Native Plant Wildlife Gardening

Wildlife gardeners just love their brush piles and I am no exception. Mine had grown to a point where if What the Heck awards were given for brush piles, I could just prep my acceptance speech now. When I first started on the project I searched for how to instructions – I’m just the type to research every topic to bits – but let me advise any aspiring brush pile builders to give that up right now. Just dump piles of twigs and sticks in the woods, a clearing, anywhere. If you build it they will come.

We took out a lot of invasive undergrowth and thinned trees like crazy at first, the result was unmanageable amounts of yard trash. In our woods an Eastern red cedar had fallen and lay dead on the woods floor and if you know anything about cedar trees, there it will stay for eons. They will flat break a chain saw. The downed tree became my natural pile. I began dragging yard trash and dumping it along one side of the felled tree. With as much material as I had it quickly got covered, but anyone can start by just making piles with what they have and adding as time goes by.

Our brush pile is easily the busiest wildlife spot on my property. Birds have nested in it – wrens and thrush – a black rat snake lives there, a box turtle and for awhile an opossum used it as his home. There are constantly birds in and out of it and during migration it was a warbler hot spot. In winter it provides roosting as well as cover when the trees are bare of leaves. I’ve also noticed that it has been a benefit for birds to escape free ranging cats.

These photos were taken in winter, during the summer small trees grow through it and you can barely see it. I’m considering growing Virginia Creeper vine over it as well. I have seen some very attractive smaller brush piles with vines such as native Lonicera sempervirens Major Wheeler, a red flowering native honeysuckle, growing through them. They do not have to be an eye sore if you get creative! Mine isn’t visible from the house and completely unseen in summer so attractive was not an issue.

If you have the space and neighbors are accepting, a brush pile is a wonderful way to attract wildlife to a garden. Even a small pile will do, a corner of the yard set aside for stacking pruned branches and fallen limbs. You can keep adding sticks and twigs any time pruning is done. Rocks are also great to add underneath for more hiding spots as stone is a favorite of lizards and toads. A brush pile is a wildlife magnet and if you add one to a sanctuary, soon it will be busy with backyard critters. See Eco-System Gardening for more on brush piles and building tips.