information about what she has to offer.

To see her in action with students check out this YouTube video.

Toor is not alone in her attempt to spread her knowledge to students at home or in the classroom and the more than year-long stay-at-home orders has made on-line education just that much more important for now and into the future.

Acorn Naturalists offer expertise

Acorn Naturalists, a group based in the United States was founded more than three decades ago by teachers to create and distribute high quality, hands-on learning resources for use both inside and outside the classroom.

According to their website, they offer “school supplies, science and nature activity kits, as well as hand-on educational resources for parents, classroom teachers, naturalists, camp leaders, outdoor educators, homeschoolers, preschool and afterschool educators.”

The award winning group, based in California but also serving Canada, offer a fascinating array of nature products including everything from animal skull replicas to very realistic track and scat replicas. Not everything is replicas. Sanitized real owl pellets can also be purchased as well as educational displays and posters, innovative science kits and games, pine cone bird feeder kits, pocket plant presses and an animal tracking kit (ideal for Canadian winter tracking.)

You can check out their website at https://www.acornnaturalists.com/

• For more information on Nature Deficit Disorder among children, check out the Article Why Kids Need to Spend Time in Nature by going to Child Mind Institute

• For more information on Children and nature be sure to check out Children & Nature Network

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How to attract colourful backyard birds (Cardinals, Bluejays, Goldfinches)

What they eat and how to attract them

A Goldfinch stops by the birdbath to get a drink in the early evening.

When it comes to birds, everyone loves a little colour in their backyards. That’s why the Cardinal, Blue Jay and Goldfinch are among the most desirable birds in our woodland wildlife gardens.

The Cardinal, Blue Jay and Goldfinch are among the easiest, seed-eating backyard birds to attract to your feeders providing you are giving them their favourite foods. Add natural sources of food from berries to insects, nesting habitat, and, of course, a reliable water source and you will create plenty of colour in your backyard.

While I get great enjoyment from my bird feeding stations, providing natural food sources to our feathered friends is always the goal we should aspire to in our gardens. I have written a comprehensive post on feeding birds naturally. You can read about it here.

This image shows the subtle colour of a Goldfinch in winter during a snowstorm.

Of course these three stunners are not the only colourful birds we can attract to our backyards. My favourite colourful additions to the garden is the incredibly colourful Indigo bunting and the orange and black combination of the Baltimore Oriole. These two highly sought after and extremely colourful birds are more difficult to attract to your backyard feeders so I have tackled those in separate articles. (See my earlier stories on attracting Indigo Buntings and Orioles to your garden.)

To read my article on how the Goldfinch gets its stunning colour and how to attract them with native plants? Click here.

In this post, we’ll take a look at the Cardinal, Blue Jay and and Goldfinch: what they eat, where they nest and what little extras we can do to attract them to our backyards.

A male cardinal in a crabapple tree in spring.

Cardinals: everyone’s favourite backyard bird

It’s hard not to fall in love with Cardinals. Their cheerful persistent songs, the male cardinal’s bright red coat of feathers standing out in the landscape, and the buff-coloured female just as beautiful in her muted colours especially after a fresh snowfall.

These are year-round birds in our area and a regular at the feeders spring, summer, winter and fall.

A sure way to keep them around is to always have a supply of black-oil sunflower seeds in the feeders.

I use a no-mess blend of cracked sunflower seed from Wild Birds Unlimited.

Cardinals’ powerful jaws, and curved beaks give them the ability to easily open larger, harder seeds with great ease. They will readily take to not only both types of sunflower seed, but peanut pieces and safflower.

Cardinals are actually one of the few birds who seem tho really enjoy safflower seed. In fact, I have a separate feeder filled with safflower aimed primarily at attracting cardinals.

Cardinals will readily eat from most feeders, but consider providing them with a large platform feeder as well.

Although most of us know the cardinal as a regular visitor to our backyard feeders, seeds are not their only source of food. Like most birds, Cardinals rely on a steady supply of caterpillars and insects in early spring and summer during the mating season and to raise their young.

Host plants for butterfly larvae – including milkweed, coneflowers, goldenrod, black-eyed Susan aster, and lupines – will encourage cardinals into your yard and provide them with sources of protein to raise their young.

Cardinals are also attracted to fruit bearing plants, especially red fruit-bearing plants. The male cardinal actually gets its bright red coat from the carotenoid pigments in the red fruit. Serviceberry is a cardinal magnet in our garden but so too are are the berries of sumac and dogwoods. The red berries of the native Flowering dogwoods are favourites but not the raspberry-type fruit of the Cornus Kousa which is actually eaten by few if any birds.

(If you are considering planting a Serviceberry, be sure to check out my earlier article on this native tree and shrub here.)

The breeding season for the Northern male Cardinal runs from as early as March through to September. The nest, which is often found in dense shrubbery or in branches of smaller trees anywhere from 1-15 feet off the ground, is made up of twigs, bark strips bits of roots and even paper. It is often lined with vines, grass and hair.

Because they are not cavity dwelling birds, they are not attracted to a bird house.

They do, however, enjoy using backyard bird baths. Look for one that is two- to three-inches deep.

A blue jay shows off its stunning colours.

How about those Blue jays?

These guys might be considered bullies at the bird feeder but their incredible colour is just too good for most of us not to attract them to our backyard feeders.

And there isn’t a nut they cannot crack.

Start with a good helping of shelled or unshelled peanuts in a platform feeder and you’ll likely get your share of Blue jays in short order.

Their long, strong black bills are built for cracking open the hardest of nuts. In the forest, it comes in handy making short order of even tough nuts like acorns.

At our feeders, peanuts, large striped sunflower seeds, black oil sunflower seeds and the condensed seed cylinders (wild Birds Unlimited) favoured by Blue Jays and woodpeckers are guaranteed to attract them to your feeders.

Blue Jays are also attracted to corn, grains and suet at our feeders.

If you are looking to feed them naturally, acorns (from the oak tree) are an excellent source of food. Beechnuts (from beech trees) are also among their favourites.

While they are most often seen at our feeders, insects are still an important part of their diets including grasshoppers and caterpillars. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology reports that the stomach contents of Blue Jays studied over the course of a year showed that they contained about 22 per cent insects, with the remainder being acorns, nuts, fruits and grains.

We can’t overlook the fact that blue jays have been known to raid the nests of other birds and eat both the eggs and or the nestlings. If this is something that disturbs you, attracting Blue Jays may not be right for you.

Blue Jays nest from March through July in an open cup of twigs, grass, and sometimes mud, lined with rootlets. The nests are often in the crotch or thick outer branches of coniferous or deciduous trees. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology reports that Blue Jays often set up their nest in all types of forests but most often near oak trees on forest edges. They are quick to nest in both urban and suburban areas where both Oak trees and bird feeders are often in abundance.

Be sure to provide them with a reliable water source as well. A large, deep bird bath (3 inches at its deepest) will be a good source for your local Blue Jays.

Goldfinches at the bird bath with a solar-powered DIY dripper.

Goldfinches: Add a touch of tropical to your backyard

It’s not hard to think of the Goldfinch when Harry Belafonte sings about the Yellow Bird up high in banana tree.

One look at the male or female American Goldfinches in their finest colours is a reminder of how beautiful our local backyard birds are throughout most of the United States and Canada. No need to travel to tropical regions to see colourful birds and hear their lovely song.

More and more of our American Goldfinches remain here year round helped along by numerous bird feeders and seeds from our flower beds and roadside weeds.

These primarily seed-eating birds are drawn to Niger seeds at our feeders. Be sure to provide the small, black seeds in special feeders designed to allow access to the tiny beaks of the finches. Also available are finch socks filled with Niger that are easily hung from trees or a hook at the feeders.

In nature, Goldfinches eat mostly seeds, especially those in the daisy family. Although they do eat some small insects in summer as well as spring buds, bark from twigs, and maple sap, they always come back to seeds.

It’s not uncommon to see them foraging along fence lines in weedy areas gathering the seeds of thistle, grasses and the seeds from elm, birch and alder trees. Consider leaving an area in your garden to grow wild if you want to add a natural feeding source for Goldfinches as well as other birds that depend on these areas as a food and nesting area.

Audubon reports that Goldfinches are late season nesters, timing their nestlings just as daisy-like flowers begin producing seeds.

Nesting occurs mostly during late summer between July and August in deciduous shrubs or trees usually less than 30 feet above the ground. The nest is a compact cup of plant fibres, spiderwebs and plant down.

Goldfinches will readily come to bird baths. Consider a small, shallow one (depth 1-2 inches) for these diminutive colourful birds.

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What’s the best bird bath?

Goldfinches are attracted to the moving water from this DIY fountain.

What bird baths do birds use the most?

The best bird bath for your garden is the one the birds use the most.

It doesn’t have to be pretty, colourful, made of marble or have a three-tiered fountain.

In fact, it can be downright ugly. If the birds like it, then it’s the best for your woodland wildlife garden.

The question that really should be asked is: What bird bath do birds use the most?

The answer to that question is more complicated because birds, like we humans, are all different.

Having several very different bird baths at various levels will attract the largest number of birds to your backyard. This will not only attract a greater variety of birds, it will also limit territorial confrontations and ensure there is always a reliable water source in your garden. But, if I could have only one bird bath, it would be a very large concrete one raised a few feet off the ground, that has a rough surface for the birds to walk on, starts off quite shallow (a half inch) and gradually slopes toward the middle to about two to three inches deep.

I don’t own that bird bath. Instead, I offer the birds a multitude of above ground, hanging, and on-ground water sources of varying sizes where they can drink or bathe to their hearts’ content.

Provide birds with a choice of bird baths

In our front and back gardens, for example, there are usually between 10-12 bird baths on the go at any time during the spring, summer and fall. Most were purchased over the years either new from a store, purchased used from on-line marketplaces or home-made by yours truly.

A copper bird bath is always a good choice both for its aesthetics as well as its antimicrobial benefits.

All of them are very different and appeal to an ever changing variety of birds.

Some include running water. Others are very natural with rocks, pea gravel and moss. Most are concrete, but some are copper, fibreglass, plastic and ceramic. One is only for drinking water.

Do you need that many bird baths?

Absolutely not. But if you hope to attract a variety of birds, a few different bird baths placed strategically in your yard will be a major factor in meeting their varying needs.

If I could have only one bird bath, it would be a very large concrete one raised a few feet off the ground, that has a rough surface for the birds to walk on, starts quite shallow (1-inch) and gradually slopes toward the middle to about two to three inches deep.

Best bird baths for particular bird species

A look at the various bird baths in my garden and how the birds use them is a good way to establish the general hierarchy of backyard bird baths.

By examining how the birds use the various bird baths in my yard, readers can get valuable information about what type of bird baths might be best for their yards.

The goldfinch adds a hit of colour as it visits one of our many bird baths. The Flowering dogwood in the background adds a nice background to the image.

A favourite for our backyard birds

One of my favourite bird baths is a three-year-old concrete model that sits in a corner of the yard beneath a flowering dogwood and attracts probably the greatest number and variety of birds in our garden. I think its attractiveness to birds is as much about its location in the garden as it is about its construction, but more on locating a bird bath later in the article.

This bird bath has a rough surface to give birds confidence they will not slip. It has a 60-inch circumference and fairly steep sides leading to about a 2.5-inch-deep centre.

It’s not built for smaller birds who shy away from jumping into the depths of the bird bath.

The lip on the bird bath is wide and rough enough that smaller birds will not hesitate to land on it for a drink, but unless the water is quite low in the bird bath (often by the end of the day if used regularly that day) the smaller birds such as chickadees, goldfinches, nuthatches and small sparrows choose other bird baths in the garden.

This bird bath is particularly attractive to larger backyard birds including cardinals, Blue Jays, woodpeckers, thrushes and grackles that visit the bird bath daily both for drinking and bathing.

It’s also short enough that squirrels and chipmunks can jump up to it to get a quick drink if necessary.

Don’t be afraid to move bird baths to a new location

The location of this bird bath is also ideal. It’s in a 1/2 shade location that gets late afternoon and evening sun. It sits nicely right below a flowering dogwood that provides plenty of perching areas for the birds to work their way down to the water when they feel it is safe. There are no hiding places around it that would allow predators to stalk it easily and it’s also in a far corner of the yard that does not get a lot of human traffic.

It may not be possible to place your bird bath(s) in ideal conditions, but don’t hesitate to move bird baths around the yard to look for a spot where the birds feel especially comfortable using it.

This home made bird bath is actually nothing but a plant stand and a glass bowl. We add a few rocks to it and a solar powered fountain.

Copper bird bath has antibacterial qualities

In another corner of the yard, close to the home, is a large copper bird bath purchased from a couple on Kijiji. The elegant copper bird bath proved too good to turn down despite a hefty price tag for a used bird bath and the hour-long drive to pick it up.

This is by far the largest of the traditional bird baths in our garden, with a 70-inch circumference and a middle depth of just over 2 inches.

It’s a popular choice for birds both big and small as well as a number of chipmunks and red squirrels who visit it regularly throughout the day.

Its close proximity to a garden seat and container planter gives the chipmunks and squirrels easy access to the bird bath that I can clearly see from the comfort of our family room.

The antibacterial qualities of copper is just an added bonus to its large water reservoir, gradual slope to the middle and it’s two-inch central depth. Its small rounded lip makes it easy for small birds to grasp for a quick drink and its depth is a favourite for our cardinals to use as their nightly bathing spot.

The copper bird bath’s biggest downfall is the fact that it, like any metal bird bath, can quickly overheat the water if left out in the sun for any given time. Even in the shade, the water can heat up on particularly hot days.

Our copper bird bath is in a shady area of the garden, but more importantly, it is very close to the hose and gets a cold-water top up on most days, especially on particularly hot ones.

Any metallic bird bath should be placed in a shady spot where it gets as little sun as possible to prevent the water from overheating.

A perfect solution is to purchase a copper hanging birdbath that you can tuck in a shady spot under a large tree, preferably near your favourite sitting area. This copper bird bath (see below) from Gardener’s Supply might be the perfect addition to your garden.

If your favourite place to watch the birds is on your deck, the deck mounted bird bath, also from Gardener’s Supply should do the trick.

This copper bird bath from Gardener’s Supply is ideal for hanging in a tree near your favouring sitting place.

Benefits of a copper bird bath

Copper’s malleability has made it a popular building material dating back close to 10,000 years where it has been used to make tools, eating utensils and other important household objects.

If a deck is your favourite hangout spot to watch birds, a copper birdbath that attaches directly to the deck makes not only enjoying the birds easy, but filling and cleaning the bird bath is simple too.

Today, whether in its pure state or combined with other metals to create alloys such as brass or bronze, it is primarily used to create decorative indoor and outdoor objects that age gracefully, especially in the garden where it takes on a beautiful patina over time.

Often overlooked is copper’s anti-algae and anti-bacteria qualities that make it the perfect choice for bird baths and bird feeders. Easy to clean, with its own limited self-sterilizing qualities, copper bird baths should get high marks when considering the purchase of a new bird bath. Their longevity, antibacterial qualities and natural good looks as they age in the garden makes them a fine investment if you are looking for both a piece of art and highly functional bird bath for your garden.

