About Birdscaping
Birdscaping is the art of selecting the best possible plants for a garden designed to satisfy the needs of birds. How you select and arrange these elements to create habitat is the essence of birdscaping.
— George Adams
If you provide a variety of food niches in your garden a variety of birds will find a reason to visit!
- ‘Layer’ your planting with grasses and groundcovers, medium-sized plants and trees to attract a variety of birds.
- Keep small birds safe. Plant your garden with lots of protective, understory vegetation. Increasing populations of aggressive birds, such as currawongs, Australian Magpie, Noisy Miners and predators like cats, make it difficult for small birds to survive.
- Select the plants to provide the best nesting habitat.
- Encourage birds to stay in your garden by using the Planting Tables to provide year-round nectar, fruit
and seeds.
The Plant Directory contains descriptions of over 400 native species of beautiful garden plants from groundcovers to trees, with detailed information on their distribution, the birdlife they attract, cultivation and a plant’s suitability for your region (Hardiness zones 1–8).
Icons show the plant size and shape at maturity and other attributes, such as whether it is a nesting or butterfly attracting species
How birdscaping evolved... The term ‘birdscaping’ was coined by George Adams back in the 1970s. An ardent conservationist and architect, he was concerned by the practice of clearing a site as a prelude to development and the subsequent loss of any remnant bushland. He wanted to compensate for what had been lost by developing an ‘intensive’ approach to gardening using native plants with a high value for wildlife. By studying native plants he became aware of the amazing interdependence between Australian plants and native birds. George also discovered that when it comes to providing food, shelter and nesting for native birds not all plants are equal!
