Plants for birds

Plants for birds

There are many garden plants that provide food in the form of berries or seeds. Listed here are some plants that provide either berries (B) or seeds (S) for birds. Much of this food becomes available in the late summer/autumn when birds need to build up their fat reserves for the coming winter.

Seed-feeding birds can be catered for by delaying the cutting back of annual and herbaceous plants until late winter. The withered foliage will also provide hiding places for over-wintering insects and spiders, and so give insectivorous birds a feeding area.

During the summer nesting season, most birds, including those classed as seed eaters, will collect insects and other invertebrate animals to feed to their young.

Birds, including the robin, wren, tits and house martins, help to control insect pests, while song thrushes feed on snails. Seed-eating birds, such as chaffinch, greenfinch, sparrows and goldfinch, reduce the seeding of weeds. It is possible to make a garden more attractive to birds by planting and managing it in a manner that meets their needs.

Some wild plants that occur in gardens as weeds, such as groundsel, chickweed, dandelion, fat hen, thistles and nettles, are good providers of seeds but are too troublesome to be encouraged. Those wildflowers listed below will sometimes seed themselves freely, but they have the merit of being sufficiently attractive to earn a place in gardens, especially in semi-natural areas. Some of the native trees and shrubs are also available as named cultivars; these are also likely to be good for birds, especially where the cultivar has been selected for its superior berrying.

Plants for birds and children

Children are fascinated by birds and other wildlife, and growing a few of the above plants at home or in the school garden will help satisfy this fascination.
Find out more about the RHS Campaign for School Gardening to help children grow.

Non-native cultivated plants

Berberis species (B)
Cherries, single-flowered species with fruits, e.g. Prunus avium , P. cerasus (B)
Cotoneaster species (B)
Crab and dessert apples, Malus species (B)
Daphne mezereum (B)
Firethorn, Pyracantha species (B)
Holly - female cultivars, Ilex species (B)
Honeysuckle, Lonicera species (B)
Mountain ash and whitebeams, Sorbus species (B)
Oregon grape, Mahonia species (B)
Photinia davidiana (B)
Privet, Ligustrum ovalifolium (B)
Roses, some species with hips, e.g. Rosa rugosa , R. moyesii (B)
Sunflower, Helianthus annuus (S)
Thorns, Crataegus species (B)
Viburnum betulifolium (B)

Native plants

Alder buckthorn, Frangula alnus (B)
Alder, Alnus glutinosa (S)
Birch, Betula pendula (S)
Blackberry, Rubus fruticosus (B)
Devil's bit scabious, Succisa pratensis (S)
Elderberry, Sambucus nigra (B)
Field scabious, Knautia arvensis (S)
Greater knapweed, Centaurea scabiosa (S)
Guelder rose, Viburnum opulus (B)
Hawthorn, Crataegus monogyna (B)
Holly - female plants of Ilex aquifolium (B)
Ivy, Hedera helix (B)
Mountain ash, Sorbus aucuparia (B)
Musk thistle, Carduus nutans (S)
Purging buckthorn, Rhamnus catharticus (B)
Teasel, Dipsacus fullonum (S)
Wayfaring tree, Viburnum lantana (B)
Whitebeam, Sorbus aria (B)
Wild roses, e.g. Rosa canina , R. rubiginosa (B)
Yew, Taxus baccata (B)

Plants for shelter and nest sites

Birds need sheltered places where they can roost at night or shelter from inclement weather. While some garden birds, such as collared doves and starlings normally roost in trees, many of the smaller birds prefer the shelter provided by shrubs and hedges, especially those with a dense branch structure.

Conifers and evergreen shrubs will give protection against cold winds in the winter. These plants will also provide nest sites for many birds, as will some of the more vigorous climbing plants such as clematis, ivy and honeysuckle.

In order to avoid disturbing nesting birds, pruning and hedge cutting should, where feasible, be avoided between March and late summer when young birds will have fledged. Hedgerows and shrubs bearing berries should not be cut back until late winter or after the berries have been eaten.

Search for suppliers of these plants in the RHS Plant Finder .