Although a copper bird bath seems like a perfect addition to any garden, besides the high purchase cost, they also tend to be quite light in comparison to a concrete or resin bird bath and as a result are easily damaged if they are knocked over onto a hard surface. When placing your bird bath, try to keep it away from a concrete pathway or patio where it would likely be damaged if it fell over or was knocked over.

If purchasing an expensive copper birdbath does not interest you, you can take advantage of the antibacterial qualities of copper by simply stripping copper wiring of its plastic sheathing, wrapping it around an object and placing it in the birdbath. Try tucking it under a couple of rocks to keep it hidden and stop any curious mammals or crows from carrying it off.

A rock placed in the bird bath gives smaller birds a safe and familiar landing place to drink from.

Add a solar fountain

I recently picked up two smaller copper-look bird baths on line that work well near our patio. I suspect they might have been for sale at a good price because the previous owners didn’t have much luck attracting birds with them.

At first glance they looked awfully deep and their steep, metal sides likely scared away any birds.

Perfect, I thought when I picked them up. A few modifications later, and our two very attractive bird baths would work well for both aesthetics and, more importantly, our backyard birds.

To solve the problem, a large rock was simply placed in the middle of the bird bath. The rock is large enough to protrude out of the water enough to give smaller birds a comfortable and safe landing spot to stop for a quick drink or dip into the bird bath.

The other bird bath was a perfect candidate for my DIY Solar drip turned fountain. Because the centre was so deep, I was able to bury the solar pump under the flat stone that is part of the drip. The combination works perfectly with the moving water attracting birds and the flat rocks giving them safe access to the water.

If you are looking to add a solar pump to a bird bath, it’s best to get a deeper one so the pump is in deep water even if the birds splash a fair amount of water out of the bird bath.

When birds think square is cool

Our square bird bath in the Japanese-inspired garden.

Let’s face it, everyone wants nice things in their garden.

If it can double as a piece of art, it’s even more valuable. That’s how I feel about our square, super heavy bird bath that graces our front Japanese-style garden.

It fits perfectly into the Japanese garden aesthetic with its simple straight lines, heavy square pedestal stand and equally heavy square top. The entire bird bath is painted white with an acrylic paint that gives it a sophisticated look rather than the rustic one often associated with traditional cement bird baths.

I love its looks, but more importantly, so do the birds – especially the Goldfinches that visit it daily on multiple occasions. But they are not alone, our neighbourhood Robins also have a soft spot for this bird bath as well.

Very different birds – one very large and aggressive while taking a bath, the other quite small and shy – attracted to the same bird bath.

What’s the story here?

It turns out that this bird bath has a huge square rim (3-inches wide) surrounding the round and rather deep centre pool (1.5- to 2.5-inches deep) that has a natural shallower spot in the middle. The robins hop right in and fully enjoy themselves in the deeper water, while the Goldfinches stay on the large brim and easily sip at the water’s edge. Small, decorative indentations (leaf motif) are often filled with water and allow the Goldfinches to sip from them in complete safety.

Other birds, especially Cardinals, also visit the Japanese-style bird bath that sits nicely in the shade under the perching branches of a mature Japanese Maple.

Nearby, is a massive boulder with a small natural pool in it that fills with water after a heavy rain. On my daily watering rounds, I always fill the small natural pool after filling the bird bath. The small pool is a favourite for small birds but it’s so small and shallow that it is not a reliable source of water. The nearby bird bath creates that all important reliable source of water for the birds.

Tiny concrete bird bath is a small-bird favourite

Since we are still in the front garden, let’s talk about the tiny concrete bird bath that has become a real favourite for small birds, and chipmunks winter, summer, spring and fall.

It’s been in the same spot for probably eight years, is a mere 1.5 inches-deep when it is brimming full (almost never) and measures only 22 inches in circumference. But the Goldfinches, Chipping sparrows, chickadees and chipmunks gravitate to it daily. In fact, keeping it full of water is almost a full-time job during the heat of the summer.

Why do birds like this bird bath so much?

The key to the success of the tiny bird bath is the fact that small birds feel extremely safe using it. It’s only about 14 inches off the ground, has a rough surface and is shallow enough that they can jump right in and get down and dirty (or should I say clean).

It’s surrounded by naturalistic gardens and sits in the shade of the canopy of three mature trees: A very large Crimson Maple, a good-sized Japanese Maple and a large single-trunk Serviceberry.

With good vision all around, little threat from above, and an abundance of quick escape hatches this bird bath has become a safe, quiet place that creates a comfort level that these small birds like to take advantage of whenever possible.

Two large, moss-covered limestone boulders provide both the birds and the chipmunks with a perfect place to preen after their baths. It’s not uncommon to see them taking turns flitting from the bird bath to the rocks and back again. Our front garden is also a quiet place, away from a lot of human activity making the bird bath even more desirable for shy birds.

On-ground water sources are a favourite

Ever seen a flock of birds having the time of their life in a puddle after a storm? It’s often a dirty puddle by the side of the road with a massive lake right next to it and they choose the puddle. Why?

It’s all about safety and easy access for these smaller birds.

And that’s the beauty of small, shallow on-ground water features sprinkled throughout the garden.

These water sources could be simple – an old lidless piece of tupperware – or more involved like concrete formed into a leaf pattern. Either way, the birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles will thank you for providing much needed water at ground level where they have easy access to it.

Add a bubbling rock

A small, solar-powered bubbling rock is one of the most heavily used water sources in our woodland garden, but it’s not what you may think.

When I first installed the bubbling rock, I imagined birds flocking to the bubbling end sipping and splashing about and just having the time of their lives.

That didn’t really happen. Sure, on occasion a bird will perch on the rock and sip or frolic about in the bubbling end of the rock, but it’s more likely that the birds, chipmunks and squirrels drink from the water reservoir at the bottom of the bubbling rock.

It’s common knowledge that birds are attracted to moving water whether it’s a simple drip or the steady flow from a bubbling rock, but like anything, the reliability of that water is of prime importance. I believe that because the solar fountain is only on during sunny periods, the bubbling water is less reliable than the water in the reservoir and the birds and animals have gotten used to going to the reliable source.

Keep that in mind the next time you let your bird baths go dry for an extended period of time.

Nevertheless, between the reservoir and the bubbler, it’s a popular spot in our garden.

Concrete leaf and a moose’s ears prove popular

We fell in love with it the minute we saw it, paid too much for it, but have enjoyed it for years. A large rhubarb leaf molded into a concrete on-ground bird bath that needs to be filled daily and holds a tiny amount of water.

But I don’t know what the chipping sparrows would do these days without it. They are the leaf’s biggest fans in the bird world.

In the mammal world, the leaf has become a hangout for one of our friendly chipmunk families that decided the water-filled leaf made for the perfect backyard swimming pool going so far as to dig through and around large river rock and pea gravel to locate their back door right next to the leaf.

Living their best life among the soft sedum and rocky outcrop surrounding their backyard pool I guess.

In another area of the garden is Bruce (Springsteen) the moose with large ears that are actually quite deep water reservoirs. My fondest memory of Bruce the moose, was the time a mother Oriole brought her entire brood to bathe in Bruce’s oversized ears.

It was quite the sight.

The two ears act as water reservoirs. The ears are not big. In fact, the young Orioles had to take turns jumping into the ears, but once they got in they found the water quite deep (about 3 inches). No worries though. The tight confines ensured the little birds were not going to slip or fall over. Maybe that’s why mom brought them in to see Bruce.

Anyway, everyone had a great time playing in Bruce’s ears for about 10 minutes before flying off.

Hanging bird bath at home in a tree

If you are like me and like to watch the birds up close during your morning coffee, a hanging bird bath is the best option. Ours sits in a large yellow magnolia that actually overhangs our patio. In the mornings, the boisterous Carolina wrens and Chickadees use it for a quick morning bath or drink and I get to watch them between sips of coffee.

Our hanging bird bath is from Lee Valley and sports a very shallow (1-inch in the deepest part) ceramic bowl with a terra cotta edge to provide grip for the small birds. It needs regular filling, so placing it in a shady, easily accessible spot allows you to keep your eye on its water levels throughout the day.

Because it is so shallow, by placing a layer of pea gravel in it, butterflies, dragonflies and other insects may also become regular visitors.

In conclusion (not all bird baths are created equal)

Bird baths are no different than most things in life – a single solution is rarely the best.

Success will be more likely if you incorporate a few different bird baths to attract different types of birds. Large deep ones for big birds like Jays, Cardinals, Grackles, Orioles even the neighbourhood crows. Smaller, shallow birdbaths for Chickadees, goldfinches, nuthatches, sparrows, house and purple finches. On-ground bird baths for shy birds that prefer to bathe at ground level.

I have yet to mention our three massive garden water bowls that sit on the ground between 8-12 inches high. On more than a few occasions, I have seen a large hawk use one of the bowls as a bird bath.

Generally speaking the bigger and deeper the bird bath, the bigger the birds will be who use them.

A solar fountain is an excellent addition to any bird bath. Use one with a gentle spray nozzle to provide hummingbirds with an opportunity to cool off by flying through the spray.

Remember that bird baths don’t have to be expensive.

Birds aren’t looking for pretty. They are way to busy surviving.

Give them a helping hand and you’ll be rewarded ten times over.

Providing birds with water is vitally important, but don’t forget to provide food as well.

While I get great enjoyment from my bird feeding stations, providing natural food sources to our feathered friends is always the goal we should aspire to in our gardens. I have written a comprehensive post on feeding birds naturally. You can read about it here.

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DIY: Moss garden container (in a few simple steps)

The finished moss garden container in its copper former fire pit.

DIY moss garden at home in Woodland garden

I had been harvesting moss from our old fire pit for years, but it was now time to turn it from an eyesore into a DIY piece of garden art for the woodland garden

And, once the idea came to me, I was surprised how easy it was.

I like to think the finished result was years in the making, but it actually only took about an hour worth of work once the plan was put into motion.

The result of my work, and probably about $20 in costs, is the creation of a beautiful moss garden container and a natural piece of art that looks right at home in the woodland garden and imparts a touch of Japanese-style elegance along one of our shaded paths.

I set the moss container up in a spot in the garden where I can see it when I sit on the patio. In the morning, when I’m out with my coffee, the Japanese Maple is back lit and the moss lights up as if a small spotlight were on it.

Looking for more money-saving tips for your garden. Be sure to check out my in-depth article on building your garden on a budget.

It certainly steals the show in the morning.

Although I chose to use an old, weathered fire pit with a beautiful copper top, any large bowl could serve the same purpose.

Check out thrift stores, Craig’s list or Kijiji for old fire pots that would make appropriate containers for the moss garden.

You might already even have something in the shed that would work perfectly. A galvanized steel container would impart a similar old-world feeling.

What you will need:

• A large container of some sort. Preferably with drainage holes. If there are no drainage holes, you will need to drill a few holes in the bottom to allow for proper drainage. It’s good to keep the bowl damp but not full of water.

• A base to grow the moss on. While most of us will use soil (slightly acidic soil is an excellent base), this fire pit has always been full of wood that was mostly already burnt into a charcoal. I simply left the partially burnt wood in the fire pit, in a shady spot over the years, and the most beautiful moss grew on the charcoal. In fact, plenty of years I harvested a good amount of it for use in garden containers and, by the next spring or even later that fall, it had all grown back in.

• As an alternative to growing your own moss, you can now purchase it from on line sources or likely even at high quality nurseries that specialize in garden crafts and DIY projects. Just make sure it is commercially grown and not taken from the forest. Commercially grown sheet moss performs better and is more uniform. (Check out the Supermoss sheets available at Amazon. Similar moss sheets might be available at your local nursery.)

• If you are planning to use you moss bowl in a sunnier location, consider using one of the moss-like perennials such as Irish or Scotch moss. Even thyme will give you that moss-like look without the need for much, if any, upkeep. (see my earlier article on moss-like ground covers)

• I used a small Japanese Maple mostly because we had one growing from a seed in the garden that was the perfect size for the project. I was seriously considering using a maidenhair fern rather than the Japanese Maple, but I have another project in mind that would be better suited for the fern. A small, elegant fern like the Maidenhair would be perfect, but you could also use a store-bought orchid (which would obviously need to be brought in over the winter). The damp environment in the moss bowl would likely be the perfect medium for growing an orchid.

• If you want to keep it simple, consider using elegant twigs cut from your own garden, (corkscrew willow branches work beautifully and can be purchased at most garden shops). Strip the bark and let the sun bleach them to make them stand out against the moss. Other choices include an interesting stone, much like the one I used in this setting.

• In this case, I put the Japanese Maple into a small biodegradable pot packed with fresh soil which could be easily swapped out for another plant without disrupting the moss.

• A single large stone or an odd number grouping of say 3 stones helps to anchor the design and could become the focal point of the moss garden or an anchor point to balance off the plant material. In Japanese gardens, rocks have long been used as anchor points and used to show the strength and stability of the garden and the earth.

• In my design I actually went out and purchased a rock to use in the design. Although I have lots of rocks on the property, I was looking for a certain type of stone that would look appropriate in the design. I went looking for a stone with earth-tone colours that was unique and would stand tall in the moss, appearing to emerge out of the earth rather than sitting on top of it. A grouping of threee similar stones emerging from the moss at varying heights would be stunning and likely all you would need in the moss garden.

• Finally I added a little reindeer moss and supermoss bits (purchased from the same craft store as the rock) to give the design texture and a little more variety of moss.

Simple steps to put the creation together

• Once all the items for the design are ready, it is time to begin creating your moss masterpiece.

• In my case the moss was already in place and my first steps involved cleaning up the moss of small plants (we can call them weeds) that had made their way into the moss as well as dead branches etc. I carefully removed the weeds and tucked the moss back into the holes created by removing the plants.

• If you are using commercially bought sheet moss, you will simply lay that over your acid-based soil and tamp it down for a nice fit. It is probably a wise idea to create an undulating surface with the soil prior to laying the moss in, just to give the design a more natural look.

• Once the moss is in place, cut out areas to place your stone(s) and place them into the soil, before replacing the moss around the base of the stone(s). Make sure the stones are emerging out of the moss rather than sitting on top. In proper landscaping designs, it is not uncommon for three quarters of the rock to actually be buried in the earth. Depending on the stone(s) you choose, you may not have to bury the stone(s) that deep, but it is vital that the stone(s) appear rooted in the earth.

• The same procedure is more or less followed by planting the tree or orchid etc. Create a pocket in the soil for the plant to sit in. I put the tree in a small container and planted that into the moss but you could plant it directly into the soil. If you are using an orchid, you would either plant it in a container with the suitable orchid mix or ensure the proper mix is in the pocket you created. By using a container, it’s easy to change up your design throughout the season by simply changing the container.

• Now it’s time to gently water your moss garden with a fine mist.

Caring for your moss garden

If done properly and placed in a mostly shady location your moss garden should need little care over the summer, spring and fall. In winter, depending how cold it is where you garden, you might want to cover the container or move it to a shed or garage.

Any plants that are growing in the container can either be left where they are if they are cold hardy, protected from the cold if you are concerned, or removed and taken indoors. The moss itself should not need any special care accept to clear any fall leaves off it before winter.

Although you may think it needs to be in an area of deep shade, mosses actually benefit from a little indirect sun preferably in the morning. If you can put your moss container in an area that gets dappled shade in the morning it should do very well.

One of the beauties of creating a moss container is that it can be moved around the garden either during the day or more likely through the seasons to give it just the right amount of sun and shade.

