why garden for birds?
You can help birds while making your garden more beautiful and eco-friendly
Take your love of birds to the next level by creating habitat in your yard or garden that provides life-saving resources (think food, water, and shelter) for birds throughout the year. Gardening is an excellent way to ensure that outdoor spaces, whether large or small, help wildlife. Many North American bird species are in decline due to habitat loss and degradation, among other global threats. You can help!
You can design a nature-focused garden that helps create patches of habitat that are beneficial to birds – year-round residents, winter visitors, local breeding birds, and also those that are passing through during spring and fall migrations. When you garden with birds in mind, your property can become part of a larger conservation initiative to help address the loss of biological diversity (biodiversity). And you might be surprised by how many new species you’ll see visiting your property or living in your garden!
This website will help you help birds by making it easy for you to design and plant a garden that is great for birds. Whether you have an existing garden that could use a few tweaks or an expansive lawn that you’re hoping to transform for the benefit of nature, this site will give you a head start on welcoming more birds to your place!
how to USE THIS SITE TO be a bird-friendly gardener
Look at our tips for how to plan your garden
Find your Bird Garden Zone
Use our Plant Selector search tool to develop a customized list of plants that are well suited to your location and will attract birds, and/or check out our zone-specific factsheets for a quick list of 10 plant species for your zone
Tip: Have a look at some of the amazing, and possibly unexpected, birds that could be attracted to your garden
An Amazing Bird Journey
Not Just for Birds
Think about the resources that we all need to survive: food, water, shelter. By incorporating these three crucial aspects into the design for your outdoor space in a variety of ways, you will be helping to provide habitat for a suite of wildlife – not just birds! Your garden may also become a home for butterflies, bees, and other important pollinators, as well as wildlife such as toads or salamanders. Just like birds, many species may be struggling with disappearing habitat, and you can help protect them too.
STAY IN TOUCH WITH BIRDS CANADA
Proud supporter
Photo credits
Step 1 (Garden): Kevin Kavanagh. Step 3 (Redosier dogwood): Sean Blaney. Bush Cinquefoil & Swainson’s Thrush: Daniel Arndt.