Birds make an important contribution to our ecosystem - it is therefore worthwhile to create specific retreats for the feathered garden dwellers. We introduce you to 15 native shrubs for birds that expand their habitat.
For many people, the chirping of birds is the most beautiful sound in their garden. But watching the lively musicians is also a great pleasure. But the question quickly arises of how to attract birds to your garden. Native shrubs are ideal for birds: They offer hiding places, breeding places and, on top of that, a suitable food supply. Which bushes are particularly suitable for birds and what else to look for when creating one bird-friendly garden should be noted, learn from this article.
The ideal habitat for birds
Birds are best lured into your own garden by offering them the most natural habitat possible with sources of retreat and nesting places as well as various sources of food. The best way to do this is with domestic shrubs for birds: as opposed to exotic ornamental plants These not only have a decorative value, but also an ecological benefit as a food and beverage Habitat donor. Hedges and bushes with thorns and dense branches are particularly popular with birds, as they offer reliable protection from predators such as birds of prey. Shrubs that provide natural sources of food such as berries are also in demand with many animals. Still, you shouldn't forget to rely on flowering plants as well: a
insect-friendly garden This also benefits birds, because the beetles need these as food for themselves and their chicks. Seed mixtures like this are particularly practical for creating a bird-friendly garden Plantura beneficial insect magnet - The large number of plants it contains ensures a rich food supply for birds throughout the year and thus supports the feathered animals.In addition to choosing the right hedges and shrubs for birds, other management in the garden is also important. Here, naturalness scores above all: uncut bushes, piles of leaves and clippings attract insects and birds alike and thus provide food and shelter. However, if you don't want to let your entire garden grow wild, you should consider creating a “wild corner” in the back of the garden. Even small natural areas can serve as a retreat for birds and thus increase the bird population in the entire garden. On the other hand, you should keep your hands off chemical pesticides and mineral fertilizers, as these often have a negative effect on insects and thus also on the birds in your garden. Therefore, it is better to use harmless alternatives, as we do in the Plantura shop to offer. To make your garden even more attractive for birds, you can hang up incubators and set up small bird baths. A feeding station, such as a self-made bird feeder, and the range of bird feed also make the garden more attractive for birds.
If you want to offer bird food, you should keep a little distance from the hedge and bushes. The low vegetation allows predators such as domestic cats to sneak up unnoticed. It is better to set up a feeding station two to three meters away from the hedge so that the birds can keep an eye on their surroundings while they are eating. And if a predator actually sneaks up to the free-standing feeding place, the birds quickly find refuge in the nearby hedge. Since most hedges bear juicy berries in the late season, the best way to compliment the diet of wild birds with a grain feed. Our Plantura sunflower seeds for example, offer a species-appropriate, high-energy winter food with an extra load of important nutrients.
Native shrubs for birds: These hedges are suitable
Bird-friendly shrubs are an absolute must if you want to make your garden more attractive to the feathered animals. Here is a list of the shrubs and hedges for birds that have proven themselves in the garden.
1. Common barberry (Berberis vulgaris): the Barberry Its flowers attract numerous insects and, thanks to its long strong thorns, offer an excellent retreat for birds. The red berries of the hedge plant are also excellent food for birds in winter.
2. Black elder (Sambucus nigra): The black elderberry berries are a popular food source for over 60 bird species in late summer. The bird-friendly shrub is also used as a nesting place and is also a magnet for insects.
3. Rowanberry (Sorbus aucuparia): The rowanberry is a bird-friendly shrub, which thanks to its attraction to numerous Insects and, thanks to its red berries, an excellent food source for up to 60 bird species offers.
4. Pfaffenhütchen (Euonymus europaeus): This wood is very popular with birds because of its pink-orange fruits. Its thick thicket serves as a nesting place. More information about the ephemera - also known as the common one Spindle bush - can be found in our special article.
5. Common Juniper (Juniperus communis): This native shrub for birds provides food for 43 different species and attracts all kinds of insects with its flowers.
6. Sea buckthorn (Hippophaë rhamnoides): The berries of this bird-friendly shrub are often spurned, but its defensive thorns make it a good retreat.
7. Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna): Of the Hawthorn is probably one of the most bird-friendly shrubs, because it provides food for 32 bird species and is very popular as a nesting place due to its protective thicket. In addition, its flowers attract numerous insects.
8. Wild roses (Rosa spec.): Care from winter to spring Wild roses with their rosehips for a good food supply in birds. But also their great flowers and thorns, which make the plants a perfect shelter, ensure that wild roses belong to the bird- and insect-friendly shrubs.
9. Hazelnut (Corylus avellana): The nuts of the hazelnut are very popular not only with us humans, but also with some bird species. In addition, the particularly early flowering shrub attracts numerous insects.
10. Honeysuckle (Lonicera xylosteum): Designing a hedge bird-friendly is possible with the honeysuckle: its bright red one Berries are eaten with pleasure and their densely branched growth is ideal as a shelter for Birds.
11. Liguster (Ligustrum vulgare): As a hedge for birds is that liguster highly recommended: Its branched habit makes it an ideal breeding ground and its flowers and berries provide birds and insects with plenty of food.
12. Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus): Because of its intertwined growth and the small thorns it is blackberry a particularly bird-friendly shrub. In addition, it is particularly insect-friendly and, with its berries, a good source of food for birds.
13. Buckthorn (Rhamnus frangula): The local buckthorn with its rich supply of flowers and berries is an important fodder plant for both insects and birds.
14. Raspberry (Rubus idaeus): Not only people like them raspberry: The bird- and insect-friendly shrub lures beneficial insects with its flowers and provides food for birds with its berries. In addition, the thorny growth of the raspberry offers an ideal shelter.
15. Holly (ilex): With its serrated leaves and striking red fruits, the Holly not only a particularly beautiful decoration, but also a great shelter and source of food for birds.
16. Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica): While the berries of the buckthorn are poisonous to humans, many species of birds gladly accept them as food. At the same time, the plants are good sources of food for caterpillars, bees and bumblebees and, thanks to their dense growth, offer birds a good retreat as a hedge.
17. Yew (Taxus baccata): Hardly any other conifer is as versatile as the yew - whether as a hedge, as a free-growing tree or as a topiary, the plant always cuts a fine figure. The bright red berries of the yew not only provide decorative accents in autumn, but are also gratefully accepted by birds. The bird-friendly hedge serves as food for over 25 native bird species. In addition, it is often used as a nesting place and retreat.
18. Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus): Decorative, robust and extremely easy to cut - it's no wonder that the hornbeam is so popular in German gardens. Birds also love the plant, which can easily be raised as a hedge or as a free-growing tree. They use the nuts of the evergreen, bird-friendly hedge as food, but the hornbeam is also a popular nesting place.
19. Dogwood (Cornus sanguinea): With its abundant flowering, the dogwood is not only very popular with people, but also attracts numerous insects. Birds also appreciate the shrub because of its berries and its dense growth as a nesting and nutrient wood.
20. Common snowball (Viburnum opulus): Snowball berries are unsuitable for human consumption, but birds like them all the more. The hedge is not only bird-friendly, its flowers also attract numerous insects.
These shrubs are not suitable for birds
Not all plants are suitable as bird-friendly hedges and shrubs - especially exotic species are often unsuitable as they are neither approached by many insects nor as food donors for birds to serve. The unfriendly shrubs for birds include the following plants:
1. Chinese juniper (Juniperus chinensis): In contrast to its native relative, the common juniper, this shrub only provides food for one single species of bird and is therefore extremely unsuitable.
2. Scarlet thorn (Crataegus pedicellata): Despite its close relationship to the hawthorn, the fruits of the scarlet thorn are only eaten by two species of birds, which is why it is better to use its domestic counterpart.
3. Cultivated Roses (pink): Because of their opulent flowers, cultivated roses are not only of little interest to insects - since most varieties are sterile, they do not form rose hips, which the birds feed on.
4. Cherry laurel (Prunus laurocerasus): One of the most famous hedge plants is probably the Cherry laurel. However, it is extremely unsuitable for birds: it offers neither food nor particularly good protection.
5. Tree of Life (Thuja): The tree of life is also known as a hedge plant. However, since it has neither thorns nor fruits for birds, it is not considered a bird-friendly hedge.
Would you like to support the birds in your garden even further? You can find out how you can do this in our article "Bird-friendly garden“.