Monitor the moss to keep it free of leaves and unwanted plant growth.

Water your moss daily if possible but ideally only with a light misting. Do not drown the moss in water, a light misting to keep it damp is ideal.

A once a week watering to keep the soil below the moss damp will help create moisture around the moss.

Fertilization is not needed. If you feel you need to fertilize a plant growing in the moss, just fertilize around the plant itself, preferably by removing a small amount of moss, fertilizing the plant, and returning the moss in its place.

Other than that, enjoy your moss container.

Gardening on a budget links

DIY moss garden

Proven Winners Idea Book

Ten money-saving tips for the weekend gardener

Window boxes on a budget

DIY Bark Butter feeder for Woodpeckers

DIY reflection pond for photography

Click & Grow is ideal for Native Plants from seed

Nature’s DIY garden art

DIY solar drip for bird bath

Remove your turf and save money

DIY succulent planter

Hiring students to get your garden in shape

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Green Giant cedars: Fast growing arborvitae ideal for privacy

Green Giant arborvitae create year-round privacy fast

Is there room anymore in our gardens for big? Big trees, big shrubs, big boulders – BIG, Bold colour and plantings.

Well, make room for the Green Giant. Thuya Green Giant, Green Giant Arborvitae, call it what you wish. These are big, bold evergreens in your garden and we all need more of these type of statements in our woodland gardens.

Want privacy? This is how you get it. And not just in the summer. Green Giants provide year-round privacy and they do it quickly. There is no need to wait years to eliminate that eyesore or bothersome neighbour.

It seems like everything is miniaturized in garden centres these days, aimed more at timid gardeners who have been convinced that their properties are too small to handle any larger-sized trees, plants and shrubs.

Well, Green Giants are here to prove that big and bold is beautiful. If there was a bean stock, Thuya Green Giant would outgrow it and look fantastic doing it.

Let’s take a closer look at these evergreens – also known as Green Giant Arborvitae – that grow big fast, provide the perfect evergreen screen when you need it in a hurry, have a beautiful dense deep green colour and a natural loose habit that allows them to fit into a natural woodland setting. They are shelter for wildlife during our cold winters, a nesting spot for birds in spring and summer and best of all, deer leave them alone. That’s not all, Green Giants are not bothered by insects or disease and can stand up to most adverse weather situations.

A cedar deer don’t like

Yes, you read that right. A cedar that deer, including those all around our property, will not devour in a day.

Thuja Green Giants (Thuja Standishii Plicata ‘Green Giant’) did not earn their names from being timid.

These things can grow to enormous heights (40-60 ft) with a width of between 12-20 ft. And they don’t waste time doing it putting on 3 to 5 feet of growth a season when they’re happy.

These pyramidal shaped cedars grow in zones 5-7 and are an excellent disease-free substitute for other plants like Western Red Cedar or Leyland Cypress. Spring growth emerges a fresh lighter green and winter colour is a darker, bronzer shade.

These Green Giants form the perfect natural privacy screen between our neighbours and us, creating a wall of soft evergreen that even the birds enjoy.

They can grow happily in full sun to partial shade, in acidic or alkaline soil and are not fussy about whether it’s sandy or heavy clay.

So, in other words, these things will grow just about anywhere, in any soil conditions.

Use them as a specimen tree and let them be free to grow into their natural shape in your yard, or plant them together every 5 to 6 feet to create a privacy barrier to your property from neighbours, unsightly objects and busy streets. Their dense foliage will go a long way to not only block out the view but reduce noise and act as a possible wind-break.

Your choice to grow as a specimen or a privacy screen, but I always lean to allowing a tree to grow into its natural shape.

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Green Giants on our property

In fact, the pictures above show the 8 Green Giants my neighbour and I planted between our properties last summer.

The results are impressive.

We chose the Green Giants to replace an unsightly, overgrown deciduous hedge that had long past its prime. They were planted close together (about 6 feet) and staggered them to give the foliage more room to grow and spread out.

The result is stunning. The growth rate is spectacular.

The original 5-foot cedars grew two to three feet the first year we planted them and they are already forming a solid screen between us.

I’m hoping we can grow them more as large specimens with minimum pruning but time will dictate that. If they get too big width-wise, we could always remove a couple to give them more room to grow naturally.

This spring, I have noticed that the birds have discovered it and I think are beginning to take up residence in their lovely dense foliage.

Of particular note to those looking to save some money. Two of the eight trees we planted were much smaller than the other six trees. The nursery ran out of the larger trees, so we purchased two of the smaller, less expensive cedars.

Buy small and save big on Green Giants

As an experiment, we put them up front where they will receive more direct evening sun than the larger specimens. We expected the smaller ones to perform better than the larger specimens and eventually catch up to the point where it would be hard to recognize any real difference between them.

We were shocked to see the smaller cedars almost catch up to their larger neighbours in one season of growth. I imagine that by the end of the second year, it will be hard to distinguish between the smaller cedars and the larger ones.

So, if you are looking to save money as well as make the planting procedure much easier with the smaller root balls, consider going with the smaller versions of the cedars at the nursery. The growth rate is so strong on these trees that you will not have to wait long before they begin filling in and meeting your goals.

Emerald cedars vs Green Giants

I am going to go out on a limb here and just say it – why are so many gardeners choosing Emerald Green cedars (Thuja occidentalis ‘Smaragd’) over Green Giants or other, more natural looking, cedars?

I believe it all goes back to what the nurseries are offering and the push toward a smaller-scaled landscape because (in my mind) it certainly is not because Emerald Green cedars are nice.

They may look nice on the nursery lot with their bright green foliage but, to my eye, they don’t look appropriate in most landscapes. Hardy to zone 3b and growing to a height of only 12 feet with a spread of only about 4 feet, I can see why homeowners are originally attracted to these trees.

But the narrowness and upright, extremely dense foliage and brighter green colour just gives these a far too stiff and formal look to my liking. They work fine in a more formal setting, but I really don’t think they belong in a more natural setting and certainly not in a woodland garden.

My biggest problem with them is that, because the growth is so tight, the branches don’t intermingle well together and when they do, they often die off because of a lack of sun. The result, if any pruning is done to them, are ugly brown dead areas.

Is it obvious that I don’t like them much?

Just to add to my dislike, these things don’t live long at all averaging only about 30 years.

Consider the Black cedar or white cedars if deer are not an issue

My first choice in cedars is by far Black cedars (Thuja occidentalis ‘Nigra’). These are very much like Green Giants but are described as a selection of a native North American species. The Black cedars’ natural foliage that is a dense, dark and green with a little bit of a dusty-green look is even nicer than the Green Giants’ also impressive foliage.

A friend of mine recently put in a row of the black cedars along a fence and the result is stunning.

Black cedars grow fast to about 20 feet with a 7 foot spread, but not as quickly as Green Giants. The Nigra takes a pruning well and likes at least some sun over the course of the day.

The only reason my neighbour and I chose Green Giants over Black cedars is the fact that deer would have devastated the Black cedars within a week of planting them.

Following black cedars, our native swamp cedars, (Thuja Occidentalis) commonly known as the Arbor Vitae, Arborvitae, Eastern Arborvitae, Eastern White-cedar, Northern White Cedar, Northern White-cedar, Swamp-cedar, would be my next choice. These are often sold at the nurseries in spring as bare rooted cedars. They look spindly and not very attractive upon purchase, but are very cheap, grow fast and eventually thicken up to create an almost impenetrable privacy wall or impressive specimens. Under the right conditions, these are also very long lived.

These white cedars are perfect, accept they are high on the list of favourite food for our local deer population.

Again, Green Giants are of no interest to deer. My neighbour and I went through an entire winter where the deer left our Green Giants alone, and we did not even spray them with any deer repellent.

Impressive to say the least.

Why don’t I like Emerald Green cedars. They grow too tightly, too slowly and don’t provide the privacy that Green Giants or other more ‘loose-growing cedars’ can provide homeowners. In addition, their bright green foliage stands out in the landscape too much, in my mind. Rather than forming a perfect dark background, the Emeralds want to take centre stage.

Their biggest problem, as I mentioned earlier, is that because of their tight growth habit, if they begin to grow together like we want them to so they provide privacy, they will die off where they touch because of a lack of sun. If enough space is left between them to allow for their mature growth, they fail to provide the wall of privacy that the homeowner originally bought them for.

I know that landscapers are using them a lot and nurseries are pushing them to homeowners as the perfect hedging material, but consider their drawbacks before you go ahead and plant them.

One of our neighbours has them along their driveway, and every year they have to wrap them in burlap to stop the deer from snacking on them as well as protect them from cold winds. That’s not something I’m interested in doing, but if you are okay with it, by all means plant them.

Many homeowners like Emerald cedars, I happen to not be one of them. I’m definitely biased, so if you like them, plant them.

Green Giants are far from perfect

This is not to say that Green Giants are the perfect tree.

Anything that grows as fast as Green Giants come with their own problems. Silver maples, poplars and birch trees are good examples of fast-growing trees that, although they have their benefits, also come with big problems.

The faster a tree grows, generally the weaker its wood.

Why does that matter?

It matters most in severe weather when heavy snows or high winds can snap branches off. Whether they hit your home or just leave the trees unsightly, it’s never a good thing to have branches breaking on your trees.

In the case of cedars, it’s not uncommon for the tree branches to split resulting in either complete destruction of the tree or severe disfiguring.

This winter we did have a severe late winter snowstorm that left our cedars bent over by the heavy snow. I went out with a broom to clear some of the snow knowing that the trees can suffer damage in these situations. Turned out that they bounced back immediately and came through the storm with flying colours.

Another problem with fast growing trees is that they tend not to have long lives. Green Giants are given about a 40-year life span. I’m sure that in the right conditions they can live much longer but on average that is what you can expect.

The sheer size of these fast-growing trees is obviously a problem for some people. If you are young, you might want to consider the full mature height of these trees. They get large and can take up a lot of room if they are allowed to grow naturally. That can be a good or bad thing depending on the size of your yard and how you plan to use the tree(s) in your landscape.

My neighbour and I are, let’s say well past being called ‘young’ so having a fast-growing tree is perfect for us.

Let’s just say we are not too worried about either outliving the trees or about them getting to big in our lifetime. Your situation might be different. If so, a different type of tree might be a better choice, but don’t immediately write off a fast growing tree like the Green Giants.

If you need a quick cover that looks great, it’s hard to beat the vigour and beauty of the Green Giant cedar.

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Can I plant trees close to my house?

Planting trees in close to your home and windows helps to give you a window into your woodland.

Trees planted close to windows create rooms with a view

You shouldn’t have to step outside to enjoy your Woodland and wildlife garden. By creating impressive views from inside your home, the garden and its wildlife always has a presence.

Whether it’s a full fledged Woodland that stretches out as far as the eye can see, or a smaller area in your garden, consider finding ways to welcome it into your home.

In winter, you’ll appreciate looking out at the birds flitting from branch to branch. In spring, you might be lucky enough to watch a pair of cardinals build a nest and raise their young.

There are plenty of ways to bring the outdoors in, but I find planting trees, shrubs, grasses, ground covers and flowers close to the windows in our one-storey house to be the best way to experience the woodland garden at all times.

Looking out and seeing birds in the branches just outside the window is such a pleasant experience compared to looking out over a sea of grass with gardens in the distance.

I also don’t worry about tree roots invading our basement. I am aware that this can and does occur at times – mostly in 100-plus year old homes with massive oak trees or maples planted very close to the home. By planting trees with less aggressive rooting systems, these problems can be averted.

A few good trees to plant near a home include birches, various forms of apple including crabapples, dogwoods, Japanese maples and hawthorn trees.

Trees to keep away from your home’s foundation include silver maple, poplars and white ash.

Our trees are far enough away that I am not concerned that they will ever get large enough to do any damage to the foundation of the home. Besides, I won’t probably be around by the time that occurs. In the meantime, I am going to enjoy feeling one with nature.

Getting up close and personal

There are many ways to get up close and personal with nature.

Some involve constructing outdoor structures … or building expensive three- and four-season rooms that reach into your garden and surround you with your woodland in a climate-controlled, mosquito-free environment.

Perfect, but often very pricey.

It’s a whole lot easier and much less expensive to simply take advantage of what’s already staring you in the face.

Existing windows and doors are an opportunity many gardeners overlook when it comes to maximizing their gardens. It’s not enough to simply look out over the garden, try to bring the woodland in close to give you an intimate window into the goings on in your garden. Birds flitting from branch to branch or a mother feeding her young just on the other side of the window provides all the entertainment you need over your morning coffee, breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Create vignettes outside your windows

Similar to indoor decorating, look to create vignettes on the outside that you can appreciate from inside.

French doors, for example, provide the perfect opportunity to create a beautiful vignette just outside the doors.

Outside our family room French door is a beautiful copper birdbath, a small concrete bench, a container full of annual flowers as well as a beautiful flowering Cornus Kousa. A small flagstone pathway gives the viewers’ eyes a view past a rose bush and into the main garden.

From the couch in the family room, I can watch a steady procession of birds at the birdbath and admire the beautiful view of the flowering dogwood. In winter the birdbath is heated to continue to provide entertainment while giving the birds vital fresh water and a bathing opportunity even in the dead of winter.

In your garden, it may be nothing more than a grouping of pots filled with colourful plants or dramatic grasses, garden art or a simple bird bath, or water feature that you can appreciate from both indoors and out.

Five ways to bring the Woodland inside:

• Spend time standing at or looking out the windows of your home in every season and dream of what you might want to view. Then make it happen

• Plant trees or clumps of trees close to your home outside windows and doors to give you intimate views of nature from inside your home.

• Plan a lovely vignette outside your favourite window.

• If you have a window overlooking a neighbour, consider planting cedars. Make sure they are either native white cedar, black cedar or a cultivar that is loose and natural feeling. Some of the cedars sold at nurseries are more ornamental and not really the best for hedging. The best cedars grow taller than a fence, provide year-round interest and attract birds both as nesting areas and food sources. Hang a small feeder nearby for even more entertainment.

• If you need new windows or doors, take advantage of the opportunity by either increasing the amount of glazing (glass) or using a French door or sliders over a standard door. Maximize your view and then create the view you dream of through landscaping.

Wise words from a professional landscaper

A landscape professional once told me that a good landscape allows people to live in it not just admire it from afar.

It’s an approach we all need to consider more carefully when we create our landscapes. Planting trees or shrubs close to windows and places where we spend the most time is a sure fire way to fully experience our gardens.

Natural tree canopies replace umbrellas

Why use a massive garden umbrella to give you shade from the afternoon sun, when a large tree canopy can do it with greater style? Plant that tree now and by the time it provides you with the canopy you desire, your existing umbrella will need replacing.

We are lucky enough to have large windows in both the front and back of our ranch-style home. In addition, to open the garden up even more, every exterior door has been converted to either have a large window or turned into a French door for maximum viewing.

To some extent, our gardens are designed around the windows.

Our large front picture windows look out onto a grassless woodland setting that includes, among other plants and trees, Japanese maples, a lovely serviceberry, fully mature Crimson and red maples as well as our neighbour’s large blue spruce trees.

But it’s our view out into the back garden that best illustrates our attempt to bring the Woodland indoors.

Creating a view: Designing a dry-river bed

After years of looking out a large dining room bay window into our back garden, it donned on me that we really needed to create an interesting view that we could appreciate year round.

