Creating a Bird Garden
Now that you have chosen the bird bathing system which best fits your needs as well as the characteristics of your location, you can look forward to a dramatic increase in the number of songbirds visiting your backyard.
To further add to the attractiveness of your yard to songbirds, Avian Aquatics also recommends some specific landscaping techniques. The following list, compiled by our owners and other fellow birders, can produce remarkable results with limited added effort on your part.
Consider these ideas for further enhancing the desirability of your backyard habitat to a wide variety of songbirds:
- Planting evergreens for roosting, nesting, and cover from predators;
- Planting varieties of flowers which hummingbirds like, such as Cardinal Flower, that can be grown in our ponds;
- Planting fruit trees and shrubs, such as silky dogwood, to provide food for non-seed eating birds like wax wings;
- Leaving tall trees, particularly oaks and hickories, for upper canopy foragers like tanagers and orioles;
- NOT applying pesticides to your lawn so that grubs and insects are provided for robins, flickers, etc.;
- Allowing flowers to go to seed for juncos and sparrows;
- Leaving dead wood, both limbs and trees, for woodpeckers to make nesting cavities in and to feed;
- Using plants native to your region as they will usually thrive better and provide a more natural habitat;
- Varying the types of plants to create a more diverse micro-habitat to attract a wider variety of birds and other wildlife;
Installing the water sources you select so that they become an integral part of your landscape, i.e., plant moisture-loving plants like Cardinal Flower near your misters.
Other important items to consider when planning and installing your backyard pond:
Plants:
Plants will naturally cleanse the water in your pond by trapping sediments and removing dissolved nutrients from bird droppings, and are especially helpful in hindering algae growth. Shallow water plants should be planted directly in the part of the pond which holds the deepest gravel, around the pump and filter housing. When planting them, be sure to gently flush as much of the soil as possible from the roots before placing the plants in the gravel. A list of plant recommendations has been included on our “Controlling Algae During Hot Summer Months” feature- have a look!
Water replenishment:
All bird baths are most effective in attracting birds when kept full of fresh water. An Avian Aquatics Leaf-Mister™, Rock-Mister™, Dripper, or Mister-Dripper Combo™ can be used to supply fresh water on a daily basis. This becomes even easier if you use a water timer to automatically turn the water on and off each day. We recommend the Orbit® water timer for reliable shut off at the low flows involved. Mid to late afternoon seems to be a favorite bathing time, and we recommend leaving the dripper or mister on for several hours at a time.
Inspection perch:
Because of the threat of natural predators, birds can be extremely wary when bathing. A small tree limb overhanging the bath provides safe access so that birds may first inspect the bath and then also preen after dipping in the cool water. Another popular perch is often the elevated waterfall rocks which we recommend to give birds an added sense of safety. If they still appear wary, you may wish to prop a 3 ft. long branch over the bird bath.
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