Tag Archives: plants for birds

Oregon Native Plant: Eriogonum umbellatum

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Plant Name: Eriogonum umbellatum
Common name:  Sulphur Flower Buckwheat
Plant type: Herbaceous Perennial
Height:  ½’ – 1’
Spread: 1’ – 3’
Bloom Time: May – September
Flower Color:  Cream or Yellow
Exposure: Sun, Part Shade
Soil Requirements:  Gravelly Soil
Water Needs: Low
Attributes:    Leaves are green above and gray-woolly beneath.  Flower clusters occur on 6-9 in. stems. The cream to sulfur-yellow, tubular flowers fade to orange or red.  Flowers are showy & fragrant. Drought- tolerant

Note:   This is an exceedingly variable species with many different varieties & subspecies, and this adds to the difficulties of identification in a complex group of similar western species. Because the species is so variable, it is especially important to choose material from a habitat that matches your site.  Propagate by thickly planting seed; does not transplant well due to long tap root.

Uses:  Attracts butterflies, native bees, & birds. Native Gardens; Rock Gardens; Pollinator gardens; Dry rocky slopes.
Native to:  California, Oregon, Western US & Canada
Oregon Native:  YES
USDA Hardiness Zone:  4 – 8

Find seeds through native seed growers: Klamath-Siskiyou Native Seeds, and  Plant World Seeds

Report by: Viki Ashford,
Photo 1 by: Carlotta Lucas
Photo 2 by: Klamath-Siskiyou Native Seeds

Oregon Native: Hooker’s Fairy Bell

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Plant Name: Disporum hookeri
Common name:Hooker’s Fairy Bell
Plant type:Perennial
Height: 1’ – 3’
Spread: 2’ – 3’
Bloom Time:Late Spring
Flower Color:White
Exposure: Partial to Full Shade
Soil Requirements: Average to rich in organic content
Water Needs: Moist
Attributes:Fall red berries; Flowers attract native bees & other pollinators; Ground-feeding birds eat berries.
Uses: Deep Shade Gardens, Native Gardens, Forested areas, Slopes, Pollinator Gardens
Native to: Washington/Oregon
Oregon Native: YES
USDA Hardiness Zone:4b – 8b

Report Submitted by: Viki Ashford

Birds in the Garden

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The following is a summary of Wild Birds Unlimited owner, Laura Fleming’s, talk on “Birds in the Garden”

There are 4 key elements to attracting birds to your yard.

    1. Water   2. Shelter   3. Nesting Spaces   4. Food

      Photo from Wild Birds Unlimited – Nature shop

Water: it’s VERY crucial to birds, so providing a birdbath with fresh water, or a saucer of water on the ground is very beneficial in attracting birds to your yard.

Shelter & Nesting Spaces: Different types of birds need different types of habitat, so planting a variety of plans in your gardens encourages birds of all kinds to visit your garden. By planting a mixture of deciduous and conifer large trees, small trees and shrubs in your yard provides natural shelters and nest building areas. Birds are attracted to edges where they can escape, so a plant hedgerow and/or a variety of small & large shrubs & trees on the perimeter of your yard.

Read here: Plants for Birds

Food: Many kinds of flowers and grasses provide food and also nesting building materials.  Some natural food sources in your yard should be: Seed-producing flowers, berry-laden shrubs, a healthy insect population living in leaf litter and fruit trees.  Be a messy gardener; leave leaf litter and dead trees (snags) in your yard to enhance your bird habitat.  Supplement food sources with bird feeders. Different birds like different foods so supply a variety of foods in many feeders throughout your yard; hanging at a different heights.

* Read here: Seed Preference Guide

Submitted by: Carlotta Lucas

Winterberry Holly

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Plant Name: Ilex verticillatawinterberry_Ilex verticillata
Common Name: Winterberry Holly
Plant type: Deciduous shrub
Height: 3-12 ft – depending on varieties  
Spread:  Same information as height
Bloom Time:  Early  summer
Flower Color:  White, or cream  – small
Exposure:  Full sun to partial shade
Soil Requirements: Rich organic acidic soil, but grows in average garden soil.
Water Needs:  Moist boggy areas
Native to: Eastern North America
USDA Hardiness Zone: 3-9

Attributes: Vibrant Red Winter Berries, Important food source for American Robins, Winter Interest.

Uses:  Wetland habitats, Native gardens, Bird habitat, Rain garden, Firewise garden, Wildlife gardens, Cutting garden, Containers dwarf varieties, Floral arrangements.

Note:  Plants are dioecious meaning male or female.  A male plant is needed for female plants to produce berries.  Plant a male shrub within 50 feet of female plants. One male plant can pollinate 6-10  female plants, but note blooming time must match when female’s bloom.  Slow growers.  Shrubs can sucker out into a dense thicket when planted in wet boggy areas.

A few varieties are listed below:

            Berry Heavy:  6-8 ft  (female)
            Berry Nice:   6-8 ft     (female)
            Sparkleberry:  5-8 ft  (female)
            Southern Gentleman: 12 ft  (male)
            Apollo: 6-10 ft (male)
            Raritan Chief:  7 ft T X 12 ft W (male)
            Jim Dandy:  6-10 ft  (male)

Dwarf varieties:

            Afterglow:  3-6 ft  (female)
            Little Goblin: 3-5 ft (female)
            Little Goblin Guy: 3-5 ft (male)
            Red Sprite:  3-5 ft  (female)
            Berry Poppins:  3-4 ft (female)
Mr. Poppins: 3-4 ft  (male)

by: Carlotta Lucas

Horticulture Report: Arbutus unedo ‘compacta’

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arbutus-unedo-compactaPlant Name: Arbutus unedo ‘compacta’
Common Name:  Dwarf Strawberry Tree
Plant type: Evergreen Shrub
Height: 6-8 ft
Spread/Width: 5-6 ft
Bloom Time: Repeating Fall to late winter
Flower Color: White, bell-shaped
Exposure:  Part to Full sun
Soil Requirements: Lean, well-drained soil
Water Needs: Low – Drought tolerant once established
Attributes: Masses of white flowers, Dark glossy green foliage, Cinnamon-colored bark, Edible strawberry-like fruit, , Dwarf plant, Bird friendly
Note: Low maintenance
Uses: Firewise plantings, Waterwise plantings, Privacy Screen, Specimen focal point, Wildlife gardens, Year-round interest, Informal hedge,  Butterfly gardens, Attracts Hummingbirds, Winter interest
Native to: Southern Europe and Ireland
USDA Hardiness Zone: 7-9

Horticulture Report: Cotoneaster horizontalis

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Plant Name: Cotoneaster horizontaliscotoneaster_horizontal
Common Name: Rockspray Cotoneaster
Plant type: Semi-evergreen shrub
Height: 2-3 ft
Width: 5-7 ft
Bloom Time: May – June
Flower Color: Pink (tiny flowers)
Exposure: Full sun to Part shade
Soil Requirements: Requires well-drained soil, Withstands poor soil, but best in loamy soil
Water Needs: Medium
Attributes: Groundcover, Fall color, Textured arching branches , Red berries for birds, Dense foliage, Slow-growing, Semi-prostrate
Note: Tough, Easy to grow, Drought tolerant once established
Uses: Rock gardens, Rock walls, Mass plantings, Erosion control for banks & slopes, Winter interest, Shelter for Beneficial insects
Native to: Western China
USDA Hardiness Zone: 4-7