The view had always begged for something special, but I could never decide how best to use the space. 

Over the years, it primarily served as our main bird- and deer-feeding stations. The birds and deer provided plenty of entertainment, but it was time for a change.

Although it was completed just three years ago, it’s fair to say this project was years in the making.

It began with a plan to create a dry-river bed that connected to an existing pathway of river rock, pea gravel and flagstone stepping stones – a landscaping project my wife and I completed many years earlier. I liked the look and feel of the existing pathway and thought it would be good to bring that same feeling out into the landscape.

Since a bubbling rock has always been a dream of mine, we incorporated a small solar powered pump with a bubbling rock at the head of the dry-river bed. The idea was coming together in my mind but it needed more to make it look natural and bring it together as a cohesive landscape.

Eventually, after combing Pinterest for dry-river ideas, the concept of a bubbling rock and dry river bed running through a forest of birch trees was born.

Soon after, three clump birches were planted in the area around where the dry river bed would eventually go. The bubbling rock and dry river bed followed.

Grasses, ground covers and native flowers have been added since then to soften the hard edge of the river bed rocks and, three years later, the entire project is beginning to settle nicely into the landscape.

The birches seem happy and the branches are growing together creating a lovely birch-grove canopy over the bubbling rock and dry river bed.

Together, the tree canopy and fresh moving water attract plenty of birds, chipmunks and red squirrels that come in for a taste of the cool water rising up from the underground and spilling over the rock into the river rock below. I have even seen toads and snakes visiting the area.

Add solar lights for night views

At night, three solar-powered spotlights on the birch clumps allow us to enjoy our birch grove at all times, whether we are sitting outside or inside at the dining room table.

In fact, the lighted birch grove is the last thing I see every night and never fails to bring a smile to my face.

Now is the perfect time to consider creating vignettes outside your windows and doors to bring your Woodland garden into your home. I guarantee it’ll bring a smile to your face every day.

I would love to hear from you on how you were able to take advantage of existing windows and doors to create a dream view.

Take a few minutes to share your thoughts down below and inspire others to bring their Woodland indoors.

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Raised planters are a hit in the woodland garden

From veggies to garden nursery, changing strategies

The two raised planters to the left in the photo fit in nicely with the Keter sheds (that’s a second, smaller shed on the right) and the two on-ground planters, also made by Keter, that flank each side of the shed doors.

We bought our home based on a picture the previous owners left on the kitchen table at the open house.

It was a picture of two deer walking through the yard.

That sold it for me.

At the time, my wife, daughter and I were living in the suburbs surrounded by homes, pools and annoying neighbours. I spent my evenings and weekends in the nearby town of Ancaster (where we now live) trying to get photographs of deer. At that time, I was a little obsessed about getting photos of these lovely creatures.

Lots of deer: Careful what you wish for

When we bought the Ancaster home, one of the first projects I did was set up a bird-feeding station. It wasn’t long before the deer came to the bird feeders and it wasn’t long after that I came to the realization that if birds came to my feeders, I bet deer would come to feeders especially made for them.

I was right.

One morning I woke up to 17 deer in the yard waiting for me to go out and fill their feeder.

In fact, by about the third year of feeding the deer, they would be waiting for me when I returned from work around midnight.

For more suggestions and some of my favourite garden things, be sure to check out my Favourite Things post.

Five, six, eight would be in the yard gathered around the feeder. They were so used to me by that time that they would back off only about three feet when I approached them with their special feed of oats and corn.

They became so friendly that I’m sure they would have let me touch them, if I ever tried.

It got to the point where we couldn’t sit outside without being visited by a couple of deer looking for a handout.

The two raised planters are seen here with the woodland garden in the background.

High cost of feeding deer

Eventually, I realized, however, that we could not have anything nice because of the all the deer.

Not only were they eating me out of house and home, but they treated my emerging garden like a smorgasbord – the garden was the salad and the feeder became the main course.

A number of on-line nurseries offer assistance on buying deer-resistant plants. They are worth familiarizing yourself with so you don’t spend a fortune feeding the deer with precious plants.

The Burpee site is another mail-order company offering an extensive list of deer-resistant perennial seeds and plants for purchase through mail order.

I cut down on the food and eventually fewer deer visited looking for handouts.

Don’t get me wrong, they are still welcome in my garden and continue to indulge on our hostas, but the tradeoff of having these magnificent animals around is well worth it to me.

Before I plant anything these days, I check to see if they are deer resistant. I’ll still use plants that I know deer enjoy, but I try to put them in areas that are a little difficult for the deer to reach. It doesn’t work, but I keep trying.

The Keter raised planter pictured here prior to being filled with soil shows the watering system at left and the plastic spacers that both give the unit support and act as dividers for different herbs or veggies.

Lots of visitors to the woodland wildlife garden

Deer, of course, are not the only garden visitors. Rabbits, groundhogs, squirrels (both grey and red) chipmunks and a host of other hungry visitors live here too. So the thought of growing vegetables had never really crossed my mind until recently.

Mary Reynolds’, The Garden Awakening, (see earlier blog) got me thinking about Forest Gardening. A little research on YouTube especially New Jersey YouTuber James Prigioni got me thinking maybe it was time to tackle a little more food cultivation in the garden.

Problem is, besides berries from the many Dogwoods on the property, crabapples, serviceberries and various nuts from trees, I was convinced vegetables and low-growing berry crops would not stand a chance in the garden. There are ways to keep the critters out but I was not interested in fencing my property.

Just fencing off a small area using something like the Pest Free Garden from Gardeners’ Supply Company would certainly get the job done.

But I decided to go with raised planters.

A quick visit to our local big-box store resulted in not one but two handsome black, self watering raised planters made by a company named Keter for a garden area I am developing in front of a new shed. It didn’t hurt that the raised planters were made by the same company that made the shed and, therefore, fit nicely into the grey and black colour scheme. Check out my review of the Keter shed here.

Simple to assemble raised planters

It also was not a coincidence that as soon as I saw the raised planters at Costco, I grabbed them. After purchasing more Keter garden products in the last year and a half than I care to admit, I knew the quality of these Keter Urban Bloomer XL raised planters would be top notch and assembly would be simple and satisfying.

Construction, however, didn’t start well.

I overlooked the instructions for the first planter in the box so, like most men, decided to proceed without them. First thing I did was break a tab off the leg trying to detach it from the packaging. I’m not all that handy, so breaking things before I even get started is not out of the ordinary.

I had three more legs to detach and, for the life of me, I could not figure out how to detach them without breaking them off. Second leg, same thing. Broken tab.

I knew Keter products well enough by now to know that this was not the norm with their products. Everything else I built from them (and like I said there were many) made Ikea look like amateurs.

It was about that time that I discovered the instructions in the box.

Well, guess what? The tabs were meant to be broken off from the packaging material. Wow, I thought to myself, not only do I get to build these things, but I even get to break things on purpose. Life is just too good.

A few minutes later and the first one was built. After already building one (without instructions for the most part), the second one went together even easier and quicker. Within 1/2 an hour or so, both were built and in place ready for soil and seeds.

Keter states that with The Urban Bloomer XL, there’s no need to dedicate lots of space to have a substantial vegetable garden.

And, for us old folks, no need to bend over while planting and harvesting our veggies. That’s a good thing.

The extra-large elevated planter ( capacity of 110 L | 29.06 Gallons) features a shelf for storing gardening supplies and a smart watering system that incorporates special fabric for evaporation and regulated watering.

Its 44.8 inches in length and 18.6 inches in depth provides plenty of space for planting vegetables and herbs. The planters are advertised as UV and weather resistant, requiring virtually no maintenance and are easy to clean. What more can you ask for? A drainage plug at the bottom of the planter provides a convenient way to reduce the amount of water if necessary.

They are also quite light even with soil in them and would make the perfect raised planter for a balcony or small courtyard.

Their dark colour makes them not only a stylish addition to a balcony or patio, but also works to absorb heat to keep plants happy from early Spring through the cooler Fall temperatures.

One thing I can say about Keter is that the vinyls/plastics they use in their products are outstanding.

I’ve always been a natural-materials guy, but when I discovered how realistic Keter products are, I was sold. In fact, the company has won awards for the vinyls they have created. I joke that our grey-weathered shed looks more like weathered cedar than real weathered cedar looks. And it was weathered the day we bought it. I didn’t have to wait for it to take on that beautiful weathered grey colour.

Will they work to keep deer away

Keter doesn’t say anything about deer though.

In fact, after assembling them, I realized that my planters are raised to the perfect height for our four-legged friends to chow down with the greatest of ease.

They will definitely keep the rabbits away but I’m not too sure about the deer.

Oh well, it wouldn’t be the first time I set up a buffet for our resident deer.

And, like I said, watching them enjoy my backyard as much as I do, is a small price to pay.

Just leave me a tomato or two would you guys… I do like my toasted tomatoes.

Throughout the summer, I’ll keep readers updated on my success and failures with my raised planters.

Raised planter update

Okay so after our first summer with the raised planters I can report that I did not see a deer munching my tomatoes. I can also report that the deer missed out because one of our local raccoons got there first. Turns out a local raccoon decided to help itself to the tomatoes and snap pees.

Back to square one. This year we moved the planters around to the side of the house and although I have not given up with the tomatoes and other veggies, I am converting the raised planters to more of a woodland wildlife nursery where I can begin growing woodland flowers and shrubs from cuttings and seeds. I predict that will be a little more productive in the long run.

I hope to pick up some garden cloches from Garden supply to deter the raccoons from what is left of my tomatoes and other veggies.

If you like Keter products, and you are as disorganized as I am, you might want to consider getting their shed tool organizer. Again it’s another high quality product that solves the problem of messy tools cluttering up your tidy shed.

• None of the products in this review were provided to me from Keter. They were all purchased by me at a local Big Box Store.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This page contains affiliate links. If you purchase a product through one of them, I will receive a commission (at no additional cost to you) I only endorse products I have either used, have complete confidence in, or have experience with the manufacturer. Thank you for your support.

How to attract Orioles with oranges, jelly and insects

Go natural: Provide insects and berries for Orioles

I’m sitting in my home office in the middle of May with a light dusting of snow on the ground watching Baltimore Orioles working one of the orange halves I left out on the feeder for them

Last year, I remember as many as seven swarming the feeder. They were feasting on oranges and nectar from a commercial feeder that I had put out for them to catch their attention as they migrated back to their more northern summer breeding grounds here in Canada, from winters in Mexico, Central and South America.

If you want to attract Orioles and keep them around year round, you’ll have to make sure your Woodland provides them with everything they need so they decide to call it home. That includes an upper tree canopy where they often build their nests.

While I get great enjoyment from my bird feeding stations, providing natural food sources to our feathered friends is always the goal we should aspire to in our gardens. I have written a comprehensive post on feeding birds naturally. You can read about it here.

Orioles live in open woodlands particularly those with deciduous trees and lots of insects.

Oranges will go a long way to entice Orioles to visit your yard in spring, but grape jelly, nectar (in the same 4 to 1 ratio of water and sugar used to attract hummingbirds) provided in commercial feeders and berries in your garden from native trees and shrubs will help to convince the birds to stay around all summer. Don’t forget to provide an abundance of insects, including meal worms, which is the main food of Orioles when feeding their nestlings and throughout the remainder of the summer.

A male oriole works an orange half on the top of an Oriole feeder filled with the same sugar water mixture used for hummingbird feeders.

Here in Southern Ontario and Eastern United States we are limited to the Baltimore and orchard orioles. There are actually nine orioles throughout the United States, but only five are common.

The Bullock’s is found throughout Western Canada and the United States.

Once you’ve got them, and providing you give them the requirements they need, they often return year after year to raise their young.

More on what are the best Oriole feeders here.

Spring migration troubles 2021

Of Note: In the spring of 2021 many homeowners who normally have had Baltimore Orioles in their gardens are reporting that the birds either did not show up or appeared for only a day or two and moved on never to be seen again. I usually have a large number of orioles in the garden throughout the summer raising their young. This year, although a few passed through, none stayed around for more than a day or two. I have seen similar reports of decreases in Baltimore Oriole numbers throughout southern Ontario into northeastern U.S.

There appears to be no obvious reason for this concerning turn of events. A late cold spell that ripped through the Great Lakes area right around migration time brought freezing temperatures, including heavy snow, which may have resulted in fewer birds surviving migration or more birds choosing to nest further south. I will try to update this page if there is any more news on the plight of the Orioles.

A young Oriole enjoys a bath in one of our on-ground water sources that happens to be a concrete antler belonging to our concrete moose named Bruce (as in Springsteen) the moose.

It wasn’t too long ago when our Woodland garden was completely devoid of Orioles. Not that they weren’t around. People regularly talked about seeing them in the Conservation area surrounding us. I just never saw them in my garden.

Then I got serious about enticing these beautifully coloured birds into our garden.

Oriole nests are elaborate sac-shaped works of art

Now, they are not only here regularly in the spring and throughout the summer, a pair have even nested in a large maple at the front of our property. I don’t always find their nests, but I often see the young birds with their parents.

Orioles can take up to 12 days to build their elaborate, pendulous sac-shaped nests on the ends of branches in tall trees often in more open areas. Their nests are unique when it comes to North American birds’ nests.

In spring, the female oriole build’s her nest with thin, intertwined fibers that form what might seem like a delicate pouch but, in fact, can hold up to seven eggs.

By putting out oranges early in spring, we can attract orioles to our yards. Once we have them coming to our yards we can add grape jelly to keep them coming back.

For more information on how orioles build their nest check out audubon’s highly informative article on their site here.

Last year, a mother brought her entire brood to our on-ground water source where they had a great time splashing around in the ears of our concrete moose.

All it took to get them here originally was a couple of oranges cut in half and placed in areas where the Orioles are likely to see them. Now our neighbours have joined in to the excitement and put orange slices around their yard as well.

Once you have them, it’s time to add grape jelly to your yard. It has to be basic grape jelly, not a jam. You can buy special oriole jelly in plastic bottles at many good bird stores, but just buy a good grape jelly. I like to use Welch’s grape jelly, but any no-name jellies should be fine. Mix it with a little water and the Orioles will lap it up often choosing the jelly over the orange halves.

Orioles are attracted to the colour orange, so many of today’s feeders use the colour to catch the bird’s attention.

One trick that I like to use is after the orioles are finished with the orange half, I fill it with jelly. They seem to appreciate my effort. It’s a constant exchange of old oranges with new ones, and filling the spent oranges with grape jelly.

Five cool facts about orioles

• Orioles are in the same family as blackbirds and meadowlarks and are most often seen perched at the tops of trees or flitting through the upper foliage looking for insects.

• Their chatter is quite distinctive as is their call. Once you have heard it, you are unlikely to forget it.

• Watch your peas. Orioles enjoy fresh or frozen or dried peas

• Orioles live up to 11 years in the wild and longer in captivity.

• Female orioles become a deeper orange every time they molt. Older females can be almost as bright as their male counterparts

• Orioles got their names from the black and orange of Lord Baltimore’s family crest, which is similar to the family’s crest

• the Baltimore oriole is Maryland’s state bird

• Orioles have distinct alarm calls to warn of predators, but will not hesitate to mob and harass predators that threaten or come near nests.

