How can we create yard habitats that are friendly to humans and also friendly to wildlife?

Instead of filling our yards with chemicals and noise pollution, what can we do differently? Start slow and maybe with a few native plants to start. This is Audubon’s list of ten friendly plants for birds.

Several years ago we created a rain garden. This garden opened up a new world of gardening as I learned about native plants. Several years later we have no remaining grass and a wildlife loving yard. The birds, butterflies, bees and love our yard.

The following are some things I have learned about native plants and attracting pollinators:

*Most native plants can survive without watering, AND they do not need chemicals!!!

*Bee balm, blazing star, Culver’s root, hyssop, milkweed, and cone flowers are the very best at attracting butterflies, bees and even hummingbirds. Hummingbirds love the cardinal-flower and red/pink bee balm. Hummingbird moths love little blue stem, sedges and many of the same flowers hummingbirds do.

*Gold finch and other birds eat the cone flower and little blue stem seeds all winter.

*Attracting new and interesting butterflies to your yard becomes an obsession as does planting butterfly host plants and attracting birds.

* Bringing birds to your yard can also bring the neighborhood cats. Keep your cats inside they are harmful to birds.

* http://www.audubon.org/news/how-get-hummingbirds-come-your-city

Plant for flower diversity and blooms throughout the spring, summer and fall!