My Wildlife Conservation Shrubs came today from the NH State Nursery. Wow, am I ever super pleased. They advertised them at 6 inches so I expected small spindly things with one branch. Of course there are differences with some bigger than others but they are at least a foot high and that is after trimming and most have 'shrubby' shape. Some are very shrubby. At ten for $10.00 you can't go wrong!!!

I have the Red Elderberries already planted in the yard. I potted up the largest Silky dogwood and put three of the smallest Grey Dogwood in a large pot too. The rest I healed in at the loose soil in my veggie garden, just so they will not dry out in the next few days. The UPS man came late afternoon and I couldn't get any more done.

It was just gorgeous today, 80 degrees but its supposed to turn cold (40's) for the next two days. If it rains I will deffinately not get anything done. Oh, well there is always the weekend.

These things were really well packed. Indivual bags with the ten each of Silky, Grey Dogwood and Red Elderbery. Then all bags in an outer shipping bag. Ten fors were really eleven fors as there were eleven or twelve seedlings in each bundle of ten.

I am so pleased I wil just have to order something again next year from them !!!!!!

I am just so pleased with every thing planted, including my conservation shrubs and all the new Viburnums I bought this spring. I have a real wildlife shrub border that will only get nicer as the plantings grow in.

Plants I have found that the birds, and other wildlife like, are: mulberry, pokeweed (yes, let a few grow), elderberry, sparkleberry, black cherry, blackberry, persimmon, oak, muscadine grape, dogwood. I realize all of these aren't shrubs but the animals like them all, with mulberry at the top of the list. In my yard, there is constant activity in the mulberry tree when the fruit is ripe. This is my take on "non-natives". Many of these are now a part of our enviroment, and are not going away (no more than most of us "non natives" are). We should try not to introduce new ones but it is no use to fret about those that are firmly entrenched.

Ned

I live in washington state and there are service berries everywhere!!! A person can go down the road and see them all over on the sides of the roads and in the cliffs. I have an acre of land and plan on planting service berries in front and back. Not only do the birds love them but they also smell heavenly. The air is so sweet smelling right now that a person wants to live outside. I planted some snowberry last year and it bloomed the same year and gave a nice amount of white berries that the birds loved. I am thinking of trimming a few limbs shorter so that it will bloom more flowers and so I can start new plants for next year.

Lots of progress this spring in getting more birdfriendly shrubs and plantings in place. When I look around I just can't believe I started the shrub part of all this just last late July and August. I would never have even known what to plant if it wasn't for all the information I learned on the gardenweb forums. A big thanks to all who share their knowledge to help the ones like me, who needed lots of help to have any clue what to plant to attract more birds to the backyard.

There are now numerous Viburnums, Serviceberries, native honeysuckles, coneflowers, joe-pye weed, shrub dogwoods, currants, blueberries, milkweeds, sunflowers, mexican sunflowers,native warm season grasses, elderberies, winterberries, clovers, vetches (not crown vetch), hummingbird mints, hyssops, black-eyed susan, salvias, buckwheat, annual millets, borage, butterfly bushes, summersweet, chokeberry and others that I can't remember now. All growing in my gardens along with shrubs and flowers that are just for me, like all the different types of lilies I have all over the yard, and impatients, hugh old azaleas and large blue spruce trees. I have a large veggie garden planted every year. I have found the birds love to hunt for bugs in all sorts of places, including the tomato patch, because I do organic gardening, no spraying.

The Catbirds are new this year, having moved in after I put in the new mixed mostly viburnum, shrub dogwood and elderberry border and have that heavily mulched with bagged leaves from last fall. I small water pond helps too. Lots of work left to do but I love the way it looks.

Rita: Sounds like you would love bluebirding. Not sure what your yard looks like, but if you have an open area of mowed grass, the blues love that. You might check the bluebird forum on the Garden Web. I have included a web site for the North American Bluebird Society below. You could put a bluebird box up (not too close to trees) and probably attract bluebirds with all those berries. There are some things to know before you do it to avoid problems later. If you do decide to try it, I would research it a little online beforehand. By the way, the Eastern bluebird is a native cavity nester that is being pushed out by the non-native starlings and house sparrows, so you'd be helping the environment. Bluebirds eat lots of grubs. Good luck.

