The Best Bird Feeders Are Native Plants. Here’s Why.

A goldfinch feeds on the seeds of a coneflower (Echinacea purpurea.) Photo by Michael Murphy from unsplash.com

By Robert Carter reporting for Native Plant News

My neighbors probably think I am eccentric, or they may call me the neighborhood nut. I am the one that collects leaves off the side of the road in the fall to put in my yard. The leaves will be mulch for the summer, a nesting site for fireflies, and will kill my nonnative grasses if I pile the leaves thick enough. After the grass is dead, I can plant native plants. I often buy native seed mixes from a distributor. This is not a cheap option, but it is so worth it to see all the birds, pollinators, and other wildlife that flock to my yard. The animals seem to enjoy the native plants as much as I do. My goal is to one day do less grass cutting and more flower and bird watching. In the words of author John Lane, director of Wofford College Goodall Environmental Studies Center, I want my yard to be a little more “snaky.”  Not that there are more snakes, but people think there are more snakes. There actually are more pollinators, dragonflies, birds, and rabbits. Having a yard dominated by native plants is like an episode of National Geographic every day.

Bird watching and feeding birds is a great pastime and way to appreciate nature. Appreciation is the first step towards conservation. However, birds cannot live by seed and suet alone. We just cannot provide what a bird needs by going to the feed store. Birds need habitat which includes food, water, shelter, and space. By planting a variety of native trees, shrubs, herbs, and grasses and diversifying the structure of the plantscape, you can attract a wide variety of birds and other wildlife. Your yard could be transformed into a bird grocery store and apartment building. Native plants provide a place for birds to hide, places for nesting, materials for nesting, and food in the form of insects, spiders, nectar, sap, flowers (catkins) fruit, and seeds. If possible, try to provide an overstory (larger trees), midstory (small trees and tall shrubs), shrubs, forbs, and grasses. 

Trees and shrubs provide a place for birds to nest, but they also provide food in the form of fruit, seeds, sap, nectar, and insects. The insects are primarily in the form of larvae which all growing songbird chicks need to quickly form muscles. Many of the strictly insectivorous birds, such as Acadian Flycatchers, are neotropical migrants and spend the winter to the South, mainly in Mexico and Central and South America. They migrate to the US and Canada in the spring to take advantage of the abundant insect life provided by the native plants. Native oaks and cherries support the larval (caterpillar) stage of large numbers of insects. They are the meat department of your backyard grocery store. For seed and fruit trees, you can plant Black Cherry, Eastern Red Cedar, maples, and Blackgum. 

Then there are smaller trees like flowering dogwood and serviceberry that are visually pleasing in the spring and fall but also provide soft mast (fruit). Choices for shrubs include beautyberry, hollies, viburnums, bayberry, and blueberries. They provide insects and fruit with some of the fruit lasting into the winter.

The forb layer has many potential choices. Coneflowers, sunflowers, and Black-eyed Susan are beautiful summer flowers but also provide seeds into the fall and winter. American Goldfinch will sit on the flower and pick out the seeds.

American Goldfinch dines on Brown-eyed Susan flowers. Photo by Joseph Gage from flickr.com

Some forb-layer plants such as bee balms and Cardinal Flower provide nectar for hummingbirds. Indiangrass and Switchgrass provide seeds and nesting material, while native vines such as Coral Honeysuckle, Cross-vine, and Yellow Passionflower provide insects, nectar, and fruit for birds. There are so many choices; I hope you have a large yard! Every native plant corner helps.

Dark-eyed Junco is one of the most widespread and common of the breeding birds of the forested areas in the mountains, from middle elevations to the tops of the highest peaks. It feeds heavily on seeds of weeds and grasses, especially in winter, and also eats some berries. Its young are fed mostly insects. Photo from Ken Thomas, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
White-breasted Nuthatch forages for insects on the bark of trees. Photo from Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Ruby-crowned Kinglets can be found throughout North Carolina in the winter, but they are less common in the northern mountains. They prefer evergreen cover like pine or mixed forests, coastal broadleaf evergreen forests, and thickets, but they can also be found in deciduous forests with an evergreen understory or shrub zone. Photo by Andy Reago and Chrissy McClarren from flickr.com

Why plan for all seasons?

It is important to plan for all the seasons so birds can dine in your yard year-round. The early flowering spring plants provide a burst of larvae and nectar as birds arrive from Central and South America. At the same time, birds that winter in the Carolinas, such as kinglets and waxwings, are fueling up for the return flight to more northern latitudes.

Use scientific names to buy plants

Fortunately, any native plant will provide the needs for some birds. When buying native plants, it is important to ask by scientific name. If you visit a nursery, you may end up with a nonnative plant unless you use scientific names.

Plan your own bird paradise

The links below will connect you to useful information for planning your own bird paradise.


Robert Carter grew up exploring the Piedmont of South Carolina. He attended Clemson University (BS, MS) and Auburn University (PhD) to obtain degrees in forestry. His graduate research involved identifying landscape ecosystems using plants, soils, and landform in the mountains of North Carolina and the longleaf pine ecosystems of lower Alabama. After a career in academia, he moved back to South Carolina where he is the Outdoor Education Specialist with the Catawba Indian Nation.

Native Plant News – Fall 2024