Using Native Plants to Make Your Yard a Bird Sanctuary (Webinar)
hummingbird on wild bergamot (Monada fistulosa), photo Carmen Rugel
April 12, 2026 | 4 – 5 :30 pm | online
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Turn yards of any size into truly bird-friendly habitats.
How can we best feed birds in our yards? The accepted wisdom of many feeders brimming with commercially-grown seeds is increasingly seen as one of the lowest priorities for helping both nesting and migrating birds.
Are we only supporting invasive birds? The answer lies in designing and planting a wide array of native trees, shrubs, and perennials to host the most diverse array of native insects, while avoiding the temptation to plant non-native and potentially invasive plants sometimes sold as “