Attract Birds with Larval Host Plants
Jan. 10th, 2023 10:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmith posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
birdfeedingPlanting native species for butterflies and moths, particularly larval host plants, will attract birds. Therefore, all caterpillar gardens are also bird gardens. Not all butterfly gardens are also bird gardens, though; some of those really focus on flowers for nectar but ignore host plants. Happily more such mixes are adding at least milkweeds for the monarchs.
* It takes thousands of caterpillars to raise a clutch of baby birds. 96% of bird species raise their chicks on insects, mostly caterpillars, even if the adults eat seeds or something else.
Caterpillar Garden byysabetwordsmith
Flowers That Attract Moths: Tips For Attracting Moths To Your Garden
A guide to Lepidoptera host plants: Saturniidae silk moths
Host Plants for Butterflies and Moths - The Native Plant Herald
How To Create A Caterpillar Garden - Mr Plant Geek
Selecting Plants For Butterfly Eggs – Best Plants For Attracting Butterflies
Welcome Little-Known Moths to Your Garden
* Native plants host many more caterpillars than exotic plants do. This is because many caterpillars eat only one or a few plants in their native habitat, and thus do not recognize other plants as food.
Butterfly Plants List: Butterfly Flowers And Host Plant Ideas
Larval food plants of Lepidoptera - Wikipedia
(Listed by food plants.)
List of Butterfly Host Plants
Native Butterfly Nectar and Host Plants for your Garden
* Some trees host a truly massive array of other species, including caterpillars. Oaks support the most but are closely followed by Prunus (wild cherries, plums, etc.), willows, and birches. Almost one-third of oak species are threatened, which threatens the thousands of other species depending on them. Just looking at the nuts, about 150 species eat acorns, including many birds.
Butterfly Attracting Shrubs - Wilson Bros Gardens
(Includes some trees.)
Butterfly Friendly Plants - Seattle's Favorite Garden Store Swanson's Nursery
(Divided by annuals, perennials, or trees and shrubs.)
Pollinator Supportive Trees - Michigan Pollinator Initiative
Trees to Attract Butterflies for Sale - FastGrowingTrees
Trees for Butterflies - Edge of the Woods Nursery
* Many wildflowers host numerous caterpillar species too. The leading one? Goldenrod, which many people dismiss as a weed. Its leaves support over 100 species, and the showy yellow flowers provide valuable nectar in late summer to autumn. Aster is a close second with similar statistics, but it has daisylike flowers in purple, blue, pink, or white.
34 Host Plants For Butterflies & Caterpillars - Birdwatching HQ
Bat/Night Garden Mini-mix - Scotia Seeds (Scottish wildflowers)
(Attracts moths.)
BB7 Moths and Butterflies 100% Wildflower Seed mixture - Meadow Mania (British)
Butterfly Host Seeds - Joyful Butterfly
Butterfly Mixture - Applewood Seed Company
High Country Butterfly Habitat Wildflower Seed Mix - High Country Gardens
Host Plants for Butterflies & Moths - Prairie Nursery
Host Plants for Butterfly Gardens - Applewood Seed Co.
Midnight Garden Flower Mix Seed Packet - Hudson Valley
Monarch Butterfly Wildflower Seed Mix - American Meadows
Moon Moth Garden Plants - Almost Eden
Moonlight Pre-Planned Garden - American Meadows
(Includes milkweeds.)
Perennials for Caterpillars in the Butterfly Garden - ThoughtCo
Wildflower Seeds & Wildflower Seed Mixes by Region - Nature's Seed
Wetland Plants/Rain Garden Seed Mix - Jessecology
(Includes swamp milkweed.)
What Do Butterflies Eat: Host + Nectar Plants By Species
* Some herbs and vegetables also attract pollinators. So if you want to eat these yourself, plant extra. You can gently move caterpillars from "your" plants to "their" plants.
Garden Caterpillar Identification Guide (With Photos) - Owlcation
Herbs for Your Pollinator Garden - UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions
How to Have Your Butterfly Garden and Eat It Too
Identifying Caterpillars in My Garden - Almanac
Plant Herbs for Pollinators - Northern Gardener
A Visual Guide to 32 Types of Green Caterpillars in Your Garden
* What if you don't want to risk pest species (like tomato hornworm) maturing in your host garden? Buy or make a mealworm feeder. Pick off the pest caterpillars and deposit the free bird food in the mealworm feeder. Your birds will quickly learn to check it for an easy meal, just like they do when you go out to refill a seed or suet feeder and they swarm the feeder before you even get back indoors.
