PLANT FOR THE BIRDS THIS FALL

by Sharon Ashworth
Horticulture & Natural Resources
Extension Agent

As fall approaches, the birds we see around us are either passing through on their way south from points north, preparing to leave Kansas for more tropical climates, or are here to stay the winter. All these birds need fuel for travel or for the long winter ahead. Resident winter birds also need the shelter of trees and shrubs. Fall is an excellent time to plant trees and shrubs that will provide our feathered friends with food and shelter for years to come.

Cornell Lab of Ornithology researchers have estimated that an average of four billion birds migrate south from Canada each fall. Birds migrate south as winter approaches and the availability of food declines on their summer breeding grounds. Cornell’s Birdcast webpage lets you type in your location to find out when birds are migrating overhead. When a large migration is forecast, consider turning off your outside lights from 11:00PM until 6:00AM. Bright lights attract and disorient nocturnally migrating birds, potentially causing fatal collisions with buildings.

The Lawrence Bird Alliance has a pictorial guide to 29 of the most common birds that spend the winter with us here in Douglas County.

Backyard Birds of Winter

Below is a table of native trees and shrubs to consider planting for the birds. Before planting a tree or shrub, read K-State’s handy brochure on the “Top Ten Tree-Planting Mistakes”. Trees and shrubs with fruit available in the fall and into the winter are marked with an asterisk.

Scientific Name	Common Name	Horticulture notes
Amorpha canescens	Leadplant	1-3 feet tall
Amorpha fruticosa	False indigo	self-seeding, suckers
Ceanothus americana	New Jersey tea*	under 4 ft., drought tolerant
Cephalanthus occidentalis	Common buttonbush*	prefers moist soil, needs large space
Prunus virginiana	Chokecherry*	remove suckers to prevent spread
Cornus drummondii	Rough-leaf dogwood*	thicket forming
Corylus americana	American hazelnut*	remove suckers to prevent spread
Crataegus crus-galli	Cock-spur hawthorn*	thorns, disease prone
Euonymus atropurpureus	Eastern wahoo*	understory tree
Lindera benzoin	Common spicebush*	moist soil
Malus ioensis	Prairie crabapple*	tolerates dry, alkaline soil
Prunus americana	American plum	remove suckers to prevent spread
Prunus mexicana	Bigtree plum	plant where fruit drop will not be problematic
Rhus aromatica	Fragrant sumac	drought tolerant
Rhus copallinum	Winged sumac*	spreads aggressively
Rhus glabra	Smooth sumac*	spreads aggressively
Ribes missouriense	Missouri gooseberry	very hardy, thorns
Ribes odoratum	Golden currant	needs regular pruning for more formal landscapes
Rubus occidentalis	Black raspberry	needs regular pruning
Staphylea trifolia	American bladdernut	moist soil, shade
Viburnum prunifolium	Rusty black-haw viburnum*	with pruning may be grown as a single trunk
Viburnum rufidulum	Black-haw viburnum*	more than one plant needed for fruit