Five Amazing Benefits of Attracting Birds to Your Garden

Male Goldfinch - Winter Colors by Nannette Richford

If you are like most gardeners, you probably enjoy listening to songbirds as you work. You may even hang a feeder or two to attract birds to your yard. What you may not have considered is the benefits of attracting birds to your yard and garden.

1. Natural Insect Control. Birds love insects and can make quick work of insect pests in your yard and garden. Purple Marten's are known for their appetite for mosquitoes while other songbirds eat aphids, spiders and other bugs.
2. Promote Pollination. Many birds, like hummingbirds and orioles, sip nectar from flowers and spread pollen to other flowers. These birds are helpful in the yard and garden.
3. Weed Control. If you've never considered how birds help to control weeds, you are not alone.  But the truth is that many birds eat the seeds from annoying weeds and prevent them from self seeding and spreading throughout your garden or yard.
4. Enhance Beauty. Most songbirds are colorful and add movement, color and sound to your yard or garden exciting the senses and enhancing the overall beauty of your yard and garden.
5. Reduce Stress. Although there is no specific evidence that watching birds reduces stress, their is ample evidence that being outside in nature does. According to Prevention, it only takes 5 minutes in nature to lift the mood and reduce stress. Creating an environment where you can relax and watch birds may do wonders for your mood and reduce stress and anxiety too.

For me, attracting birds to the yard is a natural extension of gardening. I enjoy the ever-changing selection of birds that stop to feed and add a little excitement to the garden.

                                                                                     Until next time . . . HAPPY GARDENING!