Attract Beautiful Spring Bud-Eating Birds By Planting These Trees

If you're a gardener who loves welcoming feathered visitors to your outdoor space, you may know there are many different steps you can take to turn your yard into a bird haven. You might clean your bird feeders like a pro, grow native plants, offer a supply of water, and provide winter food sources from species like hollies (Ilex spp.) or sumacs (Rhus spp.). But there's an additional step you may be overlooking: planting trees that bud-eating birds love as a source of spring food. 

There are numerous native and non-native plants that will attract lovely, winged visitors to your yard with this unexpected means of nourishment. They include types of maples (Acer spp.) and cherry trees (Prunus spp.). Both early leaf and flower growth on trees serve as spring food for bud-eating birds. Among the feathered visitors that dine on immature foliage or blooms are species like scrub jays and cedar waxwings. Common bird feeder visitors like brightly colored purple finches, eye-catching grosbeaks, and adorable, white-crowned sparrows will also eat buds as part of their diet. Ground-nesting ruffed grouse — birds that have beautiful displays of long feathers around their necks — rely heavily on this food as one of their main sources of nourishment. And if you're hoping to catch glimpses of more woodpeckers in your yard, you should know that yellow-bellied sapsuckers will enjoy your offering of spring buds as well.

Planting trees native to your region will bring multiple benefits to all of the wildlife in your yard, including the bud-eating birds. For this purpose, you can plant species that are easy to find, like elms (Ulmus spp.), river birch (Betula nigra), and American beech (Fagus grandifolia) — their spring buds are among the favorites of our feathered visitors. Other great options are American hophornbeam (Ostrya virginiana), silver maple (Acer saccharinum), black cherry (Prunus serotina), and chokecherry (Prunus virginiana), all of which are native to the U.S.

In addition to native cherries, you can count sweet cherries (Prunus spp.) among the types of trees to plant in your backyard for bird-friendly habitat as well. If you don't mind sharing, and don't take measures to prevent them from foraging, beautiful bud-eaters will snack from these fruit producers. There are even other fruit trees you can plant to attract gorgeous birds to your garden with their spring buds, such as the common cultivated apple (Malus pumila).