Also, thanks for asking this question. I have learned a lot from this thread.

Here is a link that might be useful: North American Bluebird Society

I would love to have Bluebirds but there are none around this part of Long Island. They are even rare in Eastern Long Island. I have never even seen one in my life in person. However, my hope is that as my berry producing shrubs mature that I at least might get a bluebird or two to stop by during migration.

I do lurk on the Bluebirding forum. Thanks to that I learned that I did everything wrong when I put up my birdhouses this spring on wooden poles, no baffles. We have lots of racoons around here. So after a chicadee pair took up in one of my houses, I put up sheet aluminum as a baffle and put a hole restrictor on. The chicadees abandoned the nest. Afew weeks later, they were back and are now feeding young in the box. I find it very interesting to watch their comings and goings.

I have birds nesting in my yard. This spring I had a pair of Robins, morning doves and house finches. But the chicadees are my first cavity nesters. Yesterday they were chasing a pair of Carolina Wrens all around the yard.

Rita: I had never seen a bluebird either until I put a house up. Some of the lists that I have seen do not report them in my area either. Now that I have a box, I have seen them here and there. Be patient. I'm glad you researched it. I have 4 eggs about to hatch any day. That is why I am here because I want to start planting for birds. Good luck to you.

Well, its like this......

I started my garden with the idea to attract Butterflies and quickly realized I wanted to plant to attract Hummingbirds also. So I started in the late summer and Fall of 2001 by adding to my perennial beds. I also put in the first of my many honeysuckles and a trumpet vine that year. I continued in 2002 with more perennials and honeysuckles for the gardens I had. Then I put in two new garden beds were there was nothing but lawn, planted that with perennials and vines, and I also put in a garden of all annuals to make instant color. I did the annuals by buying medium and large pots, arranging them in the middle of the lawn premenently (although I could, of course, move them) and filling with annuals bought from the nursery for instant color. Looks wonderful. I also put a row of annual pots along the sunny side of my patio and on the steps going up to the second level in the back of my multi-level property. Then I stacked more nice looking pots along one side of the house that had no garden beds and further along there placed a double row of reused green plastic pots that you get plants in. There I planted all sorts of clovers. The others have annuals again this year and I plan to do that every year as it looks great. I find it so much easier to do the annuals like that instead of trying for planting them in the ground.

I also planted borage and buckwheat to attract honeybees. Did it again this year. By mid summer of last year I was ready to start tackling putting shrubs to make berries to attract backyard birds, since I had done well on the bees, butterflies and hummers. All of which I had making my yard home much more than I could ever remember. So I started with some Serviceberries and Viburnums. Did alot more this spring in the shrub department and also started on native warm season grasses and more bird attracting "food plot" items such as more sunflowers, vetch, buckwheat, browntop millet, dove proso millet and grain amaranth. Don't worry, I do have normal perennial plants in my garden such as lots of Purple Coneflowers, black-eyed susans, milkweeds, taller sedums such as Matrona, hollyhocks, phlox, latris, salvias of many kinds, catmints, lots of daylilies and hardy lilies, oriental and trumpet lilies, Iris, hummingbird mints, hyssops, penstemons, 5 butterfly bushes, poppies, Russian Sage, Joe Pye Weeds, ironweed, Shasta and Gloriosa daises, columbine, lots of ferns, some hostas, well, the list goes on.

I have so many more ideas of what to do that I know I can't get it done in three more years so its going to be a long project. But everything I do makes it so much more nicer and believe me it does look great. Not just me saying this, my friends are amazed when then come into the yard and I get lots of compliments.

