5 Perennials Birds Will Love
Perennial plants in the garden can offer birds food and shelter. Birds can eat the berries and seeds of the plants and use them as a place to nest, which provides protection from predators. The best type of perennial plants are those that produce fruit and seeds because these can be eaten by birds. Another way perennial plants are good for birds is they allow some of the ground-feeding birds, to eat from the ground without having to fly up into the air.
Here are five perennials birds love:
Cardinal Flower – The flower will grow anywhere and is loved by hummingbirds and butterflies. The native flower produces bright red spikes. The bird-like florets grow 2 to 4 feet tall. The tubular-shaped flowers are nectar-rich that bloom from July to September. Hummingbirds and insects also love these flowers as well as insect-feeding birds.
Echinacea – The large showy blooms of the native perennial Echinacea (coneflowers) attract birds, butterflies, and bees. These easy-to-grow flowers are tough and can withstand both drought and cold temperatures. Don’t prune off the dead flowers as they can offer food to hungry birds in the winter. Blue jays, cardinals, and goldfinches appreciate the seeds from the spent flowers.
Helianthus – The flower is also known as Autumn Gold or Willow-Leaved Sunflower. This perennial plant brings fall color to your garden. With the shorter days, the bright yellow 2-inch flowers bloom from September to November or a hard frost. It blooms well after other sunflowers have stopped blooming. The fern-like foliage is low maintenance and drought tolerant. It looks great with mums. Birds love the sunflower seeds and love to crack them open to get to the black oil sunflower seeds because they are thin and easy to eat. Birds that enjoy these seeds are finches, goldfinches, cardinals, and sparrows.
Rudbeckia – This garden classic is loved by birds. The bright yellow petals are surrounded by a dark brown center, but there are also new combinations to try. This plentiful bloomer is a hardy perennial and does well in full sun to partially shaded locations. The plant blooms from summer to autumn and grows 24-36 inches tall. It is great for flower beds and borders, or a meadow area. Chickadees, American goldfinches, and house finches love to feed on the seed heads.
Sugar Shack – This native North American perennial is a buttonbush. It puts on a stunning display from spring to fall. This stunning display starts with white-scented flowers that attract butterflies and changes to bright red fruits that will last until the winter. The flower heads are unique and resemble pincushions. They attract bees, butterflies, and other beneficial pollinators. The flower heads mature into hard, red-colored, spherical fruits which keep the plant looking nice throughout the winter. The plant attracts more than 24 species of birds.
Let us know if you grow any of these perennials.
