Planning a Habitat Garden: North and South
October 2nd, 2008
Filed in Garden Design
Tags: bugs, butterly garden, garden, habitats, shrubs., tree
The problem about giving gardening advice on a website that is not region-specific, is that every piece of advice has to be replicated in duplicate or triplicate for it to be useful. That is just fine! Repeating the same advice for three or four climate zones will help with our “Natural Search.” (Ha ha! Another pun! I am bad with the puns this week!)
In all seriousness, for a habitat garden to truly work, and provide habitat for the animals who need it most, it needs to include plants that are helpful to the animals that live in the area. Shelter and water needs can be filled more generically, but plants are pretty specific to the region and its animals. Humidity, latitude and other factors influence the garden, but this is supposed to be a guide, not an inclusive encyclopedia. So, to point you in the right direction, below is a list of plants and their corresponding animals for cool and warm temperate of habitat gardens. (Desert folks–we’ll cover you another time! Promise!)
Cool Temperate Habitat Gardens
- Ilex Glabra Inkberry
This is an evergreen shrub with bluish blackish berries that make tasty treats for birds. - Amelanchier canadensis Serviceberry
Serviceberry trees give spectacular fall color, and provide nesting, roosting and chrysalis attachment structure. The berries are good animal snacks. - Aconitum species Monkshood
These flowers are great nectaries for bees, and bees need all of the love and support they can get. - Diospyros virginiana American Persimmon
Box turtles love the sweet persimmon fruit. - Arisaema triphyllum Jack-in-the-Pulpit
Tiny tree frogs hide in their flowers, and the fruits feed many animals - Aster Family Plants
Coneflowers, Black-eyed Susan, Aster, Zinnia and other Aster family flowers provide nectar for some butterfly species, while the seeds are a food source for small mammals and birds.
Warm Temperate and Subtropical Habitat Gardens
Butterfly Host Plants
- Ruellia Wild Petunia
- Myrica Wax Myrtle
- Cercis canadensis Eastern Redbud
- Asclepias tuberosa Butterfly Weed
(Butterflies love Butterfly Weed as much as Flower Children of the ’70s loved, well, a different weed.) - Foeniculum vulgare Fennel
Hummingbirds love these:
- Liatris
- Salvia coccinea Tropical Salvia
- Lobelia cardinalis Cardinal Flower
For the Birds:
- Coccoloba uvifera Sea Grape
- Callicarpa americana Beautyberry
- Chionanthus virginicus Fringe Tree
Water for Habitat Gardens
Each animal has its own water needs. Butterflies need puddles of water to soak up minerals through their feet. A shallow dish with gravel and water in it can serve as an “artificial puddle.” Dragonflies, water spiders and other insects need still water to lay eggs. Amphibians benefit from shallow ponds with a gradual slope to the water. Birds need bird baths that are cleaned out daily or every other day to bathe and keep their feathers in top shape for flying.
Shelter for Habitat Gardens
A variety of trees and shrubs with varying density of leaf canopy will provide shelter for bees, birds and butterflies. Hollow logs on the ground, wood piles are natural “toad houses” and are comfy for turtles, too.
It goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway, that any trees, shrubs, ground covers and flowers are better than a yard entirely composed of grass. The above lists will get you started. The main key to success in habitat gardening is to provide a variety of plants (food), water sources and shelter, and STOP using synthetic pesticides, and the critters will come!
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