Anyway, about the bluebirds. I do plan on putting up more houses, correctly this time this Fall to be ready for the Spring. You never know. I have no large lawn, all of it is getting put to better use for gardens and shrub gardens. But my neighbor across the driveway has one of these large estate type lawns so I might be able to take advantage of that. We will see. I would love to see a Bluebird but I have seen tree Swallows flying overhead and over the water across the street (big park).

Rita: Sounds wonderful. The lawn next door might work for you . . . hopefully they don't use chemicals. Good luck attracting the blues.

You might want to add some cover shrubs (like thick conifers). Also, birds seem to enjoy American Holly (the berries and flowers).

Well, I added two more Arrowwood Viburnums this week, Northern Burgandy and Blue Muffin. I also bought my first Crabapple. A 8 foot tall 'Indian Magic'. Has lots of little fruits on it now.

The Viburnums I planted this spring are doing wonderfully. I especially like the looks of the Linden Viburnums and have two 'Cardinal Candy' and one 'Asian Bueaty'. I also am very pleased with the 'Wentworth' I put in this spring and bought a 'Winterthur' to go with my 'Count Polaski' both V. nudum.

Then last week I bought a 'Shasta' Doublefile Viburnum with lots of nice red berries already on it. So the wildlife plantings are coming along very well with a heavy emphasis on Viburnums.

Of course, I have plans for more additions next year and the year after that but can't wait until the shrubs already here start to grow up and really fill in. Have lots more birds around this year than ever before.

It's amazing how much you've done in such a short time Rita. Really you should reward yourself and buy a digital camera. We'd all like to see what you've done.
I still would like to add some American Holly. There are some mature ones in my area that are very attractive healthy looking trees. I've used a lot of viburnums in my shrub plantings too but need more evergreens.

Thanks for the compliment Christie. I rewarded myself for all this work by generally doing no planting or major mulching during most of July. After I got the serviceberry and winterberry shrubs planted that I got on my outing in late June, I just hung out on a chaise lounge in the backyard with a nice cool wine spritzer on the hot summer days and watched the birds, butterflies, bees, dragonflys, hummers, and whatever else showed up. I will do that and then picture in my mind what else I want to do in a certain area. What I want to change and additions I want to make. Sometimes there are places in the yard I just don't like, or I think the space there is wasted the way it is, but I can't think of how to change it and what to do there. But after months of gazing at it, an idea usually comes to me. Then I always wonder why I never thought of it before.

Thats the way it was with my new shrub border that now has the viburnums, elderberries, and shrub dogwoods amoung others. The grass never grew well there. I could see my neighbors driveway and some weeds plus trash stuff like barberries and some awfull vine wysteria that tried to take over the world. I would sit in a chair in my side yard relaxing and thinking how ugly that area was. I just never thought of changing it. Then one day the light bulb went off in my head and it just came to me that this is were I needed to start my shrub border and how great it would look. The plantings are all small now, so they don't screen the view, but I still can't believe how great it looks. Not at all like the displeasing sight that used to be there. I just can not wait for it to fill in and grow up some. Besides, I will eventually make parts of it wider by planing something in front. I don't want the lines of the border to be straight, preferring a curvey look.

I also bought myself a nice Inkberry 'Princetons Compact' yesterday. This is a female clone and I couldn't resist it as it is loaded with nice green berries to turn black in the fall. I know these shrubs can get leggy but this one is very dense and rounded. I don't have an inkberry male, just a Winterbery male, so I don't know what I will do to get berries next year. At least, this year is covered.

Finially planted three Nanking Cherries that I bought from St Lawrence Nursery this Spring and then potted up because the place to plant them was not ready. I have two of the rare black Nankings that I have never seen offered except by St. Lawrence this year. Also one red, needed for cross polination.

Now that they are planted (good timing as its been a rainey four days since they are in the ground), I am all excited about the idea of them flowering and fruiting next year. I have hopes of having fruit to eat for myself if the birds don't get it all. Of course, from what I read, Nankings are not good to eat fresh until they are totally ripe. Therein lies the problem, as the birds are supposed to love these and are not going to be fussy about unripe berries.