THE 5 BEST BLUEBIRD FEEDERS TO TRY (PERFECT FOR MEALWORMS)
Top 12 Best Bluebird Feeders - Review Of 2022
DIY Bird Feeder for Attracting Bluebirds - Birds and Blooms
(Upcycle small cans.)
Feeding Bluebirds - Michigan Bluebird Society
Feeding mealworms to bluebirds - Sialis.org
Flat Bluebird Feeder Plan
* Grasses and sedges host caterpillars too. These can be used alone in a low-mow or no-mow native lawn, or mixed with wildflowers to create a prairie or meadow. Some mixes include both grasses and wildflowers, or if it's a wetland mix, it may have sedges and/or rushes.
Grasses, sedges & rushes - Sound Native Plants
PT Grass and Wildflower Mixes - PT Lawn Seed
PT 456 Native Oak Woodland Mix For Partial Shade - PT Lawn Seed
PT 400 Native Upland Mix - PT Lawn Seed
Regional Native Grass Seed Mixes - American Meadows
Native Grasses from Short to Tall - The Native Plant Herald
Native Grasses, Sedges, & Rushes - Natural Communities
Native Prairie Grass Seed Mixes and Native Wildflower Seed Mixes - OPN Seed
Regional Native Wildflower and Grass Seed Mixes - Western Native Seed
* If you buy plants rather than seeds for a caterpillar garden, make sure they have not been treated with insecticides. Organic is better than nothing, but still allows Bt, which kills caterpillars. Many plants have been treated, even if labeled "pollinator-friendly," which is a serious problem. Try to shop at a pollinator nursery that does not treat plants, or at least where you can ask the people who raised the plants whether or not they have been treated.
Gardeners Beware - Beyond Pesticides
PESTICIDE-FREE PLANTS BEST FOR POLLINATOR GARDENS
Pollinator-Friendly Seeds and Nursery Directory Growing plants to protect managed and wild bees, butterflies, birds and other pollinators
The Risks of Pesticides to Pollinators - Xerces Society
WHEN do we know a host plant is safe (pesticide-free) to feed to caterpillars?
* No garden space? You can still help by making seed bombs or by supporting a local wildlife refuge. Seed bombs are also great for sowing large areas, or hard-to-reach parts, of your own property. Use a regional wildflower mix, or an economical mix of wildflowers and native grasses, for seeds that can take care of themselves when chucked into the rough. Shop specialty blends for seeds selected for wet or dry areas; those intended for slopes or septic fields are often good for empty lots.
DIY Seed Bombs With Clay, Flour or Paper (Easy)
Guerrilla Gardening Seed Bomb Guide
How to Make a Seed Bomb: 12 Steps (with Pictures) - wikiHow
Resourceful Gardening with Seed Bombs
Economy Prairie Mix - Agrecol Native Nursery
Economy Wildflower Mixture - Really Wild Bird Food (UK)
MNL Economy Backyard Prairie Mix - MNL: Heal the Earth
MNL Seed Packets - MNL: Heal the Earth
MNL Signature Seed Mixes - MNL: Heal the Earth
Quality Native Seed, Regionally Grown and Adapted to your Area Over 300 Species and 125 Standard Mixes - Roundstone Seed
Regional & State Wildflower Seed Mixes - Bulk Wildflowers
Regional Wildflower Mixes - Great Basin Seed
Regional Wildflower Seed Mixes Archives - Applewood Seed Co.
Seed Balls
(Premade and supplies to make them.)
Seed Balls Wildflower Mix - Brook Forest Soap Company
Seed Mixes - Wildflower Farm
(Multiple styles for trouble spots.)
SEED MIXES AND COVER CROP - Michigan Wildflower Farm
Specialized Wildflower Mixes - Vermont Wildflower Farm
Specialty Wildflower Seed Mixtures - Outside Pride
Wildflower Mixes By Region - Vermont Wildflower Farm
Wildflower Seed Mixes - Created By Nature
(Many individual state mixes.)
Wildflower Seed Balls - Boston Seeds (UK)
Wildflower Seed Bomb, Wildflower Organic Seed Bombs mix - Seed Bomb Shop (UK)
Wildflower Seeds For Sale Meadow Seed Mixes - Boston Seeds UK Suppliers
Wildflowers seed balls for Pollinators - 30 count in Gift Bag
Locate a Forest or Park Near You - Discover The Forest
Find a Park - U.S. National Park Service
Find a Refuge Near You
State Parks (USA)
* It takes thousands of caterpillars to raise a clutch of baby birds. 96% of bird species raise their chicks on insects, mostly caterpillars, even if the adults eat seeds or something else.
