Creating a Garden for the Birds

One reason Jim Howard looked forward to moving to Half Moon Bay was that the growing season in the Lake Tahoe area was so short. He would now be able to garden year-round. The house he and his wife Meredith moved into on Spinnaker Lane had a normal grass lawn in front and a concrete patio covering most of the back. He decided to document a project that would transform this 1700 square feet of yard into a habitat that might attract a wider variety of birds and other wild life.

Howard recently presented the results of that project as a talk and slide show entitled "Gardening for Birds and Other Wildlife" to the Half Moon Bay Garden Club. He works as a District Conservationist for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) of San Mateo County.

His first thoughts were about water conservation. "Normal annual rainfall for the San Mateo Coast is about 20 inches," Howard said. "Instead of allowing that water to run off the property and down the street, we built a drainage system."

The couple dug trenches in both yards leading to 3-foot deep pits, all filled with broken concrete and gravel. "This stores water without pooling which feeds back into the garden naturally," Howard said.

A rented jackhammer converted the concrete slab in the back into stepping stones for the front yard.

Howard and Meredith chose mostly native plants to form a hedge around the front. Small trees and shrubbery would provide shelter for birds and other wildlife. A raised bed protects vegetables from gophers.

"We aren't purists," said Howard, "and decided to experiment with some non-native plants." Planting a few non-native species revealed that these plants do not provide food or shelter local wildlife can use. Geotextile fabric was used in some areas to prevent weeds. This "weed block" seals the soil surface from the atmosphere preventing beneficial insects such as bees from burrowing into the ground. Howard emphasized that a healthy ecosystem requires each part of that ecosystem to have access to the soil.

As a final touch, Howard and Meredith added a birdbath. "Looking down at Pilarcitos Creek from the bridge in town, I observed that different birds prefer to bathe in different depths of water," Howard said. The couple built a multi-level fountain with water running over a slab of stone into a shallow basin filled with sand.

What was the result? Before the restoration, Jim recorded only Anna's Hummingbirds and American Robins in his yard. Since the restoration, he has recorded at least 37 different species of birds visiting his garden, from Chestnut-backed Chickadees to Sharp-shinned Hawks (for the full list, see PDF in the media box to the right). This was accomplished without feeders or bird houses.

The take-home lesson? "Native plants = Native food = Native birds," Howard said.

Complete lists of the plants they used, and local native plant nurseries are attached to this article as PDFs alongside the list of birds that appeared in Howard's backyard. The pictures outline the major steps of the restoration.

The NRCS is a government agency that provides free advice and support for anyone interested in learning more about natural resources. You can find Jim Howard and the NRCS office in Half Moon Bay at 625 Miramontes Street, Suite 103.

The Half Moon Bay Garden Club hosts regular guest speakers at their monthly meeting on the 2nd Monday of the month 7 - 9 p.m. in the Canada Cove Club House, 101 Canada Cove Ave,, in Half Moon Bay. They are a nonprofit educational organization with members who live along the San Mateo County Coastside.