As you clean up your garden this fall, don’t forget the birds! Leave some seed heads to dry on your perennial flowers, to provide winter food for finches, cardinals, and other year-round birds. Not only will you be providing much-needed nourishment and shelter for birds, but your winter garden will be graced with the striking shapes of dried stems adorned with colorful plumage.

You can also harvest the seeds for later spreading or using in feeders. If you’re adventurous, try scattering and watering a handful of birdseed mix, and see what sprouts!

The most popular flowering plants for feeding birds are:

  • Most native plants
  • Black-Eyed Susans and other plants with daisy-like blooms
  • Coneflowers
  • Ornamental grasses (all varieties)
  • Safflowers
  • Sunflowers
  • Zinnias

Birds are also attracted to:


Pink Muhly Grass is good for birds.

  • Asters
  • Bergamot
  • Calendula
  • Columbine
  • Coreopsis
  • Corn
  • Cosmos
  • Dill
  • Evening Primrose
  • Goldenrod
  • Lavender
  • Millet
  • Poppies
  • Rose of Sharon (Althea)
  • Salvia
  • St. John’s Wort
  • Teasel
  • Thistles

Further Information

Editorial Contributors
Danny Lipford

Danny Lipford

Founder

Danny Lipford is a home improvement expert and television personality who started his remodeling business, Lipford Construction, at the age of 21 in Mobile, Alabama. He gained national recognition as the host of the nationally syndicated television show, Today's Homeowner with Danny Lipford, which started as a small cable show in Mobile. Danny's expertise in home improvement has also led him to be a contributor to popular magazines and websites and the go-to source for advice on everything related to the home. He has made over 200 national television appearances and served as the home improvement expert for CBS's The Early Show and The Weather Channel for over a decade. Danny is also the founder of 3 Echoes Content Studio, TodaysHomeowner.com, and Checking In With Chelsea, a décor and lifestyle blog.

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