Oriole feeders have come a long way

Many modern feeders will provide areas to mount oranges as well as cavities to put the jelly into. Some feeders also offer the Orioles several choices, including jelly, orange halves and nectar.

Some, such as the Birds Choice Flower Oriole Bird Feeder include a reservoir to hold grape jelly as well as places to mount orange halves. Look for feeders that also provide perches for several of the birds to comfortably and safely perch while they are eating. It’s not uncommon to have several at your feeders at once.

The nectar that is used for orioles is the same as the nectar used for hummingbirds. It should be made the same way – 4 parts of water to one part of sugar.

I like to boil my water first and then measure out the 4:1 ratio. The boiling water helps to dissolve the sugar more perfectly and seems to keep my feeders’ nectar clear longer. Remember to let it cool to room temperature before filling your nectar feeders.

Don’t be surprised if the orioles start to feed from your hummingbird feeders. They are a regular at my feeders, even when they struggle to fit on them properly.

In saying that, however, it’s not uncommon for our hummingbirds to drink from the oriole feeder.

Orioles love moving water

Don’t underestimate the value of moving water. Although orioles get much of their water needs filled by nectar from our feeders and plants, water still plays an important part in attracting these beautiful birds. They are especially attracted to the sight and sound of moving water, whether it’s a fountain, a dripper or a bubbler. I wrote a full article about converting a dripper into a solar fountain. You can read it here.

Five of a total of seven Orioles pictured here taking advantage of our various feeders that included orange halves, home-made jelly feeders and a nectar feeder.

In summer meal worms are an excellent choice for Orioles

Finally, once you have attracted the Orioles, you will need to be prepared to change their diet as summer approaches. You may notice them using your orange and jelly feeders less and less. That’s when to start shifting what you are feeding them from oranges and jelly to meal worms, either live ones (which are ideal) or dried ones. It’s a good idea to rehydrate the dried meal worms with some water before putting them out in your feeders. Or, put them in a dish and add a little water to rehydrate them. This makes it easier for the birds to swallow them.

Both types are available at bird-feeding stores or through Amazon. Feeding meal worms will not only attract Orioles to your garden. They are the prime source of food for Bluebirds at a feeder as well as robins and other insect eating birds.

Special meal worm feeders are also available. Because squirrels are not interested in meal worms, these feeders can hang anywhere in the garden including from nearby tree branches.

The Baltimore Oriole spends its winters in florida and farther south in Central America. They migrate north to breed throughout the northeast United States and into southern parts of Canada.

Insects are the birds’ primary food source in summer

Although they are attracted to Oranges and jellies on their migration routes, their real food is a variety of insects.

The Orioles that visit our gardens are using the oranges and jelly as a quick burst of energy. By the summer, when they are raising their young, they spend much of their time foraging for insects to feed their babies. The parents will still come to the feeders for quick bursts of energy, but they may also almost disappear if they are not nesting nearby.

Besides mealworms, Orioles will also eat wasps and other insects. It is vital to avoid using pesticides in the garden to ensure a large supply of insects for these birds. During the summer, when orioles are feeding their young, insects may provide up to 90 per cent of an oriole’s diet.

Native shrubs and bushes that produce an abundance of berries are excellent food sources for these birds. Consider planting elderberries, blueberries, blackberries, serviceberries and raspberries just to name a few. I have written an entire article about the importance of serviceberries in our wildlife gardens. You can read it here.

Although oranges are their favourite fruit, they will also eat apple, peaches, bananas and berries.

Providing them with special suet mixes that include fruit pieces and berries is a good source of high energy for them.

Plant bright, but dark-coloured fruits such as mulberries, cherries and purple grapes as well as raspberries. They also like flowers that produce high quantities of nectar including vines such as trumpet vines.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This page contains affiliate links. If you purchase a product through one of them, I will receive a commission (at no additional cost to you) I only endorse products I have either used, have complete confidence in, or have experience with the manufacturer. Thank you for your support.

How to attract indigo buntings to your backyard

Attracting Indigo Buntings and other insect-eating birds can be difficult

Indigo Buntings have always been one of my favourite birds, but attracting them to our backyards is not always easy.

I am lucky enough to have indigo buntings coming to our feeder several times a day. And, they are going to one very specific feeder that I have made sure to keep filled with its favourite foods.

Attract Indigo Buntings with natural food such as insects

These birds of the open woodlands will come to specific seeds in your feeder, especially during migration, but they are among the many birds we may see in our backyards that largely depend on insects, spiders, grasshoppers, aphids, beetles, cicadas and caterpillars as their main source of food during the spring and summer months.

While I get great enjoyment from my bird feeding stations, providing natural food sources to our feathered friends is always the goal we should aspire to in our gardens. I have written a comprehensive post on feeding birds naturally. You can read about it here.

So, how do we attract Indigo Buntings and other insect-eating birds, including blue birds, wrens and warblers to our yards and keep them coming back, or, better yet, convince them to call our yard their home?

A male Indigo Bunting sits among the flowers of a crabapple in spring.

To successfully attract Indigo Buntings and other primarily insect-eating birds to our yards depends on a multi-faceted approach that begins with providing them with the food they prefer at our feeders – primarily small seeds such as thistle or nyjer, and white proso millet. Sunflower chips – the type available in no-mess blends – can also attract these beautiful birds. A high quality finch mix which includes many of these favourite seeds and, of course, live or dried meal worms will keep them interested in what our feeders are providing.

Use white proso millet and bark butter to attract Indigo Buntings

In addition, I have had success with Wild Birds Unlimited soft suet nuggets known as “Bark Butter Bits” in attracting Indigo Buntings and other insect eaters.

I have found that white proso millet mixed with dried meal worms keeps indigo buntings coming back day after day.

Indigo Buntings are among the most shy birds in my garden. Even the slightest movement from a distance can send them flying off into the nearby cover of our large crabapple trees. Providing several feeding stations or, even better, a caged feeder helps to give them a better sense of security in the commotion that so often surrounds a large feeding station.

Once the feeder foods are in place, ensure there is an abundance of water in the yard and try to provide it in many different forms – from on-ground sources, to hanging bird baths in trees and other quiet areas of the garden, as well as traditional bird baths. (See my earlier story on providing water sources here.)

Once these two key ingredients (food and water) are in place, we need to focus on providing the birds with their natural food sources which includes an abundance of insects as well as berries.

Berries as a key food source: Plant blueberries and serviceberries

Indigo Buntings are drawn to many types of berries including blueberries, strawberries, serviceberries blackberries and elderberries, just to name a few. Many of these fruits could be purchased from local grocery stores and provided at feeders, but why not start now to ensure at least some of these berries are being provided naturally in our gardens?

By planting a few of these berry producers and leaving an area of your garden to go wild with wild strawberry, raspberries etc you will provide perfect habitat for a host of birds that like to dine on berries. Indigo buntings will often forage in these wild areas for seeds, bugs and berries. They can be seen flitting about through the grasses or in shrubs.

In spring, they will often even eat the buds of their favourite trees and shrubs. There is no questions that these “wild” areas provide excellent habitat for a host of insects and keep the birds returning to that corner of your yard.

These berry producers, especially serviceberries, are excellent additions to your woodland/wildlife garden. (See my earlier post on serviceberries here.)

Blueberry plants are also an easy introduction to the garden. You can grow them in containers where you can more easily control the PH levels. (Blueberries like a slightly acid soil) I have two blueberries growing in a large container and another Proven Winners’ hybrid plant that I planted this year in a raised container.

Chances are you will have to work hard to get any for yourself once the birds and garden critters have had their fill, but that’s okay. If you can’t bear the idea of giving up all your favourite fruit to the birds, cover them with a cloche to save some for yourself and offer the remainder to the birds. The critters got all the berries last year. This year, I am determined to get at least a few for myself.

Okay, so we have the feeders set up, an abundance and variety of water sources and berry producing trees and shrubs planted in the garden.

That’s an excellent start and one where many gardeners will be satisfied, but not us. Woodland/wildlife gardeners who really want to attract Indigo Buntings and other insect-eating birds to their backyards will want to take the extra steps to not only attract the birds but the insects and caterpillars that will really bring these birds to our gardens.

Immature Indigo Bunting showing its lack of complete colouring.

Insects: Provide the key ingredient to success

Now let’s talk about those insects that Indigo Buntings are so dependent on for their survival.

It goes without saying that the use of indiscriminate insecticides is not going to result in success. In fact, every effort should be made to create a pesticide-free habitat for the wildlife in your yard.

It never hurts to put up a sign in your front garden advertising that your property is a pesticide-free zone. Unfortunately, we cannot control what our neighbours do but, let’s hope they will follow our lead and reduce or eliminate the insecticides they choose to use on their properties.

Eliminating pesticides is an excellent start, but if you live in a typical suburban lot you may need to take extra steps to make your property insect-friendly.

Here are a few suggestions to increase the number of insects on your property with links to earlier posts on Ferns & Feathers.

Plant an Oak tree: If at all possible, look for an area in your yard where you can plant an oak tree. Studies show that oak trees support the greatest number of insects and caterpillars of all the trees in the forest. Without going into great detail, there is no better tree in the landscape to support a healthy insect and population. In fact, Doug Tallamy in his book Bringing Nature Home states that a “single white oak tree can provide food and shelter for as many as 22 species of tiny leaf-tying and leaf folding caterpillars.”

Go here to read my posts on oak trees.

• What tree should I plant in my yard.

• Columnar oak is perfect for small yards.

And that is just a tiny fraction of the fauna that depend on a single oak tree. In fact, the mighty oak supports 534 species of fauna, more than any other tree we can plant in our gardens. (See my earlier post here on the importance of oak trees in our landscapes.)

Create a brushpile: Pick a corner of the yard and begin adding sticks, branches and other woody cuttings from the garden to the pile. Maybe some old grasses or last year’s leaves could also find a home in the corner. You are not looking to make a compost pile (although an active compost pile is good too), you are mostly just making a place where insects can gather preferably out of the hot sun. Over time the branches will break down and create good habitat for insects and other small fauna. We have two such areas: one is a massive pile in one corner of the yard that gets added to every year. Some might describe it as an open compost pile but I never turn it, have not removed any “compost” and top it with only garden material from branches to cut grasses, leaves and old container plantings in the fall. The other is the result of pruning two large trees, where I asked the tree company to just leave the branches on the ground. This is an open brush pile and favourite playground for the chipmunks and red squirrels in our yard.

For my earlier post on building a brushpile go here.

Leave some fruit to rot: This is a great way to attract fruit flies. I use a shallow hanging bird bath which is a perfect place to put pieces of apple, watermelon, oranges for the Orioles, bananas etc. These attract all kinds of insects as well as butterflies etc. The fruits get moved to the open compost area once they begin to over ripen.

Leave your leaves in the fall: This is the singularly most important step you can take to encourage an abundance of insect life in your woodland garden. It is vital for insectivorous birds during the extremes in winter when food is scarce and in spring, when migrating birds are returning craving good sources of protein. Despite living in an area surrounded by forested Conservation lands, most of my neighbours are obsessive about picking up every last leaf on their grass and in their yards. Bags and bags of leaves are put out every fall through spring to ensure not a single leaf remains on their properties. It reminds me of how important leaving the leaves on the ground is when I look out the window in late fall, winter or early spring and see a host of birds, rummaging through the leaves looking for insects and larvae winter, spring, summer and fall. (See earlier article here.)

Mud puddles or shallow spots: Many insects, including butterflies can be drawn to shallow mud puddles where they drink and obtain much-needed minerals from the soil.

Backgrounder on the Indigo Bunting

These migratory birds (genus passerina cyanea) spend the winter primarily throughout Central America but breed throughout the eastern United States up into southern Ontario around the Great Lakes and southern parts of Quebec west to Manitoba. An interesting fact about these birds is that they migrate at night, using stars as their guiding lights.

They can often be spotted on the edge of woodlands and along rural roadways where they like to perch on telephone lines and tall trees and share their song for hours on end.

The indigo-blue males, with their striking blue heads that softens to a more cerulean colour on the body, pronounce their presence with joyful songs through the late spring and summer.

It may come as a surprise, since it is their striking colour that sets them apart in the bird world, that their jewel-like colour does not actually come from blue pigment in their feathers, but, instead, from microscopic structures in the feathers that refract and actually reflect blue light.

The males sport short conical bills that are dark on the top and a silvery-gray on the bottom.

Females, not unlike many other bird species such as cardinals and orioles, are much more subdued in colour with shades of brown and beige with hints of blue on her wings or rump.

Indigo Buntings like to nest in shrubby areas rather than high in the treetops. this is another good reason to leave some unkept shrubby areas in a corner of your garden.

Who knows, you may be able to convince a couple to nest in your yard where you can enjoy them all summer, up close and personal.

The perfect opportunity to photograph the family as they grow and prepare for their epic migration to lands far, far away.

Good luck and let me know if you have any success attracting Indigo Buntings this season.

As an affiliate marketer with Amazon or other marketing companies, I earn money from qualifying purchases.

How to attract Native Bees to your wildlife garden

Creating a lawn for native bees: Time to rethink normal

The value of our native bees can’t be underestimated, but every day, every year, every growing season they play second fiddle to those “other” bees.

Their role in the natural world could not be any more clear than their importance to native plants.

(For my article on the important role of native plants, go here.)

In a world where insects and other creepy crawlies get a bad rap, solitary bees are the Rodney Dangerfield of the Bee world.

They certainly don’t deserve that disrespect.

Our Native Bees is a stunningly beautiful book that explores the importance of North America’s endangered pollinators. it is pictured here with a WeeBeeHouse native bee home.

Considering the work native solitary bees do for us, they should actually be celebrated as one of the most important contributors to the natural world and a vital part of our agricultural economy.

Why don’t they get the respect they deserve?

Paige Embry, author of the Our Native Bees book is a true solitary bee aficionado. “It annoys her — rightly — that most people know next to nothing about the 4,000 species of native bees nesting in the ground, in trees and in the sides of our houses,” points out the New York Times, in a review of her book.

“The hardest part of getting a bee lawn into use isn’t developing the seed mix; it’s dealing with people’s vision of what a lawn should be…If we didn’t have to worry about our neighbours, I think there would be a much more diverse look.”

— Minneapolis Bee researcher

Count me among those who knew “next to nothing about the 4,000 species of native bees.”

I never really gave bees much thought even though the solitary native bees are regulars in our backyard.

After reading her book (Published by nature and garden book publishers Timber Press in 2018) and my own research, I still consider myself a novice when it comes to native bees. There is so much to learn, but Embry’s book is a good beginning for anyone wanting to explore the world of native solitary bees.

Our Native Bees: North America’s Endangered Pollinators and the Fight to Save Them is clear and concise, mixed with entertaining stories and anecdotes about author Embry’s journey into discovering North American native bees from her childhood to present day. The book is by no means a dry, complex, scientific or academic approach to protecting and attracting native bees.

It’s their story and she tells the troubled tale with the novice native bee lover in mind.

“Native bees are the poor stepchildren of the bee world,” she writes in the introduction of the book. Honey bees get all the press – the books, the movie deals – and they aren’t even from around here, coming over from Europe with the early colonists.”

She goes on to point out that in 2015 the U.S. federal government “issued a plan to restore 7 million acres of land for pollinators and more than double the research budget for them.”

Sounds great, where’s this disrespect you talk about?

