You’re sitting inside staying warm, happy that you’re not out in the freezing cold. You look out the window and watch the birds happily gathering around the feeders that you just filled up this morning. (I swear they’re waiting for me when I go outside to do that.) Soon the squirrels use their unbelievable athleticism to leap from tree branches or fence posts to get their share of food from the feeders. Like clockwork, the deer will show up at dusk to finish off what the birds and the squirrels left behind, thereby necessitating another trip to the feeder tomorrow morning.

The birds are on constant guard for the occasional Cooper’s or Red Tail Hawk that isn’t interested in the bird food, but the birds themselves. If a bird hesitates slightly, they become a winter snack for the hawks. They seem to have an alarm system, as they all scatter simultaneously into the surrounding evergreens, shrubs, and herbaceous plants, or to a pile of pruned branches. All of that habitat provides not only protection, but also natural winter habitat for insects and small mammals. On the occasions when the feeders are empty, the birds flourish on the seed heads and berries left standing in the winter landscape.
It gives us as human beings a great deal of satisfaction and joy to know that the ecological landscape that we have created is just as alive in the winter as it is in the growing seasons and fall. An ecological landscape also provides respite, habitat and a food source for our wildlife. Native trees have been intentionally planted in the proximity of the feeders for a place for the birds to perch and watch, and to wait for their opportunity to fly to the feeder or jump around the ground. The bluejays and mockingbirds, just to name a couple of species, spread seed onto the ground from the

feeders like a toddler in a highchair. Drifts of native flowering shrubs provide density and cover, as well as providing a great food source for the visitors to enjoy. Herbaceous plants and
native grasses hold their seed heads and move gracefully with the winter winds. Every seed head gets a snow cap in a winter storm, adding a beautiful touch to the winter landscape. The birds also enjoy using fence posts and deck railings for a place to alight before proceeding to the feeders. I am always amazed as I watch a woodpecker grab a nut from the feeder, and use a fence post as their dinner plate to crack open their dinner.


The notion that the landscape is desolate, gloomy and lifeless in the winter couldn’t be further from the truth. No matter what your space is, even if it’s a few plants near your apartment window, or if you have a small or large yard, it is incumbent upon us to understand that by creating our plantings in an ecological way, we are able to help our wildlife friends through winter. As suburban sprawl and development of huge commercial spaces have increased, we have steadily encroached on their natural spaces and habitats. We can live together in peace and help each other out. We can recreate their natural habitat and food sources. They can give us so much joy and teach us so much just by having them visit our space. You can be assured, if you plant it, they will come!
– Written by ROR Member Mark Eberhardt, MSE Landscape Associates