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Native Plants For Attracting Birds In Georgia

Native Plants By States

Georgia Plants for Wildlife Habitat & Conservation Landscaping

Do you enjoy observing nature…hearing the song of the chickadee…watching hummingbirds fill up on nectar from trumpet vines…listening to the chattering of squirrels…seeing the beauty and grace of a monarch butterfly perched on a milkweed… experiencing the antics of a Mockingbird…the cooing of the Mourning Doves…the swiftness of the Cottontail…and the brilliance of a Cardinal or Baltimore Oriole?

If the answer is “yes”, you’ll probably want to landscape your property for wildlife so you can experience even more from Mother Nature by attracting more wildlife to your property.

Wildlife doesn’t just randomly appear in a given area. It is there because of favorable habitat. The essential elements that you must provide in your habitat are food, water, cover and a place to raise a family. To attract the most wildlife, you need native trees, shrubs, groundcover, vines and wildflowers, many of which will provide food and shelter.

Native or indigenous plants naturally occur in the region in which they evolved. They are adapted to local soil, rainfall and temperature conditions, and have developed natural defenses to many insects and diseases. Because of these traits, native plants will grow with minimal use of water, fertilizers and pesticides. Wildlife species evolve with plants; therefore, they use native plant communities as their habitat. Using native plants helps preserve the balance and beauty of natural ecosystems.

Remember the function served by plants and structures is more important than their appearance. In other words, don’t base your planting decisions solely on what a plant looks like. Following are WindStar Wildlife Institute’s plant recommendations for wildlife habitats in Georgia:

Trees

Tall–Mockernut Hickory, Pecan, Shagbark Hickory, Hackberry, Persimmon, American Beech, American Holly, Black Walnut, Sweet Gum, Black Gum Oak (Scarlet, Burr, White, Red), Live Oak, Eastern Red Cedar, Eastern White Pine, Slash Pine, Loblolly Pine

Medium/Small–Box Elder, Horse Chestnut, Paw Paw, Flowering Dogwood, Pagoda Dogwood, Downy Hawthorn, Carolina False Buckthorn, Winterberry

Baltimore Oriole

Baltimore Oriole is very common bird in Georgia.

Shrubs
Bottlebrush Buckeye, Red Buckeye, Prickly Ash, American Beautyberry, Chinquapin, Buttonbush, Black Huckleberry, Northern Spicebush Winged Sumac, Smooth Sumac, Black Elder, Viburnums

Wildflowers
White Snakeroot,Red Columbine,Wild Ginger, Milkweeds, Coreopsis, Blue larkspur, Shooting Star, Purple Coneflower, Trout Lily, Joe Pye Weed, Woodland Sunflower, Gayfeather, Cardinal Flower, Wild Lupine, Wild Bergamot, Penstemon, Carolina Phlox, Black-eyed Susan, Goldenrod, Wild Asters, Tall Ironweed

Groundcovers
Partridgeberry, Golden Ragwort, Wild Strawberry, Fragrant Bedstraw, Goldenseal, Trailing Arbutus, Spreading Dogbane

Vines
Peppervine, Crossvine, Trumpet Creeper, Virgin’s Bower, Yellow Jessamine, Trumpet honeysuckle, Virginia Creeper, Passionflower,Climbing Hydrangea

Grasses
Big Bluestem, Bushy Bluestem, Split-beard Bluestem, Broom Sedge, Stalk-grain Sedge, Rice Cut Grass, Switchgrass, Little False Bluestem, Blue-eyed Grass

From the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Colonial Coast, our state has an exceptional variety of ecosystems. Tallulah Gorge with its spectacular overlooks; Amicalola Falls, the highest waterfall this side of the Rockies; Providence Canyon, Georgia’s “Little Grand Canyon;” and the mysterious Okefenokee Swamp are among the stunning natural areas. The Georgia Native Plant Society can provide lists of plants for a specific region.

For more information on improving your wildlife habitat, visit the WindStar Wildlife Institute web site. On the web site, you can also apply to certify your property as a wildlife habitat, register for the “Certified Wildlife Habitat Naturalist e-Learning course, become a member and sign up for the FREE WindStar Wildlife Garden Weekly e-mail newsletter.

About the Author

Sam Crowe

Sam is the founder of Birdzilla.com. He has been birding for over 30 years and has a world list of over 2000 species. He has served as treasurer of the Texas Ornithological Society, Sanctuary Chair of Dallas Audubon, Editor of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's "All About Birds" web site and as a contributing editor for Birding Business magazine. Many of his photographs and videos can be found on the site.

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