The disrespect came in the name of the new program: the “National Strategy to Promote the Health of Honey Bees and Other Pollinators.”

As Embry aptly points out: “Four thousand species of native bees, not to mention certain birds, bats, flies, wasps, beetles, moths, and butterflies, reduced to ‘other pollinators.’ ”

It’s the sad tale of our native bees. But with the efforts of Embry, bee researchers and entrepreneurial dreamers who are working hard to help our native bees get the respect and recognition they deserve, there is certainly some reason to be optimistic for the 4,000 species of native bee that call North America home.

No-one is kidding themselves, however, the story of their survival is still being written and there is no guarantee it will have a fairy-tale ending.

Let’s make this clear from the beginning, Embry has nothing against honey bees.

“They dance and make honey and can be carted around by the thousands in convenient boxes, but from a pollination point of view, they aren’t super-bees. On cool, cloudy days when honey bees are home shivering in their hives, many of our native bees are out working over the flowers. Bumble bees do their special buzz pollination of tomatoes, blueberries, and various wild species…. The trusty orchard mason bees are such hard-working yet slovenly little pollen collectors that several hundred can pollinate an acre of apples that requires thousands of honey bees.”

Embry asks: “Where are the book and movie deals for these bees?”

Where indeed?

Our Native Bees book, however, is a good beginning.

The little black, 195-page gem of a book is actually written in two halves: The first half focuses on the commercial importance of native bees in the agricultural world and tells the story behind California’s massive almond industry among others; the second half explores the importance of the native bees in nature and efforts made to save them including an unlikely pairing between the future of native bees and intensive work being done at a U.S. golf course to create ideal habitat for them and other pollinators.

The Power of Bees

In her final chapter of Our Native Bees, Embry writes about the power of these extremely docile native bees. Here are a few excerpts from that chapter:

Bees have power: They have the obvious power of pollination and supplying us with many of our favourite foods. they also have an unexpected superpower – the ability to form connections and build community among people. … People come together to volunteer at bee labs or help with bee surveys. Some use vacation time to take bee classes and hunt for bees.

Bees are reselient: If we just stop kicking the bees quite so hard, we can help them – and see the results immediately. Renounce pesticides. Plant flowers that bees in your area like. Be a little slovenly in the garden; leave some old broken stems and a little bare dirt show. The bees will come.

Bees are diverse: Most people think of honey bees when they hear the word bee or, even worse, they envision a yellow jacket or some other kinds of wasp. Twenty thousand species rife with differences being reduced to either a very unusual outlier of the group or something that is not a member of the group at all.

In the first half of her book, Embry sets up the difference between imported honey bees and our native bees.

For a complete novice, when it comes to the importance of bees and their role in agriculture, I have to admit that the information Embry provided was both enlightening and fascinating.

Embry’s love affair with bees and her subsequent book actually had its roots with the the tomatoes of her Georgia childhood.

“The summertime table in my house always had a plate of sliced tomatoes on it. … When I grew up and moved away, I too, grew tomatoes…, she writes in the book.

“Some pollination happens as a result of wind just shaking the plants, but more and bigger tomatoes result with the help of bees. Not just any bee can do it, though. It wasn’t until I was nearly fifty that I learned that honey bees can’t produce those tasty red and orange globes. Tomatoes require a special kind of pollination called buzz pollination, where a bee holds onto a flower and vibrates certain muscles that shake the pollen right out of the plant.”

“If the idea of flowers growing in the grassy lawn just isn’t quite achievable yet, there’s always the golf course route. Take out some of that lawn and convert it into a home and dining hall for bees. It’s all a matter of rethinking normal.”

— Paige Embry

So, it turns out that bumble bees and other native bees are the keys to tomato pollination.

Embry goes on to devote an entire chapter to the question: “Did Greenhouse Tomatoes Kill the Last Franklin’s Bumble Bee?”

You’ll have to read the book to get the answer to that question, but it raises a concern about big agriculture and the future of our native bees.

Native versus naturalized bees

In case you were wondering what’s the difference between Native and Naturalized bees, Embry explains it in the following way: “The North American bee is one that evolved right here. The honey bees we know are not native because they came over from Europe with the early colonists. Some of those early bees escaped into the wild (they went feral), where they did quite well. Those feral bees are considered naturalized, not native.”

Native Bees’ economic value

Like many of us, I had not given much thought to how fruit and nuts get to our table and the importance of pollination to that end.

Little did I know that the pollination of massive orchards and fields were so dependent on bees and that non-native honey bees were the key pollinators. All this despite the fact our native bees are more efficient, harder workers and free for the taking if only we could figure out a way of attracting them to acres and acres of endless orchards and agricultural fields.

It should not come as a surprise that the story of our bees, both honey and native bees, are rooted in the agriculture industry and the bees’ future could very well depend on that same industry for good or bad.

Much has been written lately about the future of bees and other pollinators and how their numbers are being threatened by pesticides.

But enough of that. The agricultural story and the work being done behind the scenes is a fascinating part of the native bee story. The fact that Canadians, more specifically New Brusnwick, played a key role in their story, and not in a good way, furthers my interest in the plight of these fascinating little bees.

Native Bees’ value in our gardens

It’s in our gardens, however, where our focus lies.

Native bees have quickly become a favourite of concerned homeowners many of whom are taking actions in an attempt to save them. Even if it’s nothing more than putting up small bee habitats on their properties where the solitary bees can safely procreate and live their lives. (For my post on WeeBeeHouse native bee habitats see below)

Gardener’s Supply Company, in Burlington, Vermont also offers an impressive native bee house for readers looking to begin provding a home for native bees. Their page also includes an interesting video of the bee house in action. To view it, click here.

Best five things I learned from Our Native Bees

1) There are at least 4,000 species of native bees in North America in every shape, size and colour you can imagine.

2) Sweat bees – beautiful green iridescent native bees – get their name because some like to lick up sweat

3) Most native bees are small, live alone and do not sting either because they have no stingers or are so docile that it would take a life and death situation to get them to sting.

4) Native bees vary in size from the mighty carpenter bee (about an inch in length) to the tiny Holeopasites calliopsidis that isn’t much bigger than Roosevelt’s nose on a dime. And it’s not even the smallest native bee in the United States. That honour goes to Perdita Minima.

5) There are 20,000 species of bees worldwide that are responsible for the seeds of rebirth of three-quarters of the flowering plants in the world.

Bees in the Grass: Rethinking Normal

We all have to take a serious look at the acres of grass that dominate our urban and rural neighbourhoods. (For my post on removing lawns see below.)

Embry wastes little time advocating for a change in the way homeowners see their carpets of monoculture they call grass. She uses an example that is both shocking and encouraging.

She turns her focus to golf courses and goes into great detail about two programs at American golf courses that encourage setting aside natural areas on the golf course for native pollinators.

The first program stems from a 2002 report from the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation who teamed up with the U.S. Golf Association to write a report called “Making room for Native Pollinators: How to create Habitat for Pollinator Insects on Golf Courses.”

The second program, and one she turns her attention to, is a program out of Europe, Operation Pollinator, started by Syngenta, one of the world’s largest agrochemical comanies (another name for a pesticide company).

The program started in the United Kingdom in the early 2000s after a survey of golfers revealed that what they liked most about going out for a round of golf was the nature they sometimes stumbled across in the more natural areas of the course. That, together with the desire to reduce the costs of operating a course, lead to the unexpected marriage between nature and a massive pesticide company.

By creating a natural area for pollinators, the pesticide company was able to use their expert biologists to turn perfect turf into pollinator-friendly areas. The plan cut down on the cost of pesticide while at the same time providing more nature for the golfers.

“Operation Pollinator for golf courses came to the United States in 2012, and by 2016 more than 200 golf courses in twenty-nine states had an Operation Pollinator plot. The plots range from half an acre to more than a hundred.”

To say the program has been a smashing success for native bees is a huge understatement.

This program, of course, brings us to our own lawns and gardens.

Embry asks: “What golf courses are doing with Operation Pollinator is going a step beyond just adding some flowers to the grass. They are removing turf in areas that don’t need to be grass and replacing it with flowers for pollinators. That’s one approach, and it works in some places. Sometimes, though, you want a lawn to be a lawn , a place for play, picnics, and soccer pitches. What if a lawn can be all that and a place for pollinators too?”

She goes on to talk about incorporating more clover, and the thirty-seven bee species found on clover in grass in a Minneapolis study.

This simple addition to turf allows for the soccer pitches, while still providing some native bee habitat.

From the simple addition of clover into the lawn Embry moves on to the “making of a bee lawn.”

The transformation from golf-course turf to the perfect bee lawn has been the focus of many studies and creations that has met with varied success over the years.

As one researcher at the University of Minnesota explains: “the hardest part of getting a bee lawn into use isn’t developing the seed mix; it’s dealing with people’s vision of what a lawn should be…"

“If we didn’t have to worry about our neighbours, I think there would be a much more diverse look.”

Embry goes on to explain as a possible solution: “If the idea of flowers growing in the grassy lawn just isn’t quite achievable yet, there’s always the golf course route. Take out some of that lawn and convert it into a home and dining hall for bees. It’s all a matter of rethinking normal.”

Yes, Ms Embry, it certainly is.

Thanks for shedding some light on our native bees.

As an affiliate marketer with Amazon or other marketing companies, I earn money from qualifying purchases.

Expert Tips for Attracting Birds to Your Backyard Fast

This is a guest article that Ferns & Feathers participated in and that was originally composited by Mike Cahill for Redfin blog in Seattle, Washington. To check out the original post, go here.

When trying to attract birds to your home creating a habitat that serves their basic needs is essential. Food, water, and shelter are key but aren’t the only variables you need to consider. While these satisfy their physiological needs, birds also prefer a safe space where they can socialize freely. That’s why we reached out to the birdwatching experts from Vancouver to New York to provide you with a few creative ways to attract birds to your home.

Foster a bird haven

The most effective way to attract many different species of birds to your yard is to offer a wide variety of food sources including seeds (especially black oil sunflower seeds), suet, nuts, jelly, sugar water (for hummingbirds) and fruits. Also consider installing native plants, fruit-bearing trees, and shrubs in varying degrees of density in your backyard to promote an attractive, safe habitat for the birds to forage, roost and nest in. It’s also a good idea to put out a birdbath or install a small pond garden so that the birds have someplace to bathe, cool off and grab a drink, something that is particularly important during the summer months. Lastly, make sure that you clean your feeders and birdbath periodically and keep your feeders full. Following these steps, it won’t be long before your backyard will become a bird lover's paradise! - Birdwatching N.C.

It’s important to provide multiple clean water for local birds.

This spring, consider turning your backyard space into a welcoming haven for birds! The key to attracting birds to your yard is by providing for their basic needs. Growing native plants is a great way to encourage birds to settle in your yard by offering natural food sources and shelter. In addition, you can add bird feeders with a variety of food types to entice many different species. Proving a water source is another great way to attract birds because of course, they all need water! Putting a birdbath in your backyard is an easy way to provide a place that birds can drink and bathe. A couple of other important things you can do to help out our feathered friends are to avoid using pesticides and herbicides, which are harmful to birds and also to keep cats out of your yard! Have fun birding and good luck! - Meewasin

Incorporate a variety of feeders

Get some hummingbird feeders up in various parts of your garden. Hummers can be territorial so we suggest at least 2 or 3 different feeders in different corners. Keep the feeders well stocked with a 4 to 1 dissolved mix of water to sugar. Once the birds know there is a regular supply of food they'll keep coming back. Take care to clean the feeders every day or so, and replace sugar water which ferments quickly on hot days. It's not just about feeders - get some plants on the go too. Hummers love brightly colored tubular hanging flowers rich in nectar. Reds and purples are perfect, like cardinal flowers, columbines and fuchsias. - Home Happy Gringo

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While I get great enjoyment from my bird feeding stations, providing natural food sources to our feathered friends is always the goal we should aspire to in our gardens. I have written a comprehensive post on feeding birds naturally. You can read about it here.

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Don’t underestimate the importance of a clean water source

Our Friends know that their own yards can serve as vital mini-sanctuaries whether you live in the rural vast expanse or eastern Oregon or an urban 'jungle'. We have a few tricks for ensuring that you are supporting the birds that may find themselves in your backyard. First things first - food is not enough. Clean, freshwater is a vital and often overlooked necessity for many birds. A resident of Burns, OR and Friends of Malheur Board Member, Rick Vetter, says, "I use a combination of water, feed, and bait to attract a variety of birds to my backyard in winter." Water can be a shallow bath or bubbler and should be cleaned regularly. Rick continues, Feed consists of 2,000 lb of cracked corn and black sunflower see in several feeders supplemented with suet and a large plastic container of skippy super crunchy peanut butter with holes for wood pegs and slots for access to the peanut butter." What about the bait you ask? Well, Rick has a unique approach to that as well. " Bait consists of California quail and Eurasian collared doves eating the feed and in turn, they attract northern goshawks, Cooper’s hawks, sharp-shinned hawks, red-tailed hawks and northern harriers that feed on them. Merlins feed on the smaller birds. - Malheur National Wildlife Refuge

Try planting local natives

Firstly, I recommend planting local native plants like the Firebush (Hamelia patens). This plant is very attractive to hummingbirds and insects, therefore attracting other birds like warblers and flycatchers. Something important to keep in mind is that this plant has a tropical and subtropical distribution. Therefore it attracts birds suited for those conditions that the plant is also well adapted for. For that reason, before planting your garden or designing your landscaping, you have to investigate the local native plants in your area. Also, another helpful and easy way to attract birds in the garden, for example, is if you have old tree trunks on your property. These dead plants can provide a suitable habitat for woodpeckers, owls and in general birds that need a cavity to nest inside. - Drake Bay Birdwatching

Planning your outdoor space with bird-friendly plants that flower at different times of the year will attract a variety of birds throughout the flowering season. By planting early bloomers you will be providing a food source for early summer migrants (or straggling fall migrants) and by planting late bloomers you will be attracting birds leaving a little later (or fall migrants arriving early). And of course, you’ll be providing for your resident birds as well! To learn how to spot some of California’s most notable birds, check out our Guide to Birding. - Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority

The most effective way to encourage a variety of birds to your yard is to plant as many native trees, shrubs and flowers as possible. These are plants that the native birds have come to know and depend on over centuries. By using more native plants in your backyard, especially those that flower profusely in spring and follow the blooms with berries, you will not only encourage birds and other fauna to visit your yard, you will also encourage them to stay in your yard and call it home. - Ferns & Feathers

Install a moving water feature

A simple, cheap, clean and effective way to attract birds to your garden is to install a moving water feature. Place a floating solar-powered water pump in the middle of your birdbath, surrounded by small rocks to keep it in place and to act as perches. Alternatively, if you want to DIY it, you can make your own "spring" out of a large plastic bucket with a lid (eg paint bucket) and a small solar-powered pump. Paint or decorate it to your taste, punch holes in the lid for the tubing and drainage back into the bucket, and place small rocks or stones on the lid to give it a more natural feel. The moving water ensures that it is oxygenated and stays clean for longer than still water, and it attracts the bird's eye more readily. - Birding in Spain

Originally published on Redfin

Proven Winners’ Idea Book is 41-pages of gardening inspiration

Budget friendly booklet is ideal for beginners

They say few things in life are free. Don’t tell that to Proven Winners.