Hi newyorkrita,
I would love the address for the Conservation scrubs? I would like to order some too.
Thanks,
Martha

Heres the link to the Website. I like the selection here and the plants are very good quality. Also, unlike some state conservation nurseries, anyone from any state can order. Many states limit orders to those within their own state.

Here is a link that might be useful: NH State Forest Nursery

Newyorkrita,
Thanks, I too am trying to plant wildlife habitat. We have 6+ acers in the Louisville area.
Martha

I have been thinking of getting Blue Elderberry. So I ordered some from Raintree Nursery for Fall shipping. Should have them by first week in October.

This is what I have been doing this year.
I planted Rhea Blue Salvia,Salvia Purple Rain (sage),Salvia Anise Sage (guaranitica blk & blue), Nymph White Salvia,Autumn Sage Salvia, Agastache rupestris(Sunset Hyssop), Penstemon barbatus 'bashful', 4 types of Lavender, Columbine, Coral Bells,Bee Balm, Fuschia, Cape Fuchsia, Bleeding Heart, Hosta,Zinnias and Asclepias. I also planted for butterflies - Echinachea, Yarrow, Nanho Purple Butterfly Bush, Gloriosa daisy, Shasta Daisy,Heliotrope,Plumbago, Astible and Coreopsis. I then added Bottlebrush, Hibiscus and Sedum. I just bought Golden Sage (couldn't find pineapple this time of year), Batface - pretty red & blue tubular(Cuphea ignea) and a Sedum Autumn Joy. I have Sunflowers also. The deer (bambis) came thru and pruned tho. They didn't get the crepe myrtle or the Deodora cedar I planted for hiding spots along with my Redwoods and Locust Robina. The wild Blackberry bushes and variety of Oaks do work wonders for them - I am blessed.

newyorkrita,
Would you please give links to all the places you've mail ordered from? I'm new to TN and having a difficult time finding things locally. Any help you can give me would be great! You may also email me personally if you'd like. Just go to my page..
thanks,
terry

Well, you are asking for a project here as I have to try and remember where I got what and find the website address. Here goes-

NH State Forest Nursery (conservation seedlings) www.nhnursery.com
Oikos Tree Crops (small plants, great prices & quality) www.oikostreecrops.com
Fairweather Gardens (best quality shrubs in mailorder, you need to pay $4.00 for a catalog but its well worth the money) www.fairweathergardens.com
ForestFarm (wonderful resource for shrubs/trees) www.forestfarm.com
St. Lawrence Nursery (top quality edible & bird attracting shrubs) www.sln.potsdam.ny.us
Pine Ridge Gardens (great stuff/quality, helpful) www.pineridgegardens.com
High Country Gardens (unusual perennials/small shrubs/grasses) www.highcountrygardens.com
Raintree (fantastic and unusual edibles, high quality) www.raintreenursery.com
Nourse Farms Berries (shrub berries) www.noursefarms.com
Edible Landscaping (ships all summer, large plants) www.eat-it.com

Places I have not ordered but that get high marks and recommended by others here on Garden Web and I am planning to order from soon--

One Green World (similar stuff to Raintree, get catalog from Website link) www.onegreenworld.com
Musser Forest (seedling trees and shrubs) www.musserforests.com
Mellingers (seedlings and larger) www.mellingers.com
Pense Nursery (shrub berries) www.alcasoft.com/pense
Burnt Ridge Nursery (items like Raintree, sends smaller shrubs but better prices) http://landru.i-link-2.net/burntridge/index.html
Cold Stream Farms (top quality and good size at very reasonable prices) http://www.jackpine.com/~csf/
Solomon Holly Farms (all kinds of Hollies plus other shrubs) http://www.solomonhollyfarm.com/plantdes.htm
Finch Blueberry Nursery (best Blueberry prices) http://www.danfinch.com/berrys2.htm

My apologies to any I have left off. You should be able to fill up your whole yard from the places I have suggested. Just cut and paste the website addresses as I don't know how to make them hot links in the body of the message.

