They are very hardy and don't mind snow and drought. Evergreen shrubs are staples in the garden as a backdrop for every plant to shine, but some are eye-catching on their own. Suzanne Sheffield from Mid-Atlantic on March 11, 2012: Connie Smith (author) from Southern Tier New York State on January 31, 2012: Hi Trinsick, thanks for stopping by. It grows in any soil, sun to part shade in zones 7 to 9, and is the host plant for Henrys Elfin Butterfly; also moderately deer resistant. Because evergreen trees always have intact leaves, they are critical to birds and meet all birds' needs. Berberis, hawthorn and spindle. Connie Smith (author) from Southern Tier New York State on January 28, 2012: Thank you Seeker7. A beautiful hub with great information on not only how to liven up our gardens, but more importantly how to help our wildlife as well! They don’t throw that word ‘giant’ around for nothing. That's why she loves bird-friendly flowers, shrubs and trees. If you’re looking for a taller evergreen shrub, other great options include mountain laurel, cherry laurel and Texas rose bud. I loved all the Holly varieties - Holly is one of my long time favourites. Evergreen plants are also home to a variety of insects birds eat. The fragrant white flowers are beloved by birds, bees and butterflies. Their dramatic yellow flowers in winter or early spring have a striking presence. I'm so glad you stopped by, and that you appreciated all the information and the photos. You might want to check out Willow Hybrid Trees. It doesn’t matter what soil you have; it will adapt. I enjoyed your story, thanks for sharing it with me. American Holly trees are hardy from zones 5-9 and grow up to 30’ tall and 10’ wide at maturity. I guess I have reconsider what to plant. In tropical areas, many broad-leafed plants are also evergreen and may shed their lower leaves as they grow new foliage from the crown. Water: The constant foliage of evergreens helps keep the understory beneath the plants moist, providing water for birds and other wildlife. These plants will thrive most easily with the least care, and will be more recognizable to regional birds as well as passing migrants. The berries have a waxy coating and contain a fatty substance that appeals to wildlife; especially birds including turkeys, quail, bluebirds, warblers, bobwhites, catbirds, vireos and tree swallows. Another plus presents itself should you have a deer problem. Read on to see our 13 best picks. Don’t scrape the yard free of fall debris! Choose summer or winter flowering plants for an extra splash of colour and go for evergreen plants with berries to attract birds and provide shelter for wildlife. Viburnums provide everything from canopy that shelters the nests of smaller songbirds to a plethora of colored berries that birds love to feast upon. This plant is tolerant of both shade and moist soil and will form colonies perfect for naturalizing, unless you remove the root suckers. This popular landscape shrub grows into a dense hedge that usually reaches about 12 feet high. These plants do double duty: They attract berry-eating birds such as bluebirds and robins while also creating a beautiful display with their flowers, fall colors, and fruits. Another fast-developing evergreen is the Thuja Green Giant. This densely branched shrub is a good hedge plant for naturalizing along slopes and riverbanks. Helen Murphy Howell from Fife, Scotland on January 27, 2012: This is a really beautiful hub - the photographs are stunning. (Although birds love them, remember that holly berries are toxic to humans and pets.) The Old Farmer's Almanac presents a table of food- and shelter-providing trees and shrubs for birds. For example, both pine trees and palm trees are considered evergreen, though their climates can be dramatically different. In northern areas, evergreen trees and shrubs often have smaller, needle-like leaves that better conserve water and keep the plant protected from weather extremes such as bitterly cold winters. The fruit on Viburnum ranges in color from yellow, and pink, to red and blue with many aging to black. The new growth has a pretty red tint that then becomes green. A beautiful shrub, with lacy caps of creamy-white flowers in the spring, that attract bees and other insects. I hope you are able to attract lots of birds. Native plants and birds have evolved side-by-side over thousands of years. I like american hollies but do not want to attract squirrels and woodpeckers around my house. Learn tips for creating your most beautiful (and bountiful) garden ever. The purple-leaved Berberis thunbergii loses its leaves in winter. You are very lucky to have them so nearby. Wax myrtle is a shrub well-worth the effort because of its fragrance, interesting dense evergreen foliage and color, and benefit to wildlife. In fact, evergreens are constantly shedding and renewing leaves in a continual cycle, unlike deciduous trees that