The company that prides itself on creating some of the most outstanding hybrid plants and shrubs available have produced their 2021 Gardener’s Idea Book and it’s FREE.

For beginner gardeners on a budget, nothing gets better than that.

The idea book is a treasure trove of garden ideas that range from tips on creating “hot, sunny gardens” to containers aimed at attracting pollinators, and everything in between. The impressive 41-page oversized glossy booklet is full of impressive colour photographs that perfectly illustrate outstanding examples of Proven Winners’ plants and shrubs in real landscapes. The Idea Book is an inspirational journey through professionally designed gardens that is perfect for beginners and veteran gardeners.

Beginner gardeners will appreciate the many designs that are drawn out using a numbered planting scheme, matching the flowers with their placement in containers and in the landscape.

Although the 2021 book and download is exceptional, the experts at Proven Winners have recently released newer versions of their Gardener’s Idea Book.

• Be sure to check out the 2023 Proven Winner’s Gardeners’ Idea Book here.

• You can check out the 2022 version of the Gardener’s Idea Book here – 2022 Gardener’s Idea Book.

The book is more or less an extension of the company’s impressive and informative website you can visit at here.

You should be able to order the printed booklet from their site here.

Looking for more money-saving tips? Check out my in-depth article on building a garden on a budget.

The book starts with an introduction of PW’s annual of the year – Supertunia mini vista Pink Star Petunia described as a starry eyed Supertunia in pink and white.

The Gardener’s Idea Book from Proven Winners is a great resource for gardeners looking to add a punch of colour to their gardens either through containers or in garden beds.

Also in the spot light is their choice for Caladium of the year – an impressive white Caladium with a pink eye and green edge to the leaf aptly named “White Wonder.”

Both are impressive plants that are more than capable of standing alone in a container and still stealing the show. That trait can certainly simplify your container planting.

A feature in the booklet every gardener will appreciate is the series of seven different container plantings all featuring the annual of the year supertunia Pink Star and caladium Heart to Heart White Wonder.

An example of the attention and level of detail Proven Winners has gone to help gardeners create striking containers using their plants.

Container plantings simplified

The series of container plantings feature all the thrills, spills and fills you need to create outstanding containers for just about any part of your garden. The illustrated planting schemes makes finding the plants at your local nursery the most difficult part of recreating the colourful containers.

Not only have Proven Winners provided excellent photographs showing the details of each container planting, they also provide readers with examples of the containers in the landscape.

The booklet then takes a few pages to feature many of their other “plants of the year,” including a sweet little perennial Nepata named Cat’s Pajamas. PW describes it as a “little catmint that packs enormous flower power into a single square foot, blooming for months while delighting passing pollinators.”

There’s a variegated hosta with a nice ruffled edge, a compact, purple Buddleia said to be a “huge draw for monarch and viceroy butterflies.”

And to round out this year’s award winners is a hydrangea, a rose and a shrub.

Part of the appeal of the booklet is PW’s use of well-known garden designers to highlight their many offerings.

Youtuber Laura from Garden Answer is just one of several celebrity gardeners PW uses to promote their outstanding products.

Well-known gardeners lend a hand

Those who are like me and spend too much time on YouTube following their favourite gardeners are likely familiar with Laura of Garden Answer who is, as expected, featured in the first few pages of the booklet.

Laura is a popular Youtube gardening star who is a walking, talking advertisement for Proven Winners with her outstanding gardens that allow viewers to see PW’s many offerings in a garden setting.

Also featured in the booklet is The Garden Guy Norman Winter’s garden design of heat tolerant plants with a focus on a trio of heat tolerant, container plantings with an eye on pollinators. Plants used by the syndicated columnist include a Pink Gomphrena, Lantana, Salvia among others.

Other pages focus on Proven Winners’ plants with stylish foliage, and a real winner for gardeners looking to install a new border. The 10’ X 6’ scalable border, complete with a detailed planting list and roadmap, is scaleable depending on the size of the border.

Gardeners with sunny front yards will especially like the cheery design offered in the booklet along with the sampling of container plants for the front porch.

I particularly liked the spread on the “four season front entrance” feature that pictured four different front landing designs based on seasonal interest. That’s particularly helpful for so many of us struggling to keep the front of our homes looking their best at all times of the year.

There’s more, much more you will want to check out in Proven Winners latest gem.

And did I tell you it’s free.

If you can’t wait for it in the mail, it’s downloadable by going here. And, once you land on this page, you will notice that there are many other Proven Winner PDF documents that are just as well done as the latest little gem for you to download. If you would prefer to just view it online you can go here

And they are all free. But take my advice, order the printed version of this year’s Idea Book from Proven Winners. You won’t be disappointed.

Gardening on a budget links

DIY moss garden

Proven Winners Idea Book

Ten money-saving tips for the weekend gardener

Window boxes on a budget

DIY Bark Butter feeder for Woodpeckers

DIY reflection pond for photography

Click & Grow is ideal for Native Plants from seed

Nature’s DIY garden art

DIY solar drip for bird bath

Remove your turf and save money

DIY succulent planter

Hiring students to get your garden in shape

As an affiliate marketer with Amazon or other marketing companies, I earn money from qualifying purchases.

Serviceberry: Ideal choice for attracting birds

A beautiful multi-stem serviceberry in full bloom in early May. The lovely white flowers will be replace by juicy dark fruits that wildlife, especially berry-eating birds and chipmunks.

A magnet for Robins, Orioles and Cardinals

Looking for the perfect small native tree for your yard? Look no further than the Serviceberry tree.

In my garden these understory trees are a staple, together with dogwoods. My first was a single stem small tree that I planted in the front of the house close to 20 years ago. Since then I have planted several in the backyard, including multi-stem versions and a hybrid columnar form.

Amelanchier species can be grown as an understory tree or in shrub form and is hardy from zones 4 -9. Its delicate white sprays of flowers cover the trees in early spring (usually the first week of May where I live) and soon give way to massive amounts of juicy deep red/purple pome berries in June that are magnets to a host of birds, squirrels and chipmunks.

For my article on why native plants, shrubs and trees are important, go here.

Also known as juneberries, shad-blow, shadbush and Saskatoon berries, Amelanchier Canadensis is a member of the rose family. Both A. Canadensis and A. arborea are native to eastern North America ranging from Newfoundland west to southern Ontario and in the United States from Maine to the Carolinas.

Most of the trees and shrubs stay compact from about 6 feet in shrub form to about 25 feet tall in tree form, and are among the first to bloom in the spring woodlands providing important nectar and food sources for early emerging insects and pollinators including many native bees.

In the United States, the common serviceberry tree which is native to to the midwestern and eastern U.S. can grow to an impressive 40 feet tall in moist soil. It is a a wildlife favourite with more than 40 species of birds consuming the fruit including the cedar waxwing, eastern towhee and Baltimore oriole.

An example of a lovely serviceberry blooming in a commercial setting. The serviceberry never gets too big and puts on a beautiful show in early spring followed by juicy, eatable fruit in summer that is a magnet for birds and other wildlife.

5 reasons to plant a serviceberry

• They are tough, adaptable small trees or shrubs that do well in most conditions

• Their spring flowers are among the earliest making them important native plants for early pollinators, including native bees

• Their fruit attracts a range of birds including robins, cardinals and orioles.

• They are native to Canada and the United States and an important addition to any woodland wildlife garden

• They are a host plant to butterflies and a food source for mammals

Poster created by Justin Lewis. Best viewed on tablet or desktop.

The spring bloom of the amelanchier is followed by the multitude of berries (similar to blueberries in size and flavour but sweeter) just in time to feed young birds that have fledged the nest and are looking for a good meal. Robins are often among the first to find the berries followed by orioles, thrushes, woodpeckers and cedar waxwings just to name a few.

Don’t be surprised if robins and cardinals decide to nest in the thick branches of the serviceberry.

Serviceberries trees are also important plants of the larvae of some of our favourite butterflies including tiger butterflies, viceroys and admirals.

Serviceberry flowers in full bloom from our 20-year-old tree in our front yard lights up the landscape for a few weeks in early May. The abundance of flowers will soon become berries to feed birds and other fauna.

If you garden in more remote areas, you can expect moose, deer, and other animals to browse on the leaves and twigs of the plant. The berries are also a favourite of chipmunks, squirrels and even the wily fox.

In Canada alone there are 24 species of Amelanchier that includes some varieties and some hybrids that are common in the wild. In fact Canada is a hot spot for Amelanchier diversity, potentially sporting the greatest variety in the world. Canada’s east coast boasts several including some that are quite rare (A. gaspensis and A nantuckitensis) and do not grow wild in Ontario.

The flowers of our Serviceberry in early spring. Notice that the flowers have emerged before the leaves are fully out.

The U.S. also has a few more species that are not in Ontario. All of the species share similar attributes including white flowers, gray bark and red/purple berries.

Most of these species are not grown in nurseries. In fact, most of the serviceberries seen at garden centres focus on four species – A. canadensis, A. alnifolia, A laevis and A. grandiflora.

Autumn Brilliance, a very popular nursery-grown hybrid serviceberry, is from the grandiflora species.

The many forms of wild serviceberry (Amelanchier) help illustrate their importance to native wildlife. Each flower has five long bright white petals. The flowers that bloom anywhere from March to June, depending on the species, usually grow in clusters at the end of new growth.

In Canada alone there are several forms from Amelanchier alnifolia that is native to parts of Ontario, British Columbia, Yukon and North West Territories. It grows up to three metres and can form large thickets. The flowers often precede the leaves and the fruit of this Saskatoonberry or western serviceberry is said to be the sweetest and juiciest of all the Canadian Amelanchiers.

A serviceberry in full bloom is the perfect understory tree in a woodland wildlife garden.

Amelancheir Arborea, (Link to Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower centre) also known as the Downy serviceberry or juneberry or common serviceberry is native to southern Ontario and southern Quebec where it is easily identified in spring bloom growing along forest edges and clearings often in dry soil, rocky or sandy areas. Downies grow most often as a small tree with leaves that are tapered to a point and are hairy when they are opening – which is where they pick up the name Downy.

A shrub form of the serviceberry shows off its incredible blooms that will later become a profusion of delicious berries that birds flock will likely get before you do.

Amelanchier laevis (Link to Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower centre) or often called smooth serviceberry or allegheny serviceberry are native to Western Ontario through to Newfoundland and are found in moist woodlands, clearing and roadsides.

Amelanchier stolonifera (Link to Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower centre) is a suckering shrub that grows to only about two metres tall and spreads to form thickets. It is found in the wild along sandy and rocky areas in dry woodlands, along cliffs and dunes.

Serviceberries are not picky about soil conditions and do well in sun or part-shade conditions. In the wild it is most often found growing in wet areas but, some species can be found growing in harsh areas along granite and limestone cliffs.

If all of these highlights still has not go you convinced that a serviceberry is a must for your woodland garden, consider that its fall colours are spectacular with blazing foliage in reds oranges and yellows.

Serviceberries in our garden

In our garden we are blessed with both the tree form and a small shrub that I was lucky enough to score at our annual local horticultural society sale. I planted that a few years ago, and just this year it is really putting on a nice show in the woodland garden.

Our tree form is more than 20 years old and has matured into a beautiful specimen that puts on a magnificent show every year during the first week of May. It throws the perfect light shade on the wildflower garden below and coexists nicely with a Japanese maple. Both trees have begun to merge branches forming a lovely open canopy over the native plants below, including solomon’s seal, columbine, bloodroot, wild geranium and foamflower, and non-natives that include epimedium.

Propagating from cuttings and seed

Serviceberries are easily propagated and can be rooted from early spring hardwood cutting or softwood cuttings taken during the summer months. If you want to plant them from seeds, you are going to have to collect some berries when they begin ripening and turning red to purple. Give the seeds a quick cleaning and plant them in the fall. If you plan to grow them in trays, you will have to stratify the seeds and store them in the fridge for at least three months.

More links to my articles on native plants

Why picking native wildflowers is wrong

The Mayapple: Native plant worth exploring

Three spring native wildflowers for the garden

A western source for native plants

Native plants source in Ontario

The Eastern columbine native plant for spring

Three native understory trees for Carolinian zone gardeners

Ecological gardening and native plants

Eastern White Pine is for the birds

Native viburnums are ideal to attract birds

The perfect Redbud

The Carolinian Zone in Canada and the United States

Dogwoods for the woodland wildlife garden

Bringing Nature Home by Douglas Tellamy

A little Love for the Black-Eyed Susan

Native moss in our gardens

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The Mayapple: Carolinian zone woodland native wildflower

Tips for growing Mayapple in the woodland garden

Inspiration in the garden comes from many sources.

Gardens around our neighbourhood are often a good starting point. So too are our favourite gardeners on social media like Instagram and Youtube. The gardeners I follow are a constant source of new ideas and inspiration.

But for woodland gardeners the best source of inspiration is undoubtedly a local woodlot full of native plants trees and shrubs. (For article on the importance of native plants in the garden go here.

My woodland Mayapple inspiration can be traced back 20, maybe 30 years when, as a nature photographer, I roamed the woods in southern Ontario photographing wildflowers and anything else I could focus on.

That’s where I first encountered the Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum).

This lovely swath of Mayapple grows wild near our home. When I stumbled upon it in the early spring it inspired me to consider growing large swaths of the ephemeral, underutilized native wildflower in our woodland garden.

Mayapple is one of the first Carolinian zone wildlflowers to emerge in the spring in the woodlands of southern Ontario and the northeastern United States, so it became a magnet for many of us photographers just looking for something, anything, to focus on in the early spring woodlands.

So, you can imagine that it didn’t take long for me to start growing a clump in my yard. Turns out it was so successful that I was able to spread it around where it continues to thrive in swaths throughout the garden.

The Mayapple is actually in the Barberry family and grows naturally everywhere in the eastern half of the United States stretching as far north as Quebec and south to Florida and Texas.

You’ll find Mayapple most often growing in moist, open woods and often growing on the edges of boggy meadows in zones 3 to 8. Although it enjoys moist woodlands, it does well in dry woodlands where, once colonized, can tolerate some drought.

These handsome plants are not just lookers, they are a larval host plant for the golden borer moth and the Mayapple borer.

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Large colonies of Mayapple can be found growing from a single underground rhizoid stem where the central stalk of the plant emerges wrapped in either a single tightly furled leaf or a pair or more of leaves that slowly unfurl revealing mature specimens stretching 14 to 18 inches (30-40 cm) in height and blanketing large patches of ground completely shading the forest floor. The single leaf stems do not produce a flower or fruit, while the stems with two or more leaves produce 1-8 flowers in the axil between the leaves. The umbrella-like leaves can spread out 20-40 cm in diameter with 3-9 shallow to deeply cut lobes.

Any other plant with deeply-cut leaves like the Mayapple would be a superstar in most gardens but our native Mayapple suffers from a lack of notoriety in most traditional gardens.

Its beauty is certainly subtle.

Image shows the flower of the Mayapple taken in late May.

Unlike the trillium that shines on the forest floor and lets all of us know when it’s in bloom, the Mayapple goes to great lengths to disguise its flower and the resulting fruit (a small golden apple-like fruit), even creating an umbrella to hide its large white flower from peering eyes.

Much like a hosta in a traditional garden, the Mayapple is mostly a quiet groundcover in the woodland garden. In fact, if you don’t get down on your hands and knees and peek under the large umbrella-like leaf, you may never even know that the plant is sporting a flower in the early spring and yellow fruit in the summer through fall.

