One of the main threats to bird conservation is habitat change, including habitat degradation. Over centuries, especially in NYC, people have replaced forests, wetlands, and meadows with buildings, roads, landfills, and green spaces filled with exotic plants. One sure way to support native bird populations is to increase native bird habitat by planting native plants.
In this post, I will review the differences between native and exotic plants, provide examples of native plants that will work well in window boxes or pots, street tree beds, and large garden spaces, and provide additional resources where you can learn about garden design and purchase native plants. Once you’ve added some native plants to planting areas near you, add a comment at the end of this page to share your experience! I bet you’ll be seeing more birds in no time!
Native vs Exotic Plants
Native plants are those plants that have evolved over millions of years in a particular environment, and are well adapted to a region’s climate, soil conditions, and wildlife. They provide food and shelter to native wildlife and require minimal upkeep to survive. If there is a variety of life thriving among some plants you’ve noticed – buzzing of bees, fluttering of butterfly and bird wings – it’s highly likely these plants are native.. Over 50% of bird species live off primarily insects and more than 75% of bird species consume insects at some point in their life cycle (1). They need thousands of them to survive. Baby chickadees, for example, can consume over 9000 caterpillars in the 16 days that they spend growing in their nest (2).
The symphonic sounds of insects at the Dene Slope, a native meadow in the southern section of Central Park. Highlighted in the video are butterfly weed, a type of milkweed, and orange and black milkweed bugs.
Video captured by the author. Do not reproduce without permission.
Exotic plants, on the other hand, are plants that have evolved in other parts of the world and do not provide food for the insects and birds where they are now found. Many of them have been purposefully cultivated over hundreds of years for a particular look – large, bright colored flowers, for example – and to not be attractive for insects. They have been planted in gardens throughout the world, including in New York City, allowing the plants to look beautiful over many growing seasons without any holes in leaves and stems left by chomping wildlife. Walk past a garden of exotic plants in the warmer months, and you’ll see little movement and notice silence! A quiet planted area is great for those of us who are bothered by bugs, but is the equivalent of an empty supermarket for birds.
Tulips in front of the Arsenal in Manhattan, originally native to Europe and Central Asia 
Lilac bushes in Central Park, originally native to Eastern Europe 
Daffodils – originally native to Europe and North Africa
Choosing the appropriate native plants for your planting area
Depending on if you live in an apartment in a large building, an apartment in a private house, or own your own house, your available planting area will vary, and will influence the types of resources you can provide for birds. With a little bit of creativity, and by following the tips below, we can each add at least one native plant for birds in New York City. First begin by determining the planting space you have available to you; then spend some time determining the lighting in that space. Once you have this information gathered, continue below to find some plants appropriate for each planting space. For a more extensive list of native plants for your area, search the Audubon Native Plant Database.
Window box planters or pots
If you do not have any outdoor space available to you for planting, you can create one! Look online for some large window boxes that you can hang outside on your windows or for large planting pots that you can place on a stable surface. If you are living on upper floors and placing these outdoors, make sure that you attach them properly so that they will stay put through rain and wind. You do not want these dropping on anyone that might walk by below! Take into consideration the kinds of conditions your plants will be in, the soil you will need, and how often you will need to prune and weed your container gardens.
Full sun:
Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta): this flowering herbaceous plant has yellow flowers in black centers (“eyes”). It can grow up to 2′ tall, and blooms from June through October. The plant provides seeds to birds, and provides nectar to insects. It may attract blue jays, mockingbirds, American robins and other thrushes, wood warblers and orioles.
Butterfly weed or Butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa); this flowering herbaceous plant blooms with clumps of orange flowers (scroll up for video featuring this plant). The leaves are dark green, smooth and pointed. The plant can grow from 1′ to 3′ tall and can tolerate drought. Like other milkweeds, it’s a host for monarch butterflies. It’s also a host for the monarch bug. This plant may attract Northern Cardinals, sparrows, hummingbirds, thrushes, and goldfinches.
Full sun to shade:
Gray Goldenrod (Solidago nemoralis): this flowering herbaceous plant has slender stalks and clusters of small yellow flowers that bloom August through November. The plant can grow up to 2′ tall and is the smallest of the goldenrods. It attracts bees and butterflies, and can also attract blue jays, sparrows, goldfinches, orioles, and wood warblers.
Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica): this flowering herbaceous perennial has bright blue tubular flowers at the top of the stem, blooming from July through October. It grows 2′ to 3′ tall, and needs to be watered regularly to thrive. It provides food for bumble bees and hummingbirds and may be attractive to northern mockingbirds, blue jays, American robins, orioles, wood warblers, and wrens.
Street Tree Beds
New York City has almost 700,000 street trees with beds of various sizes. One way to support native birds is to help the trees in your neighborhood! Street trees are the property of NYC Parks, and the agency encourages all New Yorkers to adopt and care for them. If you see that your local street tree has litter and weeds, you’re welcome to clear up the litter, add compost and mulch, and plant some herbaceous native plants that won’t compete with the tree for resources. As a courtesy and as a potential collaboration, you might want to let the super or house owner adjacent to the street tree know of your ideas and decide on a plan of action together. Here are some native plants that would work well in street tree beds and would also support native birds. Note: if you encounter a large root while planting in a tree bed, do not damage the root and instead shift to a safer location within the bed.
