Wild Bergamot: Food for the Birds

It's March and temperatures next week are forecast in the 50s, which makes us so excited and so very ready for spring! Currently, our landscape is still covered in snow, but...

we are enjoying the increased daylight and sunshine. The sun streaming in the windows and warming us all is seriously the BEST.

We continue to spend lots of time researching and observing, as we often do in winter, and over time we've noted various plants that get high use from seed eating birds. We will continue to share those observations here and there to help you choose plants if you want to do a little landscaping for wildlife in similar growing environments. One particular plant that stands out at the beginning of March (and grows across much of the country) is Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa).

American Goldfinches and American Tree Sparrows really seem to enjoy this plant. Of course, it's not in bloom here, but it sure must hold lots of seeds for the amount of attention these plants get. Every morning our cats line up at the doors looking out on this area transfixed by the bird activity.

Wild bergamot nectar is our biggest attractor of the clearwing moths that we've observed as well. This plant is quite susceptible to powdery mildew, but still seems to more than adequately produce food for wildlife. We think the seed heads are super stunning in the winter landscape as well and they smell fantastic when crushed...even now!