Where to plant Mayapple in our garden

But that’s okay. We all need a little quiet in the garden and that’s where the Mayapple really shines.

As I write this in late April, my woodland garden is quite bare. But the Mayapple have already poked their heads out of the soil and are unfurling their large leaves to create a lush sea of green that continues to spreads each year throughout our woodland.

Anywhere in the garden where you have open shade or dappled sun and are looking for a natural groundcover is a good spot to consider planting Mayapple. Although it is considered a spring ephemeral and will go dormant in the summer, its spent leaves, stem and fruit are on display for a good part of the year.

Like many spring ephemerals, Mayapples like moist, humusy well-drained, slightly acidy to neutral soil.

The fruit ripens by late June into July and provides a food source for the fauna in our garden.

“Growing a natural habitat garden is also one of the most important things each of us can do to help restore a little order to a disordered world.”

— Ken Druse

Also known as Mandrake or the ground lemon, it’s important to note that the Mayapple is a toxic plant. The fruit, even the seeds of the fruit can be toxic. As the fruit ripens it becomes less toxic but unless you do your homework on this plant, it is best to grow it for the fauna in the garden rather than consider it edible in any way.

Chances are the neighbourhood raccoons and squirrels will get to the pungent odor of the ripened fruit long before you do anyway. The fruit ripens by late August and is a real treat for the deer and chipmunks in our garden who know precisely when it is safe to eat.

If you have not yet tried Mayapple in your woodland garden, consider growing a few plants in a quiet, shady corner of your garden. It won’t take long before you appreciate this seldom used plant for its early spring carpet of green, and interesting large leaves that will ring in your spring woodland garden.

Don’t be surprised if it makes itself at home and forms a lovely spring carpet of green right at the time you are craving a little green growth in the garden.

More links to my articles on native plants

Why picking native wildflowers is wrong

Serviceberry the perfect native tree for the garden

The Mayapple: Native plant worth exploring

Three spring native wildflowers for the garden

A western source for native plants

Native plants source in Ontario

The Eastern columbine native plant for spring

Three native understory trees for Carolinian zone gardeners

Ecological gardening and native plants

Eastern White Pine is for the birds

Native viburnums are ideal to attract birds

The perfect Redbud

The Carolinian Zone in Canada and the United States

Dogwoods for the woodland wildlife garden

Bringing Nature Home by Douglas Tellamy

A little Love for the Black-Eyed Susan

As an affiliate marketer with Amazon or other marketing companies, I earn money from qualifying purchases.

Great woodland wildlife garden gift ideas

Birder gifts are both functional and serve as garden art accessories

Birders are an easy lot to satisfy. Give them a pair of binoculars, a comfortable chair near a bird feeder and maybe a glass of wine or a coffee and most of us are good for the day.

That doesn’t mean we don’t appreciate the finer things in life, it’s just that these finer things usually revolve around birds – birdwatching, birdfeeding … maybe a good bird guide.

So, shopping for the birder in your life (or maybe even yourself) usually involves heading out to the local birding store.

Since birding is now mainstream, there are exceptional high-end bird items available in many specialty home stores that might not be the first place you think of shopping at when it comes to gifts for the backyard bird enthusiasts. If you are out shopping for bird enthusiasts or even just gardeners, think copper bird baths, bird houses and other forms of garden art.

One of my favourite on-line retailers is Gardener’s Supply Company. It’s based in Maine Vermont but its on-line site offers delivery in the United States and Canada (depending on the products). If in doubt, check with the on-line store first to ensure they will deliver the products you want.

Also, check out places like Etsy and other online shopping venues where you can easily focus in on local artisans for outstanding, homemade bird feeding and bird watching ideas.

Another favourite is Viva Terra. It’s not hard to spend a lot of time going through Viva Terra’s web site just to get ideas and admire all they have to offer, whether it is for the birds in your woodland wildlife garden or simply for the home.

Their outdoor patio and garden products are as beautiful and sophisticated as their indoor offerings.

The Ceramic Ring Bird Feeder would be a welcome addition to any woodland garden.

Viva Terra, brings together exquisite products that meld rustic design with exquisite style. Its focus is not on birds but it does have some beautiful and useful gifts for birders. The on-line store’s home products will also appeal to Ferns & Feathers readers looking to bring their woodland experience indoors.

Here are just a few of the exceptional gift ideas for bird lovers from Viva Terra. They make the perfect Mother’s Day gift for mom’s who like the finer things in life.

Ceramic Ring Bird Feeder – Blue Terrazzo: Bringing together art and utility in the form of an elegant ceramic bird feeder that you’ll want to hang from a tree branch as close to your favourite sitting area as possible. This artisan, hand-built ceramic clay bird feeder protects the birdseed from inclement weather, while allowing birds to feed from two open sides. The removable lid makes it easy to clean and refill with seed and the 4-inch cord and hook makes it easy to find the perfect branch or garden hook to hang it from.

Solid copper birdbath with twig metal stake: It’s hard not to love the sophistication of a copper bird bath aging gracefully in the woodland garden.

Not only is it a beautiful piece of garden art, the antimicrobial qualities of copper will help keep the water clean and clear for your backyard feathered friends. Last year I managed to track down several copper bird baths on Kijiji and grabbed them immediately. Copper in the garden is just too perfect not to buy it when you can.

The copper basin’s 1.5-inch depth is perfect for small birds to bathe safely and comfortably, while the rim offers perching spots for larger birds. The tall stand, with its bark-inspired tree branch design, forms a solid foundation to give the bird bath stability in the landscape, while the copper and steel construction offers durability.

This Chalet-style bird house (Main picture for this post) with copper roof is the perfect complement to the copper bird bath pictured above. The bird house, with its 1.24-inch entry, is designed for smaller backyard birds such as nuthatches, titmice and wrens. Featuring a verdigras, pure copper shingled roof and entry-guard, the perchless entry helps protect inhabitants from predators. A 3-inch hole on the back with sliding copper door simplifies spring clean-up, drainage holes and air vents keep the interior cool and dry.

The combination of beauty and elegance combined with solid construction and high quality material gives this birdhouse a timeless sophistication that will age beautifully in your woodland garden.

Wind & Weather and Plow & Hearth offer a variety of choices

Another favourite on-line garden and outdoor store is Wind & Weather and its sister store Plow and Hearth.

If you are looking for something really special for the garden, this Tree of Life Arbour, for example, will fit in perfectly in any woodland garden. The arbour’s solid construction and attention to detail makes it both an elegant addition to the garden, and sturdy enough to handle large, vigorous vines and climbing roses.

The Tree of Life arbor is an impressive, well made arbor that fits peerfectly into a woodland garden.

If birds are more your thing, there is another similar model that features hummingbirds rather than the tree motif.

Both arbours are almost too beautiful to run vines and roses over. As stand-alone features at key openings in the garden, the arbours really can create a warm welcome for visitors or focus points in the garden.

Wind and Weather’s statuary is another feature of the site. There are too many to list here but check out the site if you are looking for well-priced statuary to add to your garden.

One of the features my wife and I enjoy most in our garden is a life-sized rusty buck that we tuck in among the ostrich ferns when they rise up in the spring.

Our male deer brings a big smile to my face every time I come into the yard and catch a glimpse of the buck peering out over the ferns,.

Our favourite piece of garden art, however, doesn’t compare to this deer family collection. (see image below)

These fiberglass, near life-size deer statuary in a bronze finish depicts an entire family, including adult male and female deer and fawns. The good thing is that these remarkably detailed sculptures won’t treat your garden like their personal buffet.
All the statues are filled with striking detail, making them remarkably lifelike. From the defined musculature and realistic fur texture to their expressive faces, all the details work together to create truly impressive art for your outdoor spaces.

These bronze-like deer statuary are the perfect addition to any woodland garden.

I’ve always admired Maine ceramic artist Tyson M. Weiss’s outstanding Fish in the Garden sculptures and dreamed of having a school of his fish swimming up through our garden ferns or large swaths of ornamental grass. Plow and Hearth has its own, less expensive version of Fish in the Garden. Consider adding a little whimsy with these trio swimming up through your favourite ornamental grasses. They are so well priced that a small school of them are well within most gardener’s price range.

Indoor plants in the spotlight

The incredible growth in the past year of indoor plants gives me great pleasure. I do believe that part of the emergence of indoor plants is the result of more than a year of having to stay indoors for the most part during this pandemic.

Although we are slowly emerging from the stay-at-home lifestyle, I truly believe that the fascination with indoor plants will continue to grow. I see it with my own daughter who lives in a condo in downtown Toronto and has discovered the joy of indoor plants.

I recently gifted her one of my seed-grown, pink and green polka dot plants from our Click and Grow system (my earlier article on Click and Grow) that she just loves.

The Click and Grow system (link to company website) is in heavy use these days at our home growing plants for our front window boxes. It’s a great system that has performed admirably over the past several years.

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Is battery power better than gas in the garden?

Battery-powered lawn mower makes grass cutting a joy

I figured it was time to give nature and my neighbours a break from the noise and fumes that have dominated our neighbourhood for too many years. I only wish more of them would do the same for me.

The time has come to replace gas-powered garden tools with the more eco-friendly battery-powered models. I have been purchasing battery-powered garden equipment for a number of years now and could not be happier with the results.

Battery power is the way to go. Get rid of the gas lawn mower, leaf blower and even the chainsaw and adopt the more eco-friendly and neighbourly battery-powered equivalents. For those looking to cut costs, The battery option will even prove more budget friendly for average gardeners over the long term. It will certainly make the tasks more enjoyable.

The sound of chainsaws hacking away at neighbourhood trees has always made me uncomfortable. Despite that, one of my most recent purchases is one of the new battery-powered chainsaws and I love it.

But it’s a chainsaw my neighbours have probably never heard, and, unless they are standing beside me watching me trim dead branches, they probably never will.

They certainly won’t be forced into their homes just to escape the noise of the chainsaw like so many of us are forced into when neighbours fire up their gas-powered machines.

The new battery-powered chainsaw barely disturbs the silence of the neighbourhood.

If you have decided to buy a chainsaw for garden chores, do yourself, your neighbours and most importantly the environment a favour and consider one of the newer battery-powered, eco-friendly models. They have more power than you will likely ever need, startup is a mere click of a button and they are quiet and environmental friendly.

My Ryobi battery-powered chainsaw cut through this large branch in seconds.

The days of the gas-powered behemoths are long gone. Not only are they loud and obnoxious, their two-stroke engines kick out more pollution than most of today’s cars.

For more suggestions and some of my favourite garden things, be sure to check out my Favourite Things post.

If you have not checked out the latest battery-powered garden tools you owe it to yourself (and your neighbours) to give them a chance. Over the past few years, I have said goodbye to every gas-powered garden tool in the shed and replaced them with battery-powered models.

And I have never looked back.

Tucked away in the basement is a charging station for the batteries and I have to say I feel a lot better about a charging station in the basement than I do about a couple tanks of gas in my shed.

The new electric tools have never let me down and I’m sure the neighbours appreciate them almost as much as I do. In fact, my immediate neighbour has joined me in the conversion from gas- to battery-powered garden equipment.

I think I sold him on it when I said I could cut my grass at 5 a.m. and the mower is so quiet that not a single neighbour would know I was cutting the grass. (Not that I would ever do that.) He asked to borrow my Ryobi battery-powered mower to cut his grass and then immediately went out and purchased one of his own. And, unlike me, he is very particular about his tools and his lawn.

The basement battery charging station (a small Ikea work desk) for our growing number of battery-powered garden tools.

Battery-powered lawn mower convinced me to go gasless

My first battery-powered purchase was a lawnmower. After years of battling with gas lawnmowers that required mixing oil and gas every time I wanted to cut the grass, or ones that wouldn’t start after a winter of storage, I began researching the pros and cons of battery-powered machines.

It didn’t take long to realize the benefits of battery-powered mowers.

• They are quieter than traditional mowers

• Better for the environment

• They are extremely light, easy to manipulate

• No gasoline to store in the shed

• No sparkplugs to change

• No fuel filters to change regularly

• Much cheaper to operate over the long term

There are a few drawbacks to battery-operated models

• Batteries may have to be replaced over the years, although I have used ours for four years without a problem.

• In high, damp grass the mower can bog down and throw a circuit switch which shuts it down. A simple click of a button puts it back into production, much like flipping the circuit breaker in your home.

Depending on the brand of mower you purchase, you can expect about 10 years of service out of it and about five years life on the removable batteries. The average battery should give you about one hour’s worth of power or enough juice to cut half an acre of grass.

Ryobi, STIHL offer complete lines of battery-powered tools

We purchased a battery-powered Ryobi model that has worked flawlessly. It came with two rechargeable batteries that have always been enough to cut the turf on our half-acre lot. Since we removed most of the grass on the property, a single battery is more than enough to get the job done.

Ryobi is just one of many respected companies that are offering entire lines of battery-operated garden products. Many of the tools conveniently share the same batteries.

In the Ryobi line, for example, they offer a hedge trimmer, string trimmer, chain saw, pole saw, several mowers and a snow blower just to name a few.

My neighbour chose to go with the excellent-quality STIHL line of battery-operated cordless tools.

STIHL says their “36 V cordless machines combine innovative motor and battery technology with first-class mechanical engineering to produce a brushless, electronically controlled electric motor.” STIHL explains that their “motor is extremely energy efficient … and the power from the lithium-ion battery packs is optimized to achieve a high degree of efficiency and enhance the performance of the machine.

And, like many other systems, STIHL’s powerful lithium-ion battery pack is compatible with all their cordless machines.

The success of the lawnmower resulted in the purchase of a Ryobi grass trimmer and leaf blower that operate on the same battery.

I have never been a huge fan of noisey leaf blowers. Unfortunately, leaf blowers have earned their bad reputations from the lawn companies that come into neighbourhoods armed with massive machines, so large and loud that they are forced to carry them on their backs.

Battery-powered models are much quieter and, if we all started using them, peace might return to our subdivisions.

So, when I decided it was time to make the jump to a chainsaw, the Ryobi model was a natural choice.

The battery-powered chainsaw shares the same benefits that the battery-powered lawn mower enjoys: Push button start, quiet, environmentally friendly, no gas\oil mixing. (Did I say no rip chord to exhaust you before you even begin your task.)

Our battery-powered chainsaw has made many difficult jobs around the garden much easier. This week I used it to remove a massive branch from our Linden tree that was crowding out one of our Cornus Kousa dogwoods. It also made quick work of pruning some lower branches in a maple and tulip tree as well as some wild grape vines as thick as my arm.

The chainsaw, although not used that often, has easily proven its worth around the garden.

I also use it to create brush piles on the property. Everything that gets cut stays on the property to become habitat for birds, mammals and reptiles.

The chainsaw also comes in handy to cut branches to be used as suet feeders around the property.

Obviously any chainsaw can be dangerous so proper cutting techniques and precautions need to be followed.

Oh, I should add that the success of the lawn mower, chainsaw and other power tools resulted in our purchase of a battery-powered snow blower that may lack the power of today’s huge gas-powered blowers that come out once or twice a year, but it gets the job done and doesn’t wake the neighbours.

As an affiliate marketer with Amazon or other marketing companies, I earn money from qualifying purchases.