What Native Plants will keep birds happy all winter long?

Here at Bucks County Audubon Society, we love feeding the birds, especially in the winter when they are looking for valuable food. We have several varieties of seed in our Self-Service Bird Seed Shed that we put out in our dozens of feeders all around our property.

But how can you help the birds get food if you want to encourage them to forage for themselves?

Fortunately, there are many plants (click here to learn more about native species specific to your zip code!) that produce berries that last through the winter and the great thing is that those plants provide cover, nesting sites, and add color to your winter landscape!

Provided below is a list of great native trees and shrubs that produce food and the birds that those plants attract.

Native PA Plant	Benefits	Birds Attracted	Special Notes
Flowering Dogwood	– Fruits in the fall and can stick around through early winter – Nest Sites	Robins, Bluebirds, Catbirds, Cardinals, Grosbeaks	Flowers add beauty to the landscape in the spring
Crabapple	– Fall fruits that stay through winter – Birds can eat flowers in spring and seeds in summer/late fall – Cover and nest sites	Robins, bluebirds, catbirds, cardinals, waxwings, finches	Flowers add beauty to the landscape in the spring
White Oak	– Fall acorns that last through winter – Nest sites	Woodpeckers, wild turkeys, Blue Jays	Produce acorns annually
Eastern Red Cedar	– Fall fruits that maintain berries in winter – Cover and nest sites	All native seed eaters	Only female tree produces fruits. Make sure to have a few females and males in the mix.
Wild Grape	– Fruits in fall that stick around into early winter – Nest sites and nest material	Robins, bluebirds, catbirds, cardinals, orioles, wild turkey, Pileated woodpecker, mockingbirds
Northern Bayberry	– Fall and winter fruits – Nest sites	Wintering Tree swallows and bluebirds
Staghorn Sumac	– Fall fruits with seeds that persist in winter	Robins, catbirds, cardinals, chickadees, starlings, wild turkey, Pileated Woodpecker	Fuzzy red fruits add color to summer and fall landscape
Red-Osier Dogwood	– Fall fruits that may stay into early winter – Cover	Robins, bluebirds, catbirds, vireos, juncos, cardinals, warblers, Wild Turkey, grouse	Red stems add great color to the winter landscape.
Arrowwood Viburnum	– Fall fruits that may continue into early winter – Cover	Robins, bluebirds, catbirds, cardinals, finches, waxwings
Winterberry Holly	– Fall fruits that last through winter – Cover	Robins, bluebirds, waxwings	Only females produce fruits. Make sure to have a few females and males in the mix.
Elderberry	– Fruits in fall and may continue through early winter	Native songbirds
Eastern White Pine	– Pinecones produce seeds -Cover and nesting sites	Finches, Chickadee, Woodpeckers, Nuthatch	Evergreen
Hawthorn	– Fruits stay throughout winter – cover	Chickadee, Waxwing, Mockingbirds, Wild Turkey	Has large thorns
Chokeberry	– Fruits in late fall and stays through out winter	Many native seed eaters and songbirds	Low in protein/fats and is bitter, so birds will wait until late winter when other food is gone to eat it
Beautyberry	– Fruits late summer and stays through late winter	Robins and Mockingbirds	Beautiful magenta/purple berries add color to winter landscape. Spreads quickly and easily