Full Sun for beds with young trees:
Smooth Beggartick (Bidens laevis): this herbaceous flowering plant is in the aster family and produces yellow flowers from June to October. The nectar in the flowers feeds native bees and can also attract mockingbirds, orioles, wood warblers and sparrows. The plant can grow form 1′ to 3′ tall. The plant prefers moist soil, so will need you to water it during dry spells.
Annual Fleabane (Erigeron annuus): this herbaceous annual or sometimes biannual is also in the aster family and blooms with daisy-like clusters of white petaled flowers that are 1/2″ across. The plant has a central stem that has white hairs, and can grow up to 3.5′ tall. The plant is a food source for a variety of insects including bees, beetles, flies and moths. Like the beggartick, it can also attract wood warblers, mockingbirds, orioles and sparrows. It also prefers moist soil.
Partial to full shade for beds with mature trees:
Blue American Aster or Heartleaf aster (Symphyotrichum cordifolium): this flowering herbaceous plant can grow up to 4′ tall, has broad green leaves, and clumps of 10 to 15 flowers with light blue petals and yellow centers. The plant provides food for native bees and butterflies and may attract a wide array of birds, including cardinals, chickadees, mockingbirds, crows and sparrows.
Common Evening-primrose (Oenothera biennis): this flowering herbaceous plant can grow well in dry, rocky and sandy soils in full sun to shade. The stem that has a lot of leaves can grow from 2′ to 6′ tall and has yellow lemon scented flowers 2″ in diameter that bloom from July to September. This plant is a food source for moths and bees, and may attract sparrows, finches, American robins and other thrushes, wood warblers and chickadees.
For more information on how to care for street trees and additional ideas for plants suitable for street tree beds, go to NYC Parks Caring for Street Trees page.
Back Yard, Community Garden or Parks space
For those of you who have access to a large planting space, this is the section for you! You have the potential to create a true haven for wildlife, birds included, by setting up the space to provide food, water, cover and opportunities for nesting (3).
In the sections above, we were mainly concerned with adding plants that would provide food sources for birds, as the planting spaces were limited. With the option of a larger planting space, you could possibly plant all the options listed above and many others that you can find in the Audubon Native Plant Database. With more available space, the options you have to create additional resources for birds are endless!
To create spaces for birds to shelter – to rest on their daily searches for food and from long migrations, and to hide from rain and storms – you can plant trees and bushes. Trees and bushes also provide locations for nest placement. In the fall, leave some leaves under the plants to decompose. The decomposing material will provide nutrients for the soil, and habitat for worms and insects, additional sources of food for birds.
Included below are a few native shrubs and trees that thrive in an urban landscape.
American Hazelnut (Corylus americana) : this deciduous shrub grows 8′ to 16′ tall. It has dense, vase shaped clumps of stems, yellow catkins that stay on the plant from late winter through early spring, and has edible nuts that can be eaten by vireos, blue jays, cardinals, American Robins and can also attract wood warblers, sparrows and other birds. It does well in sun to partial shade and is tolerable of all soil moisture levels.
Highbush blueberry (Vaccinium Corymbosum): this deciduous shrub grows 6′ to 12′ in height. It has bell-like white flowers that bloom May – June, and produces blueberries July to August. The leaves have bright shades of red in the fall. This plant thrives in acidic soil, is moderately tolerant of drought and grows well in sun to shade conditions. The flowers provide nectar to native bees, and the berries are eaten by 30 species of native birds including Northern Mockingbirds, Scarlet Tanagers, Northern Cardinals, American Robins, and chickadees.
Black Oak (Quercus velutina): this deciduous tree grows 50′ to 80′ tall and has a varied spread. It produces catkins in the spring and acorns in the fall. The leaves have pointed lobes, are shiny and dark green on top and pale green below. It can grow in sun to shade and in soils that are of various moisture levels. The tree provides food, shelter and nesting for many species of birds. I have a large healthy specimen outside of my 6th floor apartment. On a given year, I see at least 30 species of birds stop by to rest, eat, and mate. These have included Blue Jays, Northern Cardinals, Mourning Doves, various species of warblers, woodpeckers, vireos and a Red-Tailed hawk.
Black-and-white Warbler feeding on insects on the black oak outside of my window. I have at least 30 species of birds that visit this tree in a given year.
Video captured by the author. Do not reproduce without permission.
Red Maple (Acer rubrum): this deciduous tree grows up to 40′ to 60′ tall and can spread up to 40′ at its canopy. It blooms with red flowers in the spring followed by red seeds, and has bright red and yellow leaves in the fall. It thrives in urban environments and can handle soil compaction and air pollution, although it does prefer moist soils. The tree provides a food source for moths and native bees, and may attract sparrows, woodpeckers, Northern Cardinals, and wood warblers.
Now that you have an idea of the types of plants that work in different urban environments, let’s get planting and make a tangible impact for our native birds! Below are some additional resources that will help you with your next steps including designing your planting area, and obtaining native plants.
Additional Resources
Native Plants for Birds in your area: database from the Audubon Society
How to care for NYC Street Trees, including additional suggestions for native plants suitable for street tree beds.
How to Create a Garden for Wildlife from the National Wildlife Federation
How to Design your Native Plant Garden from Dyck Arboretum
Purchase Native Plants from:
References:
- Why birds matter: from economic ornithology to ecosystem services.
- https://www.audubon.org/news/why-native-plants-are-better-birds-and-people
- https://www.nwf.org/Garden-for-Wildlife
- Native Plants database: https://www.audubon.org/native-plants