Plants for Birds

Northern Mockingbird on Eastern Redbud. Photo: Glenda Simmons/Great Backyard Bird Count

"It's simple: By gardening with native plants, no matter where you live or how small or large your space is, you can help sustain wildlife." - Doug Tallamy, Bringing Nature Home

Your yard -- and the kinds of plants in it -- matters more than you may know. Native plants play a very important role in providing the food birds need to survive and thrive in a way that non-native plants cannot do. 

Going Native
Native plants are those that occur naturally in an area. North Carolina, with its diverse geography, is home to thousands of native plant species! Our natural wildlife - including birds - have adapted to the resources provided by North Carolina's native plant population. These plants and trees are, in a real sense, home for our birds.

Why are native plants important?
In a word: insects... Almost all land birds require insects to feed their young. Even seed-eating birds often must feed their babies insects to ensure their survival. Insects cannot adapt to eating non-native plants. Less native plants means less insects, which in turn means fewer bird babies growing to adulthood. 

We’re Nuts About These Bird-Friendly Native Plants
Bird-Friendly Communities

We’re Nuts About These Bird-Friendly Native Plants

Nuts and seeds are a very important source of fat for birds as they help keep their skin and feathers healthy. Check out these four species from our 2018 Bird-Friendly Native Plants of the Year list!

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Sweeten Up Your Backyard With These Native Nectar Plants
Bird-Friendly Native Plants

Sweeten Up Your Backyard With These Native Nectar Plants

Nectar is a sweet treat that provides essential nutrients for one of our most recognizable backyard birds - the hummingbird! Find the best native nectar-producing plants for birds here.

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These Bird-Friendly Native Plants are Berry Special
Bird-Friendly Native Plants

These Bird-Friendly Native Plants are Berry Special

Berries are so important to birds. Check out these top four types of bountiful berry plants on our 2018 Bird-Friendly Native Plants of the Year list!

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Audubon North Carolina & First Lady Kristin Cooper Build a Bird-Friendly Garden at the Executive Mansion
Bird-Friendly Communities

Audubon North Carolina & First Lady Kristin Cooper Build a Bird-Friendly Garden at the Executive Mansion

Learn how Audubon North Carolina helped establish a bird and pollinator-friendly garden at the Executive Mansion!

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Planting a Mountain Oasis for Birds
Bird-Friendly Communities

Planting a Mountain Oasis for Birds

Outside of Boone, High Country Audubon is reviving the hillsides and riverbanks of a park with native plants.

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A Native Plants Garden That Brings Birds, Pollinators, and Parishioners Together
Bird-Friendly Communities

A Native Plants Garden That Brings Birds, Pollinators, and Parishioners Together

The partnership between Elisha Mitchell Audubon Society and St. Eugene Catholic Church in Asheville, North Carolina, is just one example of the chapter's work in the community.

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Town of Matthews Embraces Native Plants for Birds
Bird-Friendly Native Plants

Town of Matthews Embraces Native Plants for Birds

Municipal leaders vote in favor of more native trees and plants to accompany new development.

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Why Go Native for Birds
Bird-Friendly Native Plants

Why Go Native for Birds

Native plants play a very important role in providing the food birds need to survive and thrive.

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Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Latin:  Archilochus colubris

Illustration for Ruby-throated Hummingbird

American Goldfinch

Latin:  Spinus tristis

Illustration for American Goldfinch

Wood Thrush

Latin:  Hylocichla mustelina

Illustration for Wood Thrush

Northern Mockingbird

Latin:  Mimus polyglottos

Illustration for Northern Mockingbird

Learn More About Bird-Friendly Native Plants

Governor's Western Residence Blooms
Bird-Friendly Communities

Governor's Western Residence Blooms

After the bird-friendly garden in Raleigh was revealed last fall, the First Lady and Governor invited Audubon to refresh to Governor's Western Residence in Asheville!

Boone Bird Garden Groundbreaking and Celebration
Bird-Friendly Communities

Boone Bird Garden Groundbreaking and Celebration

This project transforms a school courtyard into a colorful garden full of plants that will produce flowers, seeds, and berries that will in turn attract birds and other pollinators.

We’re Nuts About These Bird-Friendly Native Plants
Bird-Friendly Communities

We’re Nuts About These Bird-Friendly Native Plants

Nuts and seeds are a very important source of fat for birds as they help keep their skin and feathers healthy. Check out these four species from our 2018 Bird-Friendly Native Plants of the Year list!

Sweeten Up Your Backyard With These Native Nectar Plants
Bird-Friendly Native Plants

Sweeten Up Your Backyard With These Native Nectar Plants

Nectar is a sweet treat that provides essential nutrients for one of our most recognizable backyard birds - the hummingbird! Find the best native nectar-producing plants for birds here.

These Bird-Friendly Native Plants are Berry Special
Bird-Friendly Native Plants

These Bird-Friendly Native Plants are Berry Special

Berries are so important to birds. Check out these top four types of bountiful berry plants on our 2018 Bird-Friendly Native Plants of the Year list!

New Hope Audubon’s Guide to a Bird-Friendly Backyard
Bird-Friendly Communities

New Hope Audubon’s Guide to a Bird-Friendly Backyard

Through their Bird-Friendly Habitat Certification Program, New Hope Audubon Society (NHAS) is working to restore native habitats by helping residents in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties take steps to make their property bird-friendlier.

Brightening the Greensboro Bog Garden
Bird-Friendly Communities

Brightening the Greensboro Bog Garden

Members of the T. Gilbert Pearson Audubon Society in Greensboro are removing exotic, invasive plants at the local public “Bog Garden” at Benjamin Park—and replacing them with bird-friendly native species.

First Lady Kristin Cooper Reveals a Bird and Pollinator-Friendly Garden at the Executive Mansion
News

First Lady Kristin Cooper Reveals a Bird and Pollinator-Friendly Garden at the Executive Mansion

"As someone who loves birds, gardening and our natural environment, I wanted the Executive Mansion native plant garden to be a model for those interested in supporting birds and wildlife in their own backyards,” said the First Lady.

Audubon North Carolina & First Lady Kristin Cooper Build a Bird-Friendly Garden at the Executive Mansion
Bird-Friendly Communities

Audubon North Carolina & First Lady Kristin Cooper Build a Bird-Friendly Garden at the Executive Mansion

Learn how Audubon North Carolina helped establish a bird and pollinator-friendly garden at the Executive Mansion!

Your Go-To Local Experts: Native Plant Retailers
Bird-Friendly Communities

Your Go-To Local Experts: Native Plant Retailers

They can provide tailored recommendations and change their inventory to support demand: here's why else our local Bird-Friendly Native Plant retailers are essential to our bird-friendly communities!

How you can help, right now