Have you seen any great birds in your backyard lately?
A warbler, maybe? Blue grosbeak? Blue-gray gnatcatcher? Boat-tailed grackle? Brown thrasher?
No? No offense, but maybe you need to be more friendly.
Or at least, you need a more bird-friendly garden design.
Want to create a bird-friendly backyard? A few landscaping changes will make all the difference.
You’ll be giving birds a break. Bonus: they’re lots of fun to watch.
1. Add Native Plants for Bird-Friendly Garden Design
Birds love native plants. Plants native to Florida not only provide better food and cover for birds than non-native plants, but they do you a favor, too. They need less water and fertilizer and are more resistant to pests and diseases.
Lots of birds love the berries and fruits of native plants like hollies, American Beautyberry, and Red Mulberry.
Partial to palms? The Windmill, Lady, and Sabal Palms are all known for being friendly to birds.
Coral Honeysuckle, Wild Columbine, and Cardinal Flower provide nectar some birds love.
Coneflowers offer seeds that attract sparrows, warblers, finches, nuthatches, chickadees, cardinals, and indigo buntings.
After your flowers have bloomed, leave the seed heads for your feathered friends.
2. Include a Mix of Plants, Shrubs and Trees
Branch out beyond trees and flowers.
Plant a variety of ground covers, plants, shrubs, and trees of different sizes and heights to provide more cover and feeding opportunities for birds.
Shrubs are great for landscaping for birds. They offer a quick hiding spot when birds need a fast escape from cats, hawks, owls, and other predators.
Think hollies, Fringetree, Beautyberry, hawthorn, privet, azalea, Dwarf Palmetto, and viburnum.
3. Bird-Friendly Landscaping: Give ‘Em Water
All those crunchy seeds and sticky insects make a bird thirsty.
Add a refreshing bird bath or fountain where birds can grab a quick sip or splash the dust off their wings.
Choose a shallow basin that has a rough surface and gently sloping sides, so birds will have sure footing. 
Put it in a shady spot, keep it filled with fresh water, and wash it out every 10 days or so with a mild bleach solution. Dirty bird baths can spread diseases between birds.
Place your water feature where birds can feel safe from raptors that might hunt them when they’re in the open. The best spot is near a tree, so that birds can make a quick getaway.
If you don’t want a year-round commitment, put out a seasonal bird bath during the dry season from October through the end of May. Then store it for the summer when rain provides plenty of bird beverage.
4. Create Islands of Plants for a Bird-Friendly Backyard
Who doesn’t want to escape to an island?
For birds, islands of plants located throughout your yard can be life savers.
These islands of plantings reduce the amount of open space birds have to cross, which helps protect them from predators. Birds like to be near shelter while foraging for food.
5. Feed Your Feathered Friends
Bird feeders are a great feature for a bird-friendly backyard. They provide food for the birds but they're also pretty entertaining for you. Time tends to fly. (Zoom meeting? What Zoom meeting?)
Choose your feeder based on what type of birds you’d like to attract. Traditional tube-style feeders are great for small birds, or use a hopper-style feeder for larger birds like blue jays and grosbeaks.
Brush up on your favorite birds’ must-have goodies. Orioles, thrashers, and bluebirds love fruit. Cardinals, titmice, finches, and chickadees prefer sunflower seeds and safflower seeds.
You can also add a suet feeder for hungry woodpeckers, nuthatches, and wrens.
6. Join Your Neighbors to Expand Landscaping for Birds
The more bird habitat, the better. Sprucing up your yard for birds is great, but you’ll attract even more birds if your surrounding neighbors have bird-friendly backyards, too.
Want a Bird-Friendly Backyard? Start with Ground Source
Ready to bring on the birds, but not sure which bird-friendly plants will thrive in your yard?
Let us help. We’ll have your yard brimming with berries, stuffed with seeds, and offering cozy shelter for your feathered friends.
And the same plants and flowers that birds love will bring beauty to your landscaping, too.
We’re landscape design experts, but our skills don’t stop there. We’re with you every step of the way as you plan your perfect outdoor space.
Sod, irrigation, landscape design: Let us transform your yard from an embarrassing eyesore to a place you spend every spare minute.
Are you ready to enjoy the vibrant, impressive yard you've always wanted? Request a quote today! We’ll help you review your options and then transform your property.
Image Source: Red Mulberry, Cardinal Flower, Fringetree, Warbler in Birdbath, Cardinal on Birdfeeder