Books
All of the books listed below provide information on how to create a bird-friendly garden. Bringing Nature Home and Nature’s Best Hope also provide information on the ecological reasons for native gardening.
· Darke, Rick, and Douglas Tallamy. The Living Landscape. Timber Press, 2014.
· Daniels, Jaret. Native Plant Gardening for Birds, Bees, and Butterflies: Upper Midwest. Adventure Publications, 2020.
· Nowak, Mariette. Birdscaping in the Midwest. University of Wisconsin Press, 2007.
· Tallamy, Douglas. Bringing Nature Home. Timber Press, 2007.
· Tallamy, Douglas. Nature's Best Hope. Timber Press, 2020.
Websites and PDFs
A PDF from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology that gives a brief explanation of how to create a garden for the birds.
· Michigan Native Garden Design for the Birds!
A PDF from Michigan Audubon showing various designs for bird-friendly gardens, including location tips and plant lists.
· Habitat Hints: 12 Ways to Help Migrating and Nesting Birds
A webpage by Saving Birds Through Habitat (written by the EIC’s own Rick Simek) outlining some ways to help birds thrive in your yard.
· Insect Usage of Trees and Shrubs
A PDF from Kalamazoo Wild Ones with woody plant genera ranked by the number of insects they support.
· Michigan Native Plants for Bird-friendly Landscapes
A PDF from Michigan Audubon with suggested plants for bird-friendly landscapes and how they help to support birds.
A website with information about the growing conditions of a variety of plant species from trees and shrubs to flowers and graminoids.
· National Audubon Society Native Plants Database
A webpage by the National Audubon Society with complete lists of native plant species that help to support birds in your local zip code. Results can be filtered by plant type, type of birds they attract, and the reason that they attract them (e.g. fruit, nectar, insects).
· National Wildlife Federation Native Plant Finder
A website by the NWF that shows the best native plants for supporting insects in your local zip code. Results can be filtered by type of plant (woody or herbaceous), and each plant listing will show examples of the caterpillars that it will feed.
A list of selected native plant nurseries in Michigan from the Wildflower Association of Michigan.