Welcoming birds to your yard isn’t about choosing the right feeders and bird food. If you want to attract the widest range of birds to your home, you need to plant a diversity of native plants. Why go green? Native plants live longer; they are drought resistant, take less water and fertilizer, they cost less, are less work and easier to maintain. And a big plus—they are good for the environment. In 2007, Douglas Tallamy published the groundbreaking book, Bringing Nature Home, on going native to protect wildlife. Since then Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, the National Wildlife Federation, and National Audubon have all endorsed and encouraged gardening with native plants. Planting Native to Attract Birds to Your Yard is the first book to cover planting native to specifically attract birds. The book recommends plants for all types of backyards, no matter how large or small—from large plots to container gardens. Sorenson gives state-specific recommendations for 31 Eastern U.S. states—including and east of Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, and Louisiana to the East Coast, and from the Canadian border to the Gulf Coast—for native plants that support birds during the four seasons. The book covers the full gamut of native plants—nearly 200 species of trees, shrubs, vines, grasses, and perennials—and gives details on why specific plants are bird friendly and how to choose plants that work successfully in attractive home landscapes. It also includes dramatic color photos of nearly 70 bird species. Birders, gardeners, and landscapers—all who love birds and beautiful gardens—will find this book a must.
ISBN-13: 9780811737647
Media Type: Paperback
Publisher: Stackpole Books
Publication Date: 08-01-2018
Pages: 232
Product Dimensions: 7.90(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.50(d)
Sharon Sorenson writes the biweekly "For the Birds" column for the Evansville (IN) Sunday Courier and Press and regularly teaches birding classes and presents workshops for groups including Master Gardeners, the Nature Conservancy, and various Audubon chapters. She is the author of Birds in the Yard Month by Month (Stackpole, 2013) as well as a number of student reference books, including How to Write Research Papers, How to Write Short Stories, and Webster's New World Student Writing Handbook. She lives in Mount Vernon, Indiana.
Table of Contents
Introduction iv
Chapter 1 Tallying a Year's Birds in the Yard 1
Chapter 2 Understanding Birds' Dependency on Native Plants 7
Chapter 3 Answering Questions about Natives 36
Chapter 4 Making Decisions about Adding Natives 52
Chapter 5 Choosing Native Trees 74
Chapter 6 Choosing Native Shrubs (and Vines) 107
Chapter 7 Choosing Native Perennials-Flowers and Grasses 145
Chapter 8 Adding Water 181
Chapter 9 Putting the Plan in Action 191
References 206
Acknowledgments 208
Index 211
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