Wild Birds in the Apartment Garden
Even a gardener in a big city with just a small apartment garden can still attract a number of wild birds to the garden. Birds will often fly around in an urban area, see an apartment garden with a lot of green container plants and decide to stop there to rest, especially if there is food or water for them there.
Attracting birds to our garden spaces is very rewarding, especially when you plant flowers and put out birdseed specifically to attract them. Learn what wild birds are common feeder birds in your area and put out birdseed and feeder in your apartment garden that they will visit; plant flowers they will pollinate or eat seeds from; and put a birdbath outside that they will bathe in and drink from.
Attracting wild birds to the apartment garden gives you an excuse to sit on the couch and just stare out the window at your garden. (If you have a tree just off your patio or balcony, you may even be lucky enough to see woodpeckers or interesting courtship rituals of different wild bird species.) Attracting wild birds to your apartment garden gives you a reason to get out in the garden more often and replace seed, birdbath water and plant new things.
You can design your apartment garden around the birds you want to attract. Some gardeners devote their entire apartment garden to creating a hummingbird and butterfly garden. Others build or collect birdhouses for certain species to nest in. Others pack their small apartment gardens with every type of birdfeeder and birdseed available.
Remember that if you do decide to attract wild birds to your apartment garden, you will have a lot of extra garden maintenance and expenses. And you may have one flock of boisterous common birds, such as house finches, that will scare away more rare (and more shy) species. Read “Wild Bird Maintenance” for more about the downsides to attracting birds to your apartment garden. If you decide to take the time and effort to attract birds, you will enjoy the animation and sound that birds bring to the garden.