Wow!! What a list...thanks!!
Terry

My yard is 40' by 35' and a hotbed of acidic clay soil.In the back is largest Japanese Maple that I have ever seen,about 45'tall and 40'wide. Right now it shades about 1/2 my yard,but its days are numbered as it is being munched on by carpenter ants and I refuse to use insecticide. I suppose I have a typical urban garden which I would like to turn into a haven for wildlife. I have spent hours and days researching. I am concerned about planting native viburnums because of the newly introduced viburnum beetle that is marching south from upstate NY decimating all in its path. Given my size constraints I need to make every shrub count. So far I have planted two allegeny viburnum (supposedly resistant to the beetle, my sister in law swears that they are native and that the birds love them) and one winterberry holly sold as a hermaphrodite, perhaps they grafted the male onto the female. However, its leaves are turning black and falling off, I will have to wait until spring to see if it survived. I have ordered two regent serviceberries,one prince william serviceberry,and one black chokeberry from forestfarm, which I will plant this fall.In the spring i am planning to plant some elderberries. I still need some shade ideas. I would like to plant some rasberries but don't they tend to take over??? All the links on this forum have been so incredibly helpful already,but since I am a total amateur I need all the suggestions that I can get.Thanks

Then plant rasberry for the shade: Rubus odoratus, aka Frangrant thimbleberry!!
Produces rasberries that are not very succulent but great for wildlife gardening. Extremely tolerant of shade and very tolerant of draughts. So lovely as a bushy planting! Look at those leaves, and those pink flowers in the spring! Just hope it is native and hardy to your zone! A bit aggressive, like all rasberries, but probably containable somehow if this is an issue for you (with a rigid, +/- 1 foot barrier in ground). In Europe, I read it is widely used as an ornamental plant! Here in S-W Quebec, it is native... so of course few people use it!!

Thanks for the input.

newyorkrita,

Sounds like you are off to a good start. Thanks for sharing the places you have ordered from. I myself am in the process of creating a backyard haven for birds and so, far I have planted Elderberries, Winterberries, Northern Bayberries, 1 Viburnum (Wild Raisin), 1 Beauty Berry, and Autmun Olives (I only found out how invasive this plant could be) and 2 Pyracantha (sp).

I plan to plant several more species and, so I am glad that everyone here is sharing their experiences. I would also add to your impressive list the following, Peconic Farm http://www.prherbfarm.com/ and Rosyln Nursery at http://roslynnursery.com/contents00.html Let me add that at Roslyn it was the first time that I ever purchased plants where they actually measured the plants before tallying up the cost...and yes they were expensive. Peconic Farm was a long drive from Queens NY, but the people there were, so friendly and helpful that I would make the drive out there again. Anyway, keep on posting your updates and thanks again for sharing.

I love Peconic River Herb Farm, its one of my favorite Nurseries. The name is misleading as they have a wonderful selection of everything, not just herbs. I have gotten nice prennials there but mostly I have bought shrubs at fantastic prices. Great selection of hard to find shrubs too that I can't find anywhere else. All my Winterberies are from there. I only did not put them on the list that I did above because they do not mail order so would be good only for us local folks.

The mixed shrub hedgerow is getting added to come spring. Still, I haven't ordered much compaired to last year. Went too crazy last year doing too much in one year but I am very glad with whats done. Can't wait to see what blooms and sets berries.

Planted one Red Chokeberry 'Brilliantissima' I bought locally plus the three I ordered from Fairweather Gardens finially arrived. I had also ordered Winter Honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima) because it sounded wonderful. Immagine a shrub Honeysuckle that blooms as early as mid March and perfumes the yard with fragrance. Plus it makes little berries in June that the birds eat.

I am adding nine Blueberry shrubs this spring and 5 Black Rasberry shrubs. Both make delicious people pleasing berries for me to eat and I will be sharing with my local backyard berry eating birds.

I have six blueberries already and it looks like this will be the best production ever as they are loaded with blossoms just starting to open. Last year I just ate them off the bush as they ripened and so did the Catbirds. There just were not enough so to fix that problem I had to order more. They were shipped today. I will have them by the end of the week.

My Nanking Cherries are blooming this year. The Red Nanking Cherries finished blooming already and the Black Nanking Cherries are blooming now. They are supposed to pollinate each other so we will see if I get berries. I ordered more Nanking Cherries and some Dwarf Ground Cherries from St. Lawrence Nursery that should be here any day now.

Has anyone planted an American Plum?? One source said it was a large shrub/small tree. Another shrub I am loking at is Hazelnut/filbert. Any input????

Going wild, I just planted one this spring so I don't know much about it. It's small but leafing out very nicely. I bought that along with a chickasaw plum and a southern crabapple all native (I wanted a malus coronaria but couldn't find one)from Nature Hill. Sarah

Here is a link that might be useful: american plum

Right now, my black Chokeberry berries are starting to ripen up. We will see how long it takes for them to get eaten. Usually not long around here as they have been gone in a week the past two years.

I don't know about American Plums but I did plant some dwarf Beach Plum seedlings last Fall. Got them from Oikos Tree Crops and they were small, about 3-6 inches. They grew alot over the summer but I am sure they are still too small to bloom this coming spring. I have read that beach plums are attractive to wildlife and that they make excellent Jelly so I can't wait for fruit!

Looking back on the beginnings of this post, I can't believe how much I have accomplished since the summer of 2002. I didn't order much by mail this spring, only another Nanking Cherry to add to the ones I already have and some Blackberries are are supposed to be for me but I know the birds and critters will get their share here, they always do!

I am poofed! I was out planting this afternoon, adding to my shrub hedgerow that is starting to look like something. I had planted two more Arrowood Viburnums, a small leaf rhodo, lots more Azaleas and some blueberries already but today I planted 4 more small leaf rhodos, 3 blue holly females, 'Edward Gloucher' Abelia, 3 Neon Flash Spirea and can't remember what else. Have more to plant. These shrubs are not especially for the wildlife but they are mixed in with all the Viburnums and everything else in the shrub row, so they birds will like it just fine.

Rita, its ok to let this thread drop off. You've been having a discussion with yourself since last august.

I guess its time for an update since this old post is still here. I used to update whats going on in my garden but after the post above by John, I stopped.

After starting in 2002, my shrubs have turned out wonderfully. I have a shrubby border that I wanted to look like the edge of a woods running down one side of my property all along from the back yard to the front. I have slowely kept working on it and it of course has filled in and grown. It really does look like the edge of a woodland and I absolutely love it! The birds love it too as I have so much more backyard songbirds around than I ever did before. As I am wrinting this I listen to the song of the house wrens that now live in my backyard that I never had before my planting.

Can't believe this was started back in 02. I'm glad some of these posts made it through the change and now there isn't a maximum of 10 pages like there used to be. I've enjoyed your updates.
Do you have to pull a lot of weeds around your shrubs or is the mulch keeping them at bay? Any ground covers or perennials?
My shrub row has viburnums and shrub dogwoods mostly and the birds have been using them to build nests in. I've had mockingbirds, cardinals and this year a brown thrasher. The nests are down low enough so that we can get up close and look in.

Nice to see you back Rita. I too like reading your updates, even if I didn't reply, I still enjoyed reading... ;)

I just haven't been posting on the shrubs or wildlife garden forums because I rarely go here now. These used to be my favorite forums but it seems like not much goes on around here since a bunch of people left gardenweb afew years ago when it changed.

I grow roses now so am at the rose forums everyday as I started roses three years ago. I know before I got the shrub areas of my yard done, I was not interested in anything like roses as I wanted a yard to attract backyard songbirds and butterflies. As these areas started to grow in I thought it looked so nice but what I thought I needed was some color for that punch that I didn't have after the azaelas finished blooming. And I have about forty azaelas. So I redid a perrenial garden that wasn't looking like what I wanted into a rose garden. It looks smashing.

I spray the roses only with a fungicide, so birds find plenty of bugs here, even on the roses and no birds or bees are harmed here. Butterfly attracting plants like milkweed, purple coneflowers, mexican sunflowers, Joe Pye weeds and so on are still here just like they used to be.

And I have lots of fruit here like cherry trees (5), Mulberry tree, lots and lots of Blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, red currants, gooseberries which are supposed to be for people but I never net anything so the birds get more than their fair share.

I now have house wrens nesting in my backyard for the first time and had chicadees nesting for the past three years. Saw my first rabbit in my yard ever this spring.

My yard is very cottage garden as I love a jumble of things.

Some people did leave for good, that's true. I think there's still a lot of us old timers here though.

I'm going for (mostly) native and wild. Like a house was dropped into the middle of the woods or something. We've only been in this house for 2 yrs though, so my plants are still rather small. I ripped out every thing but 1 large arborvitae in front and an Ash tree in the side yard. I can't wait for all the new to fill in! The property is small too, so I have to pick and choose wisely with my selections.

When I started my garden redo I had to start by taking out lots of Multiflora rose and the most awful old overgrown green japanese barberries that had seeded themselves and grown all over the property. I didn't do it all at once but did a section of the yard at a time. This spring I finially got the very last of the barberry out which was the leftovers of what used to be a hedge in my front yard.

I am really glad to see it gone!

My husband and I have been working part time out at my parents house, in their timber. Removing multiflora rose and jap honeysuckle bushes. I should say trees as I just spotted one the other day that was taller than a Wild Cherry right next to it. It is so neat to look where we've cleared out that junk, compared to where we haven't gotten to yet.

Rita, You've been a total inspiration to me! I moved to this old farmhouse in December of '03 and the yard--except for a row of old pines--was a total blank slate...Now, thanks in part to your enthusiastic, informative, and *consistent* updates, I'm well on my way to turning this 2/3rds of an acre in a much-needed (in the midst of vast cornfields) little bird/wildlife habitat.

Nearly all the shrubs I've planted came with your endorsement. :-) Now, I just have to keep the rabbits at bay (lost two year's growth last winter, thanks to an incredibly heavy snow cover and starving rabbits! This year, cages will go up around EVERYTHING and I'll put out rabbit food, instead, for the bunnies. I can't live long enough to have everything eaten to the ground, anew, each winter...). I can't wait to see how my yard transforms itself!

Thanks for all your posts!

Rita, I've enjoyed reading your comments and updates too. Don't worry about John's comments. He doesn't have to read the thread if he doesn't want to.

I've seen you at the Daylily Forum a lot this summer too :-)

I'm slowly working on replacing a long thicket of some type of Symphoricarpos that has lovely violet berries. My great grandmother planted it many years ago. I never could find out what it was until my DD's FIL from Kansas ID'ed it as 'Buck brush' and I looked that up online. I can't remember the species name (I have it written down somewhere). Anyway, he said it was a noxious weed in Kansas. I have never noticed a bird eating the berries but they do disappear by spring. I don't know if they just dry up or actually get eaten later in winter. It suckers jpretty agressivly.

I would like to gradually replace much of it with blueberries, and other bird attracting shrubs. it's great for cover for birds so I don't want to jsut take it all out at once and plant a bunch of little sticks.

Have you kept a record of the different birds in your yard since you did the shrub border?

Yes Rita please do update us. You have been a great inspiration to me too. I have planted a lot of the shrubs you have recommended for wildlife and i plan to get more of your recommended shrubs :-) I love all your updates on how your plants are progressing and look forward to any and all responses you write. Please dont let one person ruin it for all of us. I look forward to anything you have to say. You seem to have a big fan club, dont leave us hanging :-)
Bonnie

Yep, I clicked on this thread just hoping to see how Rita was coming along with her berry bushes. Have you ever posted any pictures, Rita? It's so nice to hear how it has come along!