Photo credit: Liz Condo. Oakleaf hydrangea,*Hydrangea quercifolia,* with green obelisk.

The longer days bring renewed activity in the garden. I can hear the excitement in bird songs and the tremble of the Earth as the spring ephemerals start to push through the soil. Soon, all my wildlife friends will be looking for nesting sites, food, water, and shelter. My garden is ready to welcome these beloved birds, bees, and butterflies.

Photo Credit: Liz Condo, A male bluebird surveying his territory.

Meeting the needs for the birds, bees, and butterflies is my way of life—a life that brings me joy beyond measure. While my wildlife habitat may seem extreme to some, it is just right for me and friends.

A wildlife habitat for birds can start simply with a birdbath, adding a nesting box (bird house), and having a diversity of plants for food and shelter. With these elements, you are providing a habitat with food, water, shelter, and a place to raise their young—the formula for a wildlife habitat.

In my garden, I do so much more than the minimum needed. It took years to be where I am today, but it all started with a humble birdbath. Having lived and worked in this garden since 1997, I’ve added nesting needs over the years, including leaving natural sites, such as snags, logs, and stick piles so the critters can next in or quickly escape predators.

Beyond providing the basics for sheltering needs;, I have also added various structures to the garden made by me, my friends, and even had structures implemented as Eagle Scouts when I still had the nonprofit, Bee Better Naturally. I still have Bee Better Naturally with Helen Yoest, but I no longer run it as a non-profit.

Photo Credit: Liz Condo. Three-tiered metal fountain found at the Raleigh Flea Market

The Fountain

The fountain went in first, around 25 years ago. As a friend of flea markets, I brought home a three-tiered beauty. Each piece was a different color, so it was clearly not an original set but came together well. I dug a 72” diameter hole in the ground, 18” deep, then added a hard plastic reservoir and painted the three individual pieces black. Once I had it leveled, I tweaked the flow further with pennies, the ideal material for leveling. The sound of running water attracts birds. Did you know that cardinals are likelier to visit a watering hole with the sound of moving water than a standard still-water birdbath? Cardinals are attracted to the movement of water. Other birds are as well.

Frog Pond

Water is a very important part of having a wildlife habitat. I wanted to attract frogs while I have a running water fountain and birdbaths. It was not my best project design since I did it willy-nilly and spontaneously. The pond was squeezed between a crape myrtle and part of the boxwood hedge. Crape myrtles are known for sending up sprouts where roots were cut. I have stayed vigilant in removing these sprouts so they don’t take over. Another faux pas was I dug all the available space with no room to add rock edging. Instead, I added plants. That worked in softening the edges, but it took a while to fill in. Now, it’s presentable. The frogs never minded; they were present within a day or two of adding water. David added a little solar panel to feed a submerged pump in the pond to keep mosquitoes from breeding if the frogs weren’t doing their job. The sound is soothing. Did you know mosquitoes won’t breed in moving water?

Photo credit: Liz Condo. The bee ball made by my glass blowing friend, Barbara Sanderson, owner of GlassGardens.ca.

A Bee Ball

A simple addition to a birdbath is a bee ball, a glass ball with nubs designed to allow bees access to the water without slipping in. My fabulous glassblowing artist friend, Barbara Sanderson, from Canada, made the bee ball through her company, GlassGardens.ca

Photo credit: Liz Condo. The perfect bluebird habitat—food, cover, a place to nest, and water near by.

The Bluebird House with Mealworm Bell Feeder

Bluebirds are frequent year-round visitors in my Raleigh garden; I put out mealworms for these blue-feathered friends daily. Each year, I have at least two broods from one nesting pair and one brood from the other. The bluebirds know there will be food to feed their broods, so they stick around. Soon, the males will scout around for suitable nesting sites.

Chimney Swift Tower

When I had my nonprofit, prospective Eagle Scouts looked to me for projects. I obliged. To help the decreasing number of chimney swifts, Chaetura pelagica, I suggested nesting tower project, Nicolas received his Eagle Scout because of it. The chimney swift tower is a site for one nesting pair. Each year since 2019, I’ve had a nesting pair. It may not seem like much, but I feel I’m doing my part for swift conservation.

Air Bee N Bee

I was approached by another young prospective Eagle Scout, Leo. He worked with his team to design, build, and gather materials for a nesting site for native bees—mason and leafcutter bees. It works like a charm.

Bug Bungalow

Before I had the Air Bee & Bee, I had (and still have) the Bug Bungalow. It’s a metal hexagon with hexagon-shaped divisions within it., Nicholas,. I found it as part of a display at Garden Supply Company in Apex, NC, in the section where Keith, the owner, sold bee-keeping supplies.

A few compartments are filled with sections of bamboo, 6 inches long with a 5/16th diameter, that aid in nesting for the mason and leafcutter bees. I filled other compartments with various natural materials such as pinecones to provide small, protected spaces between their scales, acting as a natural shelter for beneficial insects like ladybugs, lacewings, and other small critters to hide, nest, and overwinter. Bark pieces, bamboo straws,, and terracotta shards also provide shelter.

Mud Station

Mud is vital for the female mason bee to seal off her nesting site. Like those in the mason trade, who build with concrete, bricks, stone, and other materials, the mason bee uses mud with a high content of clay. Since I have built up my soil over the years with mulch, most of my garden has friable soil, so I added mud stations.

Chrysalis House

Photo Credit: Liz Condo Pipevine Swallowtail chrysalis—overwintering in Raleigh.

Since I first saw the chrysalis house in the JC Raulston Arboretum butterfly display garden in 2005, I’ve pined for one. Finally in 2024, I asked my friend Mark Boone, who hoards scrap wood and such, and who can build anything, if he would build a chrysalis house for me. Mark visited the JC Raulston Arboretum to see what a chrysalis house was. He built it, but I had a heavy price to pay: agreeing to be the program chair for the Gardeners of Wake County for 2025/2026. It’s not too bad, really; I already have the speakers lined up for 2025.

Photo Credit: Liz Condo. A log for wildlife

Snags and Logs

Nationwide, dead trees provide vital habitats for more than 1,000 wildlife species. For wildlife, every part of a dead tree offers benefits in all stages of decay.

I hope you will join me when I write about the garden’s other structures next month.

Naturally,

Helen Yoest

February 2005—Birds, Bees, Butterflies—Are You Ready?

Environmental Partnerships: Leaf & Limb Tree Service and Care, Raleigh City Farm