Caterpillar Garden by
ysabetwordsmith Flowers That Attract Moths: Tips For Attracting Moths To Your Garden
A guide to Lepidoptera host plants: Saturniidae silk moths
Host Plants for Butterflies and Moths - The Native Plant Herald
How To Create A Caterpillar Garden - Mr Plant Geek
Selecting Plants For Butterfly Eggs – Best Plants For Attracting Butterflies
Welcome Little-Known Moths to Your Garden
* Native plants host many more caterpillars than exotic plants do. This is because many caterpillars eat only one or a few plants in their native habitat, and thus do not recognize other plants as food.
Butterfly Plants List: Butterfly Flowers And Host Plant Ideas
Larval food plants of Lepidoptera - Wikipedia
(Listed by food plants.)
List of Butterfly Host Plants
Native Butterfly Nectar and Host Plants for your Garden
* Some trees host a truly massive array of other species, including caterpillars. Oaks support the most but are closely followed by Prunus (wild cherries, plums, etc.), willows, and birches. Almost one-third of oak species are threatened, which threatens the thousands of other species depending on them. Just looking at the nuts, about 150 species eat acorns, including many birds.
Butterfly Attracting Shrubs - Wilson Bros Gardens
(Includes some trees.)
Butterfly Friendly Plants - Seattle's Favorite Garden Store Swanson's Nursery
(Divided by annuals, perennials, or trees and shrubs.)
Pollinator Supportive Trees - Michigan Pollinator Initiative
Trees to Attract Butterflies for Sale - FastGrowingTrees
Trees for Butterflies - Edge of the Woods Nursery
* Many wildflowers host numerous caterpillar species too. The leading one? Goldenrod, which many people dismiss as a weed. Its leaves support over 100 species, and the showy yellow flowers provide valuable nectar in late summer to autumn. Aster is a close second with similar statistics, but it has daisylike flowers in purple, blue, pink, or white.
34 Host Plants For Butterflies & Caterpillars - Birdwatching HQ
Bat/Night Garden Mini-mix - Scotia Seeds (Scottish wildflowers)
(Attracts moths.)
BB7 Moths and Butterflies 100% Wildflower Seed mixture - Meadow Mania (British)
Butterfly Host Seeds - Joyful Butterfly
Butterfly Mixture - Applewood Seed Company
High Country Butterfly Habitat Wildflower Seed Mix - High Country Gardens
Host Plants for Butterflies & Moths - Prairie Nursery
Host Plants for Butterfly Gardens - Applewood Seed Co.
Midnight Garden Flower Mix Seed Packet - Hudson Valley
Monarch Butterfly Wildflower Seed Mix - American Meadows
Moon Moth Garden Plants - Almost Eden
Moonlight Pre-Planned Garden - American Meadows
(Includes milkweeds.)
Perennials for Caterpillars in the Butterfly Garden - ThoughtCo
Wildflower Seeds & Wildflower Seed Mixes by Region - Nature's Seed
Wetland Plants/Rain Garden Seed Mix - Jessecology
(Includes swamp milkweed.)
What Do Butterflies Eat: Host + Nectar Plants By Species
* Some herbs and vegetables also attract pollinators. So if you want to eat these yourself, plant extra. You can gently move caterpillars from "your" plants to "their" plants.
Garden Caterpillar Identification Guide (With Photos) - Owlcation
Herbs for Your Pollinator Garden - UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions
How to Have Your Butterfly Garden and Eat It Too
Identifying Caterpillars in My Garden - Almanac
Plant Herbs for Pollinators - Northern Gardener
A Visual Guide to 32 Types of Green Caterpillars in Your Garden
* What if you don't want to risk pest species (like tomato hornworm) maturing in your host garden? Buy or make a mealworm feeder. Pick off the pest caterpillars and deposit the free bird food in the mealworm feeder. Your birds will quickly learn to check it for an easy meal, just like they do when you go out to refill a seed or suet feeder and they swarm the feeder before you even get back indoors.
THE 5 BEST BLUEBIRD FEEDERS TO TRY (PERFECT FOR MEALWORMS)
Top 12 Best Bluebird Feeders - Review Of 2022
DIY Bird Feeder for Attracting Bluebirds - Birds and Blooms
(Upcycle small cans.)
Feeding Bluebirds - Michigan Bluebird Society
Feeding mealworms to bluebirds - Sialis.org
Flat Bluebird Feeder Plan
* Grasses and sedges host caterpillars too. These can be used alone in a low-mow or no-mow native lawn, or mixed with wildflowers to create a prairie or meadow. Some mixes include both grasses and wildflowers, or if it's a wetland mix, it may have sedges and/or rushes.
Grasses, sedges & rushes - Sound Native Plants
PT Grass and Wildflower Mixes - PT Lawn Seed
PT 456 Native Oak Woodland Mix For Partial Shade - PT Lawn Seed
PT 400 Native Upland Mix - PT Lawn Seed
Regional Native Grass Seed Mixes - American Meadows
Native Grasses from Short to Tall - The Native Plant Herald
Native Grasses, Sedges, & Rushes - Natural Communities
Native Prairie Grass Seed Mixes and Native Wildflower Seed Mixes - OPN Seed
Regional Native Wildflower and Grass Seed Mixes - Western Native Seed
* If you buy plants rather than seeds for a caterpillar garden, make sure they have not been treated with insecticides. Organic is better than nothing, but still allows Bt, which kills caterpillars. Many plants have been treated, even if labeled "pollinator-friendly," which is a serious problem. Try to shop at a pollinator nursery that does not treat plants, or at least where you can ask the people who raised the plants whether or not they have been treated.
Gardeners Beware - Beyond Pesticides
PESTICIDE-FREE PLANTS BEST FOR POLLINATOR GARDENS
Pollinator-Friendly Seeds and Nursery Directory Growing plants to protect managed and wild bees, butterflies, birds and other pollinators
The Risks of Pesticides to Pollinators - Xerces Society
WHEN do we know a host plant is safe (pesticide-free) to feed to caterpillars?
* No garden space? You can still help by making seed bombs or by supporting a local wildlife refuge. Seed bombs are also great for sowing large areas, or hard-to-reach parts, of your own property. Use a regional wildflower mix, or an economical mix of wildflowers and native grasses, for seeds that can take care of themselves when chucked into the rough. Shop specialty blends for seeds selected for wet or dry areas; those intended for slopes or septic fields are often good for empty lots.
DIY Seed Bombs With Clay, Flour or Paper (Easy)
Guerrilla Gardening Seed Bomb Guide
How to Make a Seed Bomb: 12 Steps (with Pictures) - wikiHow
Resourceful Gardening with Seed Bombs
Economy Prairie Mix - Agrecol Native Nursery
Economy Wildflower Mixture - Really Wild Bird Food (UK)
MNL Economy Backyard Prairie Mix - MNL: Heal the Earth
MNL Seed Packets - MNL: Heal the Earth
MNL Signature Seed Mixes - MNL: Heal the Earth
Quality Native Seed, Regionally Grown and Adapted to your Area Over 300 Species and 125 Standard Mixes - Roundstone Seed
Regional & State Wildflower Seed Mixes - Bulk Wildflowers
Regional Wildflower Mixes - Great Basin Seed
Regional Wildflower Seed Mixes Archives - Applewood Seed Co.
Seed Balls
(Premade and supplies to make them.)
Seed Balls Wildflower Mix - Brook Forest Soap Company
Seed Mixes - Wildflower Farm
(Multiple styles for trouble spots.)
SEED MIXES AND COVER CROP - Michigan Wildflower Farm
Specialized Wildflower Mixes - Vermont Wildflower Farm
Specialty Wildflower Seed Mixtures - Outside Pride
Wildflower Mixes By Region - Vermont Wildflower Farm
Wildflower Seed Mixes - Created By Nature
(Many individual state mixes.)
Wildflower Seed Balls - Boston Seeds (UK)
Wildflower Seed Bomb, Wildflower Organic Seed Bombs mix - Seed Bomb Shop (UK)
Wildflower Seeds For Sale Meadow Seed Mixes - Boston Seeds UK Suppliers
Wildflowers seed balls for Pollinators - 30 count in Gift Bag
Locate a Forest or Park Near You - Discover The Forest
Find a Park - U.S. National Park Service
Find a Refuge Near You
State Parks (USA)
(no subject)
Date: 2023-01-12 05:01 am (UTC)Thank you!
Date: 2023-01-12 06:24 am (UTC)