shed all their leaves at once and have bare, empty branches through a dry or cold season. That was awesome, and it only took about 35 years for it happen! Evergreen shrubs will provide other plants in the garden with a solid anchor. It is a misconception that these trees never lose their leaves, however. I love mine, and they do not seem to attract anything but small songbirds that like to hide among the branches. Then there is the potential for great nesting spots. You’re looking for a great place to live and raise a family. Shrubs Northern bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica) Season: Fall fruiting, winter persistent fruits Description: Semi-evergreen shrub produces fragrant, waxy, silver-gray berries, which stay on the plant year-round Food type: Fruit If, as you are flying over various places of human habitat you should spot a dense, green hedge, wouldn’t you be compelled to investigate? The list of Texas evergreen shrubs doesn’t stop there. We have Kites here as well, but not in my neck of the woods. It is drought and cold tolerant, and low maintenance, sporting gorgeous red berries in winter. Grow it in zones 7 to 10. Establishing your shrub garden: Plant shrubs between November and March, but avoid waterlogged or frozen ground. Blackbirds will also strip the loose bark from the base to help build their nests. It does take a lot of patience to get a bird to land on your hand. The outward-curving branches are covered with dense, dark green needles that create an interesting bird's nest effect. In fall it produces beautiful berries and would work well as a screen or hedge. Thanks for the info. Yaupon Holly (ilex vomitoria) can grow up to 25 feet tall and produces beautiful white flowers and loads of red berries. Thanks for the Votes and all your wonderful, positive comments. Trees are an essential part of all bird-friendly yards, and evergreen trees are both easy to add to landscaping and ideal for many birds. While adding an evergreen to the yard is a good step for any bird-friendly landscaping, it can be a much better step if more thought is put into the plant selection and how it will work in an individual yard. I planted 2 specimens many years ago and nurtured them carefully. Creating layers of evergreen protection in the yard with both tall and mid-sized trees as well as lower shrubs and ground covers. Many birds will make their nests in shrubs including dunnocks, finches, blackbirds In zone 5 the fruit is on display from June with Vi… It loves full sun but will tolerate part shade. Here are 10 easy-to-grow berry-producing shrubs, vines and trees that produce berries that birds will love. But that spring they had doubled in size and thereafter produced loads of berries! Shrubs are an important source of summer shade for many birds, and evergreen shrubs are ideal winter shelter as well, especially for ground-loving birds such as quail, grouse and many sparrows. It was fun to read about your goldcrest birds and squirrels. It produces lovely red berries and has a beautiful upright conical tree shape. Because these trees can meet all of birds' critical survival needs, they should always be on a birder's landscaping list. My favorite is the holly, too. I'm glad they sustained the deer at a tough time, and I'm doubly glad that the deer know how to prune holly much better than I ever could! Read on for helpful tips and examples of cold hardy evergreen shrubs, all suitable for growing in … Both male and female plants must be grown close together to produce berries. Connie Smith (author) from Southern Tier New York State on January 30, 2012: Hello Nell Rose. It is hardy in zones 3-9 and requires no pruning. Invite flocks to your backyard by planting fruit-bearing trees and shrubs in your landscape. I was sure they were finished. One of my favorites is the Nellie Stevens Holly. This slow-growing plant produces a thick and dense interior and is a favorite of birds and butterflies. My Mom had a natural hedgerow between her property and her neighbor in our rural area. Birds appreciate Use it as a screen or plant individual specimens. Darn that Mary Poppins for making it seem so easy! Selecting native varieties that will be best adapted to local climate, weather, and soil conditions. It thrives in sun to partial shade and must be watered daily until established, after which it becomes moderately drought tolerant. Growing easily on rocky, dry hillsides it is a nectar source for butterflies. Growing as much as a foot per year, it should be pruned in early spring (if at all) before new growth starts. It is necessary to plant both male and female specimens close together in order for them to produce berries. Nesting sites : Many birds nest in shrubs, particularly dense, secure plantings that provide good shelter and protection from neighborhood predators. They make a wonderful hedge or screen and prefer moist, well-drained soil and full to part sun and are hardy from zones 2-9. Velutinus means soft and velvety, referring to short, dense, silky hairs on the undersides of the leaves. Shrubs with flowers help pollinators in spring. Viburnums are the stalwart of any good shrub border and not surprisingly they are also equally important plants for creating good bird habitat. This feature is more pronounced on shrubs found in drier areas east of the Cascades. It's … An evergreen, it prefers full sun and a moist soil, growing slowly to around 3 m. It looks best planted in a group with other shrubs. It was filled with all kinds of beautiful birds, rabbits, quail, bobwhites, pheasants and wild turkeys, and visited daily by deer and coy dogs. They are fairly drought resistant and prefer full sun to light shade. Dense, spiny, evergreen grapehollies are terrific shelter plants for birds. It is somewhat deer resistant and is the food plant for the Red-banded Hairstreak butterfly. Evergreen shrubs allow birds and insects a year-round home and protection from predators, especially if they are thorny like barberry and firethorn, or particularly dense like holly and yew. Their strong texture looks substantial in a foundation planting. We’re not talking formally pruned plants that go on forever. The second winter was very hard with lots of deep snow and bitter cold temperatures. Surround your plants with a tall hedge, and you automatically protect your gardens from deer damage. From hydrangea bushes to lilac bushes and every evergreen in between, many attractive, fast-growing shrubs provide privacy, hide eyesores, and offer food and shelter for pollinators, birds, and other wildlife in a matter of a few seasons. In fact, as far as a bird is concerned, it really doesn’t matter how far this hedge reaches. Named for a school teacher from the 1800s who lived in Oxford, Md., the dense, dark green foliage and prolific red berries make it a favorite of birds and humans alike. Entice hummingbirds, butterflies and bees with the fragrant white flowers of summersweet. The native plants can be found along streams, in marshlands and swampy areas. Viburnum lantana also produces berries eaten by birds in the winter. Plant them 4 to 5 feet apart, and they will quickly fill in. American Holly trees maintain their evergreen foliage through all seasons. Evergreen shrubs also add constant colour throughout the year and they also provide privacy and form a refuge for garden birds. For a more compact cultivar, try Sugartina Crystalina. The glossy gray-green leaves are ornamentally unique through the growing season. Hedges and living green screens are wonderful areas for all wildlife to gather. Planting shrubs that provide food and shelter is an easy and affordable way to bring birds into your backyard. Evergreen shrubs can be focal points in a home garden, bringing green accents to the landscape year-round and providing cover for birds and wildlife during the colder months. The Evergreen Sumac has a moderate growth rate and reaches 8 to 10 feet in sun to partial shade. It’s one of the easiest shrubs to trim into a multi-stemmed tree. In summer shrubs are good for providing a shady place for birds to keep cool, and in winter evergreen shrubs will provide somewhere warm and dry. In tropical areas, water collects on broadleaf evergreens, giving small birds a place to bathe as they rub against leaves. Some shrubs also produce pretty berries that are a real treat for garden birds. I was indeed blessed to live right there while growing up. Thujas resist snow and ice damage and prefer full to part sun. Thanks for stopping by. You will see an increase in grateful feathered visitors while enjoying some very beautiful new evergreen shrubs or trees that provide year-round interest for you, and protection for your backyard bird gang. Voted up + awesome + beautiful. She has over 16 years experience writing about wild birds for magazines and websites. When planning evergreens for the yard, consider: Evergreen trees serve many purposes for birds, and they are a critical part of all bird habitats. Evergreen Shrubs For Full Sun - Zones 7 - 11 Agave Agave is a succulent, which has large fleshy leaves and grows well in Southwest and Mediterranean climates. In fact, they can grow from 50 to 75 feet high. Best Landscaping Evergreen Trees and Shrubs for Birds, Attract Birds by Adding Trees to Your Landscaping. Native plants are more likely to provide the right mix, size, and nutritional values that birds in our area require. They rapidly become taller at about 2’ per year and are disease and pest resistant. Nell Rose from England on January 29, 2012: Hi, this is such a lovely hub, I had never seen a chickadee before, don't think we have them in England, maybe we do but under a different name, and as you say the bushes are so important for the birds and other wildlife, I am lucky to have Kites living in the trees next to me, they are like eagles but are a golden