Tips on Creating a Wild Life Habitat

Now is a good time to start thinking about your backyard and if it has everything needed to create a wild life habitat.  If not, you can start putting together a plan to remedy the problem.  Today, I’m sharing backyard bird tips on creating a wild life habitat.  My goal is to create a habitat for backyard birds.  However, you can work towards creating a habitat for squirrels, deer, ducks and more.

There are four areas that you should focus on when creating your backyard wild life habitat.  Remember, you don’t have to incorporate every item listed below.  Strive to make it beautiful and an area that you enjoy watching too.  Here’s the areas:

Shelter

• Wooded Area
• Rock Pile
• Evergreen Trees
• Brush Pile
• Log Pile
• Shrubs
• Ponds

You will need to provide at least two areas of shelter when creating a wild life habitat.  I provide bird houses, a log pile, and plenty of shrubs.  Fortunately, I also have a row of evergreens on my back property line.

Food Sources

• Seeds from a plant
• Berries
• Twigs
• Fruits
• Suet
• Feeders
• Nuts

You will need to include at least three of these food sources.  I offer feeders, suet, nuts and seeds from sunflower plants and berries from a wild cherry tree.   Furthermore, I have black walnut trees on my property.  The squirrels stay busy gathering walnuts in the fall and stealing sunflower seeds and peanuts from the feeders in the winter.

You can also plant native plants, berry bushes and fruit trees to help create a wild life habitat too.

Water Sources

• Bird bath
• Lake Stream
• Pond
• Spring
• Pool
• Butterfly Puddle Area
• Garden Pond
• Create a Rain Garden

You will need to provide or have one of these sources.  I have several bird baths and a wet weather stream bed.  It usually runs in the spring if we’ve had lots of rain or a heavy snow fall.  I love when it’s running and so do the mallards.

Sustainable Practices

• Use a Rain Barrel
• Create a Rain Garden
• Use Mulch in flower beds
• Reduce Lawn Area
• Use Native Plants
• Compost
• Eliminate Chemical Fertilizers and Pesticides

I use several of these practices for my backyard garden and flower beds.  Mulch is used in my flower beds and I have two compost bins.  I also eliminated chemicals on my property.  I hope to incorporate a rain barrel in the spring to water my garden and plant more native shrubs.  Check your local Conservation Agency.  Sometimes, they give away free rain barrels.

Place your feeders, bird baths, waters and areas that you can observe and enjoy too.  It’s no fun working to create a beautiful yard, and than not enjoy it.  I love opening my curtains in the morning and enjoying nature throughout the day.  Check out some wild life magazines to get ideas or better yet use your creative eye and instincts.

You may also like:  How to Attract Backyard Birds.