Beneficial Bird Plants

 Ages ago I said I would put up a post about plants that are beneficial to birds. And now I will.

Cornflower

Nasturtium Leaves

Nasturtium Flower



I have grown some in my garden. Cornflowers provide seeds for them, nasturtiums provide a wealth of Large and Small White caterpillars, and sunflowers provide masses of seed, a favourite of Greenfinches (and humans!).

Other Plants:

Fat Hen (Seeds are an important food source for many birds)
Teasel (Attracts Goldfinches)
Honesty (Attracts finches, including Bullfinches)
Lavender, English and French (Finches eat seeds and flowers attract beneficial insects)
Honeysuckle (Attracts insects and many birds eat berries)
Evening-Primrose (Finches eat seeds)
Greater Plantain (Seeds eaten by doves and finches)
Goldenrod  (Seeds for Goldfinches, Siskins and Linnets)
Groundsel (Seeds eaten by finches and sparrows)
All Thistles (Seeds eaten by finches)
Alder (Seeds in cones eaten by many birds)
Hornbeam (Mast eaten)
Hazel (Nuts rich in fatty oils and vitamins, also eat them yourself!)
Beech (Mast rich in energy, a good food for many birds)
Stone Pine and other pines (Pine nuts eaten by lots of species)
English Oak and other oaks (Acorn popular with Jays, but woodpeckers and some others take them)
Barberry and Mahonias (Berries are a popular food, flowers attract insects)
Hawthorn (All thrushes, including Blackbirds eat berries, along with a host of other species)
Strawberry, wild and cultivated. (Fruits eaten by many birds)
Apple (Windfalls popular with most birds)
Crab-Apple (Fruit has higher energy content than cultivated apples, rotting fallen fruit eaten)
Mulberry (Very high vitamin C content. Birds such as thrushes, Starlings and warblers eat them)
Gean (High in vitamin C and energy. Starlings, thrushes and other birds love them.)
Myrobalan (Plums high in calories, vitamin A and C, eaten by Blackbirds and other thrushes)
Bullace (High in sugars, Magpies, Fieldfares, Redwings an many other birds eat them)
Firethorn and other Pyracanthas (Most berry-eating birds, including Waxwings eat them)
Pear (Like apples, mainly fallen pears are eaten.  Fieldfares and other thrushed feed on them)
Gooseberry (Good source of energy and vitamins. Popular with all thrushes)
Blackcurrant and Redcurrant (Devoured by Blackbirds  and most other birds)
Dog-Rose (Most berry-eaters eat the rose-hips, as well as rodents)
Bramble (Popular with many birds)
Elder (Most birds eat the berries)
Grape (Very attractive to Blackbirds and Starlings)