Planting to attract wildlife isn't so different from planting for your personal enjoyment. But, instead of just putting in plants because they appeal to you, you need to give some thought to plants that are useful to wildlife in different ways. There are seven types of plants you should consider incorporating into your planting scheme.
- Conifers
- Grasses and Legumes
- Nectar producing plants
- Summer fruiting plants
- Autumn fruiting plants
- Winter fruiting plants
- Nuts and acorn plants
Conifers are important to wildlife, particularly birds, because they provide cover for nesting and for roosting. Many make seeds in cone or berry form that are important parts of wildlife diets. Pines (Pinus), Yews (Taxus), Hemlock (Tsuga), Arborvitae (Thuja), Junipers (Juniperus), Firs (Abies) and Spruce (Picea) are some of the most used genera. Many of these are available in cultivars with foliage in shades of blue and gold or that changes to bronze and maroon during winter. These can provide colorful accents to enhance your planting scheme as well as encouraging wildlife in your garden.
If your shady garden is already mature, there's a good chance some of your shade is being cast by large conifers. If you're starting out with a blank slate, or want to create shade, then using conifers is something you should consider. Since most of them are evergreen, they will also provide your garden with "bones", mask unsightly views of the neighbor's Technicolor toy sets or less than beautiful accouterments and encourage wildlife all at the same time. If your garden is already shaded by deciduous trees or structures, Hemlocks and Yews will be your best bet as they both tolerate a good deal of shade.
Dwarf specimens are not going to attract wildlife; you need plants that will become large enough to provide the cover needed. Be advised, however, that many conifers sold as "dwarf", "nana" or "compacta" will, in time, get quite large - they just don't do it as fast as those without these labels. So, do some research on the plants that interest you and plan accordingly.
Ornamental grasses that bloom and set seed provide interest in the garden, cover for smaller mammals and birds as well as food for birds and other wildlife. I've recently done a series of articles on ornamental grasses for shade and I refer you to them for consideration of the many species that thrive in shady gardens. They may be found here, just scroll down.
