Instead of constantly
grooming our yards, leaving
perennial seed heads in place
for winter food, allowing dead
trees and logs to remain for
both food and shelter, and
refraining from raking up
dropped nuts and fruits are all
changes that will attract a
variety of wildlife to our
property – and save us money,
time, and effort as well.
Variety is Best
When choosing plants for
wildlife food, think in terms of
variety, both of the type of food
offered and the season in which
it will be available. Consider
berries, other kinds of fruit,
tender buds and bark, nuts, pine
cones, crops such as corn or
sunflowers, seed-producing
grasses, flowers high in nectar,
and host plants for caterpillars.
If you have a pond, a number
of wetland plants also have
excellent food value. Whenever
possible, incorporate native
plants into your property since
these have evolved with the
wildlife to best meet its needs.
Some introduced plants and
developed cultivars also have a
lot to offer wildlife, but try not
to add any exotic flora to your
landscape that is known to be
invasive to the point of
overpowering local native
species.
If the size of your property or
other factors make it hard to
increase the variety of plants,
consider adding wildlife feeders.
Most of us are familiar with the
many bird feeders now on the
market, some even designed for
specific types of seed, but there
are feeders for other creatures
as well.
Suet feeders appeal to insect-
eating birds, corn feeders can
help deer and pheasants survive
heavy winters. There are nectar
feeders designed to attract
both hummingbirds and
butterflies, and squirrels enjoy
dried ears of corn on spike
feeders.
In addition to food, you might
want to offer supplements such
as grit or gravel to aid birds
with digestion, crushed
eggshells to add calcium during
egg production, and salt which
is necessary for many species.
A little research into the wildlife
in your area and its preferred
food should give you a number
of ideas on what to provide and
how to present it.
Water for Wildlife
Water, as we all know, is vital
for all living things. Many of us
supply bird baths in the
summer, but we tend to forget
about other times, especially
during the winter. Just as we
make sure that our household
pets have fresh water all year
around, so do wildlife species
need a dependable source of
water, especially when cold
temperatures eliminate their
normal drinking locations.
