A water feature in your garden adds a soothing element and attracts new wildlife to your backyard. Even the simple addition of a birdbath lends a cool atmosphere to the landscape.
When you add a birdbath to your garden you can place it in a prominent position, where it becomes the focal point, or surround it with a protective covering of plants. Either way, planting around the birdbath is a great idea that provides you with a quiet corner to retreat in and a lush setting that is attractive and inviting to birds.
Overall Design
Birds and other wildlife not only look for areas that provide water, but an area that provides some degree of protection and shelter. So when planning a garden around a birdbath you want to incorporate plants that add height and plenty of foliage. Other plants to consider are those that have texture, fragrance, and color to attract wildlife as well as the human eye.
The size of your garden can be as large or small as your yard permits. If you simply want to place a birdbath in the backyard but do not want to care for a garden, try adding some flowering pots around the birdbath.
A full out large garden, complete with an assortment of plants that also make great cut flowers requires regular attention. The larger the garden and more plants you incorporate, the more work you will have to do weeding, deadheading and edging on a weekly basis.
Great Flowers to go Around a Birdbath Before I suggest flowers that are a great addition in a garden around a birdbath I want to stress that it is important to look for a variety of plants. Purchase a good mix of plants that are different heights, don’t forget to buy some low lying creepers for the edges. Also, it is important to select flowers that you find attractive and not just rely on the recommendations that I make here or from others.
Short Plants include Thymus, Lamb’s Ear, Sweet Alyssum, Shore Juniper, Miniature Roses, Impatiens, Creeping Phlox, and Trillium. Creeping Phlox is an excellent border plant because it spreads itself out into a low lying carpet with dainty flowers. Shore Juniper also grows close to the ground, but I recommend it because it is an evergreen. The inclusion of an evergreen adds beautiful deep green hues and lots of foliage to balance out a garden that has a lot of flowering and leafy plants.
Medium height plants include Catmint, Forget-me-nots, Asters, Nasturtiums, Oriental Poppies, Baby’s Breath, and Hostas. Asters are great medium height plants and there are several varieties to choose from. Select an aster to compliment or contrast with the rest of the plants you decide on. Hostas are a great addition if you have a corner of the garden that is shaded. Not only do Hostas have striking colors of foliage but they also flower.
Tall Plants to consider include Heather, Foxgloves, Mullein, Foxtail Lily, Siberian Flag Iris, Meadow Rue, Lavender, Zinnias, Gloriosa Daises, and Delphiniums. Most of the tall plants I have recommended here are perennials, so they will bloom year after year. In the case of the Siberian Flag Iris, Foxtail Lily and Gloriosa Daises you will gain more and more flowers each year that you can divide and plant in other parts of the garden.
In addition to a variety of plants you want to include a couple shrubs, trees, or creepers to fill in the background of your garden. Some plants to consider are Shrub Rose, Virginia Creeper, Trumpet Vine, Lilacs , Burning Bushes and Rhododendrons. Burning Bushes are a great selection even thought they are not a flowering shrub because of the beautiful hue of color they provide, deep green all season that turns into a flaming red.
Once you have selected all your plants all you need to do is determine a design for your garden. Before digging and planting place the potted flowers in the garden the where you want them to be, make sure you follow spacing guidelines for each plant. Place the lower growing flowers in the front along the border and the taller plants in the rear of the garden. Near the birdbath be sure to include bushy, flowering plants that will be sure to attract birds and other insects needing water.
