Why native shrubs are worth the space

If you want birds in the garden all year, the answer is rarely a feeder. Feeders help, especially in late winter, but they only attract the species already nesting and roosting nearby. What actually holds birds on a site is cover: dense twiggy growth for nesting, berries and nuts for autumn and winter, and a thicket of insects for chicks in spring. Native shrubs do all three, and because they evolved here they cope with our rainfall, our soils and our slugs without much intervention from you.

Once established — usually after two growing seasons — most natives need no extra watering at all, no feeding and very little pruning. That is the sustainable part: less tap water, less plastic, fewer inputs, and a garden that gets richer with age rather than needing to be replanted every few years.

Hawthorn, blackthorn and hazel: the backbone of a bird-friendly garden

If you plant only three shrubs, plant these three.

• Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) — the best all-rounder you can grow. May blossom feeds early insects, the haws ripen from September and are taken by redwings, fieldfares, blackbirds and thrushes well into winter, and the thorny, densely branched structure is prime nesting territory for dunnocks, greenfinches and blackbirds. It also supports hundreds of species of insect, which is what chick-rearing really depends on.
• Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) — flowers on bare wood in March and April, the earliest mass of blossom for bees, followed by sloes in autumn. Its suckering habit makes an almost impenetrable thicket, which is exactly what small birds want for nesting and roosting. Best in a hedge or at the back of a border where it has room to spread.
• Hazel (Corylus avellana) — catkins from January, so pollen for early bees, and nuts in autumn that jays, woodpeckers, nuthatches and small mammals will clear within days. Its layered stems give superb low cover. Even a single coppiced stool is a habitat in itself.

Six more natives that earn their keep

• Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia) — orange-red berries in late summer, stripped by redwings and fieldfares and, in a good year, by waxwings. Works well as a multi-stem in a small garden.
• Guelder rose (Viburnum opulus) — white lacecap flowers, translucent red berries that hang on into winter, and fine autumn colour. Happier than most in damp ground.
• Dog rose (Rosa canina) — hips for winter thrushes and a scramble of arching stems that blackbirds love to nest in. Give it space or train it along a fence.
• Elder (Sambucus nigra) — fast-growing, flowering for insects in June, with black berries that feed blackcaps and thrushes in late summer. It is short-lived, so let seedlings replace it.
• Holly (Ilex aquifolium) — invaluable evergreen shelter and a cache of berries in the hardest weeks of January and February. Plant a female near a male to guarantee berries.
• Crab apple (Malus sylvestris) — blossom for bees, fruit that thrushes and blackbirds peck at through autumn, and a modest size that suits a small plot.

Planting bare-root: the cheapest, best way to start

Order bare-root plants between November and March and get them in while they are dormant. Bare-root specimens cost a fraction of potted ones, establish faster and avoid the plastic and peat that come with container growing. Avoid planting into frozen or waterlogged ground, and if a delivery arrives during a cold snap, heel the plants into a spare patch of soil and wait.

For a mixed native hedge that will genuinely hold birds, plant a double, staggered row at roughly 45cm spacing, with about 30cm between the rows. Dig a trench, fork over the base and work in a little well-rotted compost. Firm the roots in properly — loose planting is the commonest reason young shrubs fail. Water well through the first summer and during any dry spell in the second; after that, leave them to it.

Mulch with garden compost or bark, keeping it clear of the stems, and if rabbits or deer are about, protect the whips with a spiral guard rather than reaching for anything chemical.

Pruning that puts birds first

Birds nest between March and August, so that is the window to avoid. If a hedge needs cutting, do it in late winter, before the end of February, or in September once the last chicks have fledged. Better still, cut hedges on a two or three-year rotation, one section at a time, so there is always flowering and fruiting growth somewhere along the row.

Leave the berries. A tidy autumn trim removes exactly the food supply that carries redwings and blackcaps through to spring. Resist cutting back ivy, too — its late flowers and black berries are among the best winter larder any garden can offer.

Small gardens and pots

No room for a hedge? A single hazel in a large pot is still worthwhile, as is a holly in a shady corner or a rowan as a multi-stem against a wall. Even a metre of blackthorn in a border will be used by something. Choose a spot that gets some sun, keep it watered for the first two summers, and let fallen leaves stay where they land.

Finally, plant in layers. Shrubs give the structure, but ground cover, leaf litter and a shallow dish of water turn a thicket into a home. Add those, leave the seedheads standing over winter, and within a couple of seasons your garden will be busier in January than most are in June.