Wildlife Garden in southeast texas

Our region of Texas, which borders the Piney Woods of east Texas and the prairies and marshes of the Gulf Coast, is host to a wide assortment of native and non-invasive naturalized plant varieties. Many of these can be used in the home landscape to entice both migratory and native bird species.

I design gardens that provide different levels and densities of vegetation to attract many species of birds. My designs include canopy trees, understory trees, assorted shrubs, perennials, and ground covers. Lets attract that wildlife!

Canopy and Medium Height Trees

 Canopy and medium-height trees provide protection for birds from weather and predators. I like to use Mexican white oak (Quercus polymorpha) and Drummond red maple (Acer rubrum var. drummondii). These are in the medium-to-large deciduous shade-tree category.

I love planting southern sugar maple (Acer barbatum) and big, fluffy Chinese fringe-trees (Chionanthus retusus). In the category of smaller deciduous blooming trees for the understory, I use parsley hawthorn (Cratagegus marshallii) and white fringetree or “Grancy Greybeard” (Chionanthus virginicus). Both of these spring-blooming natives are understated, slow-growing beauties which produce fruit for the birds.

Other native trees to add to the list of wonderful small-to-medium-sized blooming trees are the arroyo sweetwood (Myrospermum sousanum) from Mexico and Mexican plum (Prunus mexicana)*. The latter not only blooms profusely in the spring with clusters of fragrant white-to-pinkish flowers, but also produces edible plums that the birds will fight you for.

 Eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis) blooms rosy pink flowers in April before its heart-shaped leaves emerge. The early blooms draw in nectar-seeking insects and a few songbirds. Large shrubs and understory trees are an important aspect of my designs, because many yards are devoid of anything other than some existing trees planted by the builders.

Medium-height plant material acts as a thicket zone for clusters of birds such as Northern Cardinals and Blue Jays. 

Understory Plantings

The types of understory plants I use depend on the amount of sunlight that reaches the landscape floor. I primarily use three varieties of viburnums—Walter’s viburnum (Viburnum obovatum), ‘Lord Byron’ viburnum (Viburnum obovatum x rufidulum), and Luzon viburnum (Viburnum luzonicum).

These plants are evergreen or deciduous, but even the technically deciduous varieties hold their foliage until the new leaves push the old leaves off, providing nearly evergreen protection. Most prefer sun to partial sun, so if your canopy of large trees is somewhat open, they will thrive. Viburnums produce an abundance of berries in a variety of colors, typically shifting through a sequence of colors as they ripen—some of the blues are even iridescent! This creates a changing scene in the garden, and food for migrating as well as resident birds.

The ubiquitous American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana), which can’t be beat for attracting our feathered friends, is native to our area. It’s usually already present and is sometimes called a nuisance because it can be unwieldy if left to its own devices. It’s a good idea to cut these after the birds have devoured all the berries. Because this species is plentiful and prevalent in many yards I come across, I love adding other species of Callicarpa to spice up the landscape.

I have a lot of success with the mighty Mexican beautyberry (Callicarpa acuminata), which has gorgeous burgundy wine berries darker than its more northerly cousin’s. Callicarpa longissima, with its vibrant, long-lasting purple flower heads, produces hundreds of clusters of white berries that mockingbirds devour. C. longissima can grow to be a giant, often reaching 15 feet or more in one season, so give it room! Callicarpa salicifolia is a long-blooming variety that produces a lot of berries.

There are several Chinese species with more-manicured growth habits, some with variegated leaves. These all do very well in our region and add much to create a bird-thicket-type area. I can’t stop talking about their glossy berries because they come in all shades from dark wine to purple to pink to white. And the flowers also come in white and pink!

Possumhaw (Ilex decidua) is a fabulous holly to add to your garden. If you can find ‘Finch’s Gold’, a yellow-berried variety, it’s a showpiece. The ‘Pumphouse Red’ cultivar of yaupon (Ilex vomitoria)* is a great variety to add if you do not already have a yaupon holly in your yard. Possumhaw and yaupon look very similar during the growing season, but yaupon is evergreen. Possumhaw is a deciduous,15 to 20 foot multi-trunked native that displays orange-to-red berries on bare stems in winter.

Birds love it. Birds also love the winter berries on female yaupons. Northern Mockingbirds, Cedar Waxwings, and American Robins feed on the shiny, translucent red or yellow berries from both of these native hollies. As a bonus, yaupon can be brewed into a caffeinated tea! (They are related to yerbabuena of Argentine fame.) 

(Rhamnus caroliniana) is an attractive small tree or large shrub that adapts to many growing situations. In east Texas, where rain is plentiful, it is frequently an understory tree/shrub growing in bottomland conditions. It produces an abundance of berries for wildlife.

Common buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) is a distinctive native shrub with spherical pincushion blossoms composed of dense clusters of tiny white or pale-pink tubular flowers. The fragrant blooms attract a wide array of pollinators. Waterfowl and shorebirds eat the seeds, and Wood Ducks use the plant’s structure to protect brooding nests. This shrub will thrive in a boggy or low spot in your garden. 

 Beneficial Ground Coverings

Vines and grasses also help to create a healthy understory. I like to start with trumpet vine (Campsis radicans). This scrambling woody vine is cultivated for its attractive reddish-orange flowers (beloved by hummingbirds and ants), but it must be kept in check and planted in an area where suckers can be mowed to keep the plant from expanding beyond defined areas. Other than that, trumpet vines require little care and rarely have issues with pests or disease. Despite a reputation for being difficult to maintain, trumpet vines are easy to grow and provide a beautiful cover in addition to habitat for nesting birds and food for pollinators.

Winecup or purple poppy-mallow (Callirhoe involucrata) is a native wildflower that is more sprawling than its cousin, standing winecup or fringed poppy-mallow (Callirhoe digitata), which grows up to 20 inches tall in ideal conditions. The bright purple blooms of both species cover the plant from late spring into summer. Once established, winecups’ deep taproots make them very tolerant to drought. Callirhoe involucrata’s long branches spread out across the ground to create a colorful mat of flowers and foliage.

 Gulf muhly (Muhlenbergia capillaris) is a two-to-three-foot perennial grass with a large, airy, much-branched seed head—up to half as long as the entire plant. The spikelets are pinkish-purple. In fall, these flower plumes take on a feathery, deep-pink hue.

Bamboo muhly (Muhlenbergia dumosa) is one of my absolute favorite ornamental grasses. It has a wonderfully soft texture and feathery blades that sway peacefully in the gentlest of breezes. The stems resemble actual bamboo, making this plant a stunning addition to Japanese gardens.

Big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) is a warm-season, perennial bunchgrass that is large in stature with blue-green foliage and interesting flowering heads. The seed head is usually branched into three parts, resembling a turkey’s foot. The fall color is a maroon tan. Big bluestem grass is not recommended for small spaces, but can be used to accent a native flower garden or border an open property line. Grasses offer cover for many species of songbird, including Grasshopper Sparrow, Henslow’s Sparrow, Sedge Wren, and meadowlarks.