Courtesy Meredith Seaver

I want to not just have a pretty garden but also create an oasis for native birds and insects. How can I encourage more birds and bees in my garden?

Let’s talk about the birds and the bees. Specifically, how to encourage them to make a home in your garden. Many of us would love to go outside and hear birdsong and bees buzzing, and what could be more charming than watching a brood of baby birds grow up in our own backyard? Birds, bees and other beneficial insects do more than add charm to our gardens, though. They’re part of nature’s pest management and pollination team and there’s a lot they can do to help your garden be healthy and productive, so invite the birds and bees into your landscape!

To encourage birds, beneficial insects, and other small wildlife to spend time in your yard — or even take up permanent residence — the key things to remember are consistency and variety.

Consistency means making sure that food, shelter and water are reliably available throughout the season and perhaps throughout the year. Plant your garden with trees, flowers and shrubs that will bloom and produce pollen, nectar, and fruit at different times throughout the season for beneficial insects and birds. Provide bird food in a feeder sporadically, and you will have sporadic avian visitors; provide consistent sources of food, and you may encourage nesting in your yard.

The other factor to keep in mind is variety. Some birds eat the tiny seeds of the Russian sage while other birds look for serviceberries. Growing a variety of foods will attract a variety of birds to your yard. Pollinating insects also have diverse dietary needs. For example, the Monarch butterfly, which comes through Utah as part of its multigenerational migration, relies exclusively on milkweed (Asclepias speciosa, among others). And while Butterfly bush (Buddleja davidii) is good for feeding butterflies, it doesn’t support their caterpillars. Include plants like Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia) and others that can support butterflies throughout their lives.

Courtesy Meredith Seaver

Consistency and variety are also important to consider when providing shelter to birds and bees. We tend to think of birds as nesting high up in trees, but many species like to nest in low shrubs or even on the ground. California quail appreciate some Red twig dogwood (Cornus sericea) to provide cover and low nesting sites. Plants with thorns, like pyracantha (Pyracantha fortuneana) can provide safety from predators and food at the same time. Evergreen trees and shrubs can provide sheltered nesting spots as well as winter shelter for year-round birds.

Insects also need homes in our yards. While cute bee hotels have become popular in recent years, they need careful upkeep to prevent the spread of disease, bullying flies (Cacoxenus indigator) and dangerous mites. Avoid insect hotels that you can’t take apart to clean and maintain at the end of the summer and bring them inside for the winter to keep them dry. You may end up doing more harm than good if you do not take good care of your insect hotel. You can also create a good home for native pollinators by making a corner of your yard a little more meadowy and wild.

Remember that the insecticides that kill harmful pests will also kill beneficial insects. The less you use insecticides, the more likely you are to have fewer pest problems because you’ll have all your birds, bees, and other beneficials working in your yard for you.

Finally, create a full-service backyard by offering water. Birdbaths are a common feature in gardens, but consider designs that allow greater variety and consistency. Bees need very shallow water sources, so consider adding some rocks in a birdbath to create “wading” spaces or “rafts” out of corks. And while many gardeners remember to fill a birdbath in the summer, it’s best for the birds to also provide fresh water in the winter. If you don’t fancy breaking the ice and refilling a birdbath in the coldest months there are many choices for heated birdbaths that plug in to keep the water from freezing.

If providing this amount of variety and consistency in your backyard feels overwhelming, remember that birds and bees don’t see property lines the way we do! Coordinate with neighbors and fill in gaps that might be missing in your neighborhood. Sometimes it takes a village to create a home for birds and bees.

Courtesy Meredith Seaver

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