Plants That Attract Birds

There are few better returns on a weekend of planting than watching wrens, finches and rosellas turn up in your own backyard. You do not need acreage or bush at the back fence to make it happen, just a handful of the right plants positioned where you can actually see the action from a window or deck.

Start by thinking about which birds you want to see, because big and small birds have opposite needs. Large honeyeaters and lorikeets follow showy nectar flowers and will find them almost anywhere. Small birds like fairy wrens and silvereyes are shyer and will only stay if they have dense, preferably prickly, shrubbery to dive into when larger birds or cats appear. A practical backyard mix is roughly one third nectar producers, one third dense refuge shrubs planted in a connected clump rather than dotted about, and one third seed and insect attracting grasses and groundcovers. Give the refuge planting a corner at least 2m by 2m and leave it unpruned through spring nesting season.

• Position one feature flowering plant within clear view of your most used window
• Plant refuge shrubs in groups so small birds can move through the garden under cover
• Skip insecticides where you can, since insects are the main food source for most small birds
• Add a water dish about 1m off the ground near dense cover, and refresh it in summer

If you are planting a larger area or a habitat corridor along a fence line, tubestock is the most affordable way to get dozens of plants in the ground at once. Two natives worth reading up on first are covered in our banksia care guide, a standout for autumn and winter bird food, and our leptospermum care guide, whose dense twiggy growth is exactly what small birds shelter in. We deliver Australia wide, so your bird garden can start this weekend wherever you live.