color, the hedges underneath them have so much wildlife, from goldcrest birds, to squirrels up the trees too! And berries feed birds and other wildlife in autumn and winter. Connie knows how very important natural habitats are to our bird populations. In summer, its scented flowers attract insects and so provide food for a different range of birds. Evergreen trees are aptly named, as they stay green year-round and always have leaves. Snowbrush The Buckthorn Family–Rhamnaceae Ceanothus velutinus Douglas ex Hook. Much to my chagrin I realized the deer had used my little holly bushes for lunch and dinner! Include evergreens like arborvitae and yews to provide shelter for the birds. Choose from trees such as American Holly or the deciduous shrub, Winterberry. Berberis x stenophylla has smaller leaves and tall arching branches, and makes a good informal hedge, providing good nesting sites for birds. There would be plenty of places to meet and greet other birds. Honeysuckle. Wax myrtle (Morella cerifera) was a favorite of the American colonists and prized for its spicy, fragrant light blue berries. It is hardy in zones 5-8, grows to 12 feet tall and 10 to 12 feet wide. These trees and shrubs also provide safe places to build a nest! As it’s a climber, honeysuckle is ideal when space is tight. Plant a variety of berry-producing shrubs and vines that provide a variety of fruits at different times. You’ll want something with fruits in the late summer, fall, and early winter. Introducing "One Thing": A New Video Series, The Spruce Gardening & Plant Care Review Board, The Spruce Renovations and Repair Review Board. Birds Nest Spruce Shrubs are a true dwarf evergreen shrub that makes an excellent choice for an evergreen border, accent or container plant. It is drought and cold tolerant, and low … To top it all its also a plant that will help our birds and other wildlife, so it's a definite winner with me. The American Holly Tree is very attractive to birds and humans as well. Connie Smith (author) from Southern Tier New York State on April 24, 2012: You are welcome Carlos! Some shrubs should regularly be cut back to ground level - this can simulate a woodland glade and attract different species for a while. Other choices to think about are the fast-growing viburnum pragense, which is a broadleaf evergreen that blooms in May with beautiful and fragrant ivory flowers, and the wax myrtle; the moderately fast-growing evergreen sumac (rhus virens) as well as the slow-growing yaupon (ilex vomitoria), which is very attractive to wildlife. 7. It really is well worth the effort. Frank Miles / USFWS/Flickr/Public Domain Mark 1.0. Give the birds what they need, and add color and structure to your garden, with shrubs. Evergreen Shrubs Plant evergreen shrubs for year round interest and structure. As seasons change, so does this dwarf evergreen: You’ll see new spring growth in bright gold, then deep red tips in fall. This is what keeps me grounded! Some evergreen shrubs can get out of control, become too big and overbearing if they are not cut back, so choose ones that can tolerate a good prune If you’re looking for a smaller evergreen shrub, Asiatic I was surprised one day to have a chickadee actually land on my hat while I was filling the feeder. Grapehollies prefer shade, especially in hot-summer climates, and look luxurious in a woodland setting. If you like hollies, but don't wish to attract squirrels and woodpeckers, then how about a Nellie R. Stevens holly bush. How about mixing and matching different evergreens for a charmingly unique setting? It’s easy to grow, drought, disease, deer and insect resistant. Evergreen shrubs are important plants in the landscape, providing color and texture all year round, while providing winter protection for birds and small wildlife. Let’s say you’re a chickadee because they are such energetic and curious little things. The prickly heat and drought tolerant juniper is another evergreen that provides a safe haven and food for wildlife. To ensure your shrub gets a good start, choose varieties that work in your USDA Hardiness Zone. Space plants 6 to 8 feet apart for a hedge or dense screen. 5. So glad you stopped in! While the exact plants that are suited to any yard will vary depending on the local climate, available space, soil quality, moisture level, and sun exposure, the most popular evergreens for birdscaped yards include: There are many varieties of each of these plant types, and different varieties may grow to different sizes or have significantly different shapes, growth rates, and mature appearances. Widely adaptable and easy to grow in poor soil, it laughs at drought and thrives on neglect. Tips for creating your most beautiful ( and other wildlife in autumn and protection. Reach 3–4m high to red and blue with many aging to black plant both male and female plants must watered... 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