Planning landscaping is undoubtedly not easy. The primary concern relegated to each individual homeowner is what you want out of your yard. Many are content with just grass, while others desire a diverse array of plant life. One aspect oft overlooked is your landscape’s capacity to be a boon for local wildlife. With a bit of planning, your property could be literally buzzing with insect pollinators, wild birds, and even our reptilian friends.
Where to Start
For this article, let’s begin with a newly established development. What has happened in this scenario from an ecological perspective, with what we’d call primary succession? In short, this means an area that experienced a complete reset of its plant communities. In nature, this would be the result of events such as a volcanic eruption, but in Florida, it’s far more likely due to bulldozers.
Now, the good news in this scenario is that you won’t be receiving your property in this condition. The developer has fast-tracked the process by planting grasses and some basic trees by the time you’ve purchased the property. It’s from this basic setup that you, my new homeowning friends, can begin your husbandry of our local animals.
Begin by investigating the where your new home was built. If it began as a wetland, you’ll want to select plants appropriate for that environment. The same is true if you’ve moved into what was forest land. This thought aligns directly with the first of our FL Friendly Landscaping principles: right plant, right place. There is little sense in putting plants that don’t like wet feet into a poorly draining soils common in wetlands.
UF/IFAS Photo: J. Criss
Consider Your Environment
You’ll also want to investigate the wildlife that is endemic to those environments and areas. Knowing what is there, and what you’d like to attract to your landscape, will help you decide which plants will be best. For instance, replacing a crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) with a red maple (Acer rubrum) in what was previously a wetland environment puts a tree better suited to that environment, which will require less maintenance from the homeowner. Additionally, red maples are known to be an early-season nectar source for a multitude of moths and butterflies while providing nesting sites for local birds.
Red maples are a great example of plant selection and what it can do to attract wildlife to your yard, but there are other guidelines with which you’ll want to be familiar should this be your goal.
Guidelines for Attracting Wildlife
Water is critical to all life on the planet, including wildlife. Providing water features in your garden will increase the chance for animals visits to your garden. This can be as basic or as elaborate as you’d like. Everything from a pond to a simple dish of water will suffice. One common water feature challenge to consider for Florida gardeners are mosquitos. Avoiding these pesky creatures could be as easy as creating flowing water features. Solar fountains are an easy and cheap way to accomplish that goal.
Shelter is another critical aspect to attract wildlife. Either natural or man-made, it is essential to attracting and keeping various species in your yard. Bird, bat, or owl houses are perfect solutions to this issue. Just ensure you site them correctly to provide the correct environment for the animal in question.
Design your landscape to be layered. In this instance, this means integrating shrubs, trees, herbaceous plants, and groundcover. Doing so will provide some cover for feeding while providing visual interest to your home.
Last and certainly not least, choose plants known to be a food source. When doing so, you’ll want to research how those animals you’d like to attract eat. For instance, hummingbirds (Trochilidae) have a small, curved beak. If this is the species you’d like, you’ll want to select plants rich in nectar with tubular flowers. Firebush (Hamelia patens) is an excellent example of a plant for this purpose.
UF/IFAS Photo
Conclusion
Bringing local wildlife into your yard is an excellent way to get to know the small creatures living in your area. A few simple changes may go a long way toward reintroducing habitat to an area where it may be waning. For more information on attracting wildlife or any horticulture topic, refer to your local Extension office
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