The Holistic Gardening Series: Getting Back To Nature: Backyard Habitats

It starts out in little ways. First you start to plant a few flowers because they make the place look nice. Then you plant a few trees or a few shrubs. One day you are out puttering around in the yard, checking things out, and you notice a hummingbird zooming in to check out the flowers on the weigela or you notice butterflies landing on the purple coneflowers.

As you really start to get into gardening, you begin to notice all the wildlife, great and small, starting to hang out at your place. Yes, there are the creepy-crawlies and all the marauding critters, but there are the birds, the butterflies, and even the bees. Gradually, you start getting in tune with the environment.

It doesn't matter if your part of the planet is a small urban plot, a place out in the 'burbs, or a huge spread somewhere out in God's country. Once you really get into gardening, you will start to develop an awareness about the living organisms around you. Eventually the thought crosses your mind to add a birdfeeder. Without realizing it, you have entered into the realm of having a backyard habitat.

Your property does not have to look wild and unsightly to qualify as a backyard habitat. By adding "wildlife-friendly" plantings and related elements, anyone can help support different species of insects and animals.

Start by adding variety and diversity. Many of the creatures we want to attract require adequate resources to be initially attracted to an area. By providing host plants, shelter and protection, the increase in wildlife will be almost instantly noticeable. As word gets around, more and more of your non-human friends will begin to visit your digs.

If your place is relatively new or you are on a tight budget, (and who isn't these days?), simply add an all-purpose birdfeeder, a hummingbird feeder, and a birdbath. This alone might not be enough to qualify your place as an official backyard habitat, but it will certainly benefit the birds and you. You will be able to observe the winged ones as they visit your place. You will also benefit from the activities of the various species of birds that not only browse on seeds, berries, and other vegetation, but also provide a valuable service by consuming insect pests. As your pocketbook and your interest expand, add user-friendly features to your landscape, such as evergreens, deciduous trees and bushes to provide nesting and shelter sites for many birds. In the Winter, the presence of an evergreen such as a Norway Spruce or White Pine serves as protection against the elements for over wintering birds.

Some good plants to add to your property include fruit trees, shade and ornamental trees. Selected ornamentals that provide fruit and nectar such as viburnums, sand cherries and honeysuckle vines, weigela and elderberries are also good choices. Not only will many of these plants attract birds, but many also attract predatory and pollinating insects and ornamental insects, such as butterflies.

A simple small pond in the yard will attract birds, dragonflies, and small amphibians such as frogs. A broken piece of pottery, turned over and tucked in the shady, moist areas of your garden, will shelter toads. All of these animals and insects are predators of many insect pests.

Consider leaving the flower stalks of various plants such as coreopsis and coneflower on to winter over. These seed heads provide food for various species of birds. Grow sunflowers and let the birds dine on the seeds.

If you want to have your cake and eat it too, add a hybrid mulberry tree out in the back of your property to keep the robins and other birds from dining exclusively on your cherries and strawberries. It seems that birds prefer the fruit of mulberry to cherries, etc. While it will not totally keep them from your desirable plants, they will tend to go after the mulberries first. Do grow mulberries away from seating areas and places of high traffic, however. If you are not crazy about mulberry trees and want to keep the crops for yourself, grow the dwarf varieties of fruit trees and add netting over them as the fruit begins to show color.

Now, you will realize that you will be getting some creepy-crawlies, but not all of them are bad. Praying Mantis will come to call, as will "pretty" creepy-crawlies, such as ladybugs. Some might look like something out of a cheap horror film, but they all have their place in keeping unwanted insects at bay.

Start to incorporate more organic methods in your gardening. I am organic in focus with my gardening because so many of the pesticides and herbicides that we use kill or harm as many beneficial insects as they do the target pests. Even the fish and the birds are affected. Since I live on a small lake, I am becoming more conscious of the effects that inorganic sprays and fertilizers have on the environment. We all must realize that having a habitat, or any garden for that matter, is not the same as having an Eden. There will always be aphids, squash borers, spider mites, etc., no matter what we do. The goal is to limit the numbers of pests by promoting other wildlife for control and to use organic, non-harmful controls wherever possible.

You will see some thieves such as raccoons, squirrels, deer, and rabbits. They usually come whether or not you are gardening with a habitat in mind, so give them their due by putting a feeder out and adding critter dinner to it, peanuts, corn, etc. Add raccoon and squirrel baffles to your feeders if you find these critters have really gluttonous intents on your songbird feeders. Put barriers to keep the rabbits and deer out. Apply organic deterrents to keep the deer from browsing.

If your interest in creating a habitat really increases, you can add Purple Martin condominiums, blue bird nesting boxes, owl houses, and bat houses. You can certify your place as an official backyard habitat for a nominal fee. I usually have my links on a separate page, but I am going to apply one to this because I feel so strongly about creating habitats. The link will follow immediately, after this article.

By building habitats for wildlife, we are protecting valuable species that both help and enrich our lives in many ways. Try to add a few features to make your yard more "user friendly" to our fellow creatures. Not only will it benefit them, but it will definitely benefit all of us, too!

For more information about creating and certifying a backyard habitat, contact the National Wildlife Foundation.

Page Last Updated February 25, 2006