Want a bird-friendly yard so you can attract an exciting variety of feathered friends? Maybe you\u2019re thinking you can\u2019t, because your space is small. Maybe you\u2019re thinking you need acres of land, fields of grass, and towering trees. If so, think again. <\/p>\n
My nephew, Luke Springer and I visited Judy Switzer of Middletown, Pennsylvania whose backyard is small\u2026very<\/em> small. Yet, it\u2019s been declared a wildlife refuge! <\/p>\n How could that be? First thing you notice about Judy\u2019s backyard is that on her fence is an impressive sign from the National Wildlife Federation stating that you are entering a wildlife refuge. The second thing is how small her yard is, at most 50 square feet.<\/p>\n Initially, you ask yourself\u2026this is a wildlife refuge? But then you begin to notice all the specific details\u2026the very deliberate and loving way Judy has planned it all. <\/p>\n Hanging from the trees, there are many feeders for the birds Judy loves to attract. Under other trees are birdbaths where they can come to bath and drink. “The birds give such pleasure\u2026they\u2019re like friends,” she says smiling.<\/p>\n That\u2019s not all. Judy is helping the return of native plants of hundreds of years ago. She has replaced exotic plants with species that grow naturally in her locale. Her flower garden shows a variety of beautiful colors\u2026pink and blue hydrangeas, yellow goldstorms, auburn coral bells, and echinacea. Judy is lucky to have a sister, Carol Schroding who owns a store in Quakertown, called Northeast Natives and Perennials, specializing in native species who I\u2019ve asked to add info on native species to this blog.<\/p>\n Judy is passionate about not adding any poisons to the planet, so she uses no pesticides or herbicides. Her clothesline shows she saves electricity by hanging out her laundry.<\/p>\n She\u2019s also passionate about people having a right to breathe clean air. To help make this happen, she has drastically cut back grass, as mowers are much more wasteful than cars in the fuel they burn and much dirtier in the toxins they add to the air. She has replaced most of her grass with a variety of cool, green ground covers, attractive river gravel, and a large, woodsy deck that made me want to sit right down to listen to the birds calling.<\/p>\n \u201cMy yard may be small, but it\u2019s a healthy place\u2026not only for the birds, but for me, too!\u201d<\/p>\n