Birds and Bushes | Dorset Wildlife Trust

Bue tit

Bob Coyle

Birds and Bushes

Which birds can you spot in your garden?

Birds are some of the easiest wildlife to spot in your garden. Download 'Birds and Bushes' here to get tips on how to attract birds to your garden using natural sources of food such as seeds, nuts and fruit. Plus advice on the types of shrubs or hedging plants that will attract the most wildlife and offer you year round colour too! Over 1,500 species of native plants grow in the UK. If you grow just a few you’ll be helping the wildlife that depends on them.

Download the Birds and Bushes guide

Want to do more for birds in your garden?

Follow the links below for more ways to turn your garden into a haven for birds.

tree planting illustration

How to plant a tree

It might surprise you, but even the smallest of gardens can accommodate a tree!

Make a hedge illustration

How to make a hedge for wildlife

Hedges provide important shelter and protection for wildlife, particularly nesting birds and hibernating insects.

birds in garden illustration

How to feed birds in your garden

Find out how to attract birds into your garden all year round.

water for birds illustration

How to provide water for wildlife

All animals need water to survive. By providing a water source in your garden, you can invite in a whole menagerie!

bush for nesting

How to provide bushes for nesting birds

In the spring, birds choose the best locations to build nests, so why not offer them a safe place to settle?

bird box

How to build a bird box

With natural nesting sites in decline, adding a nestbox to your garden can make all the difference to your local birds.

How to make a shrub garden for wildlife

How to make a shrub garden for wildlife

Woody shrubs and climbers provide food for wildlife, including berries, fruits, seeds, nuts leaves and nectar-rich flowers. So why not…

Simple actions bird box illustration

How to clean nestboxes and bird feeders

Nestboxes can harbour parasites so it is good practice to take them down at the end of the season and give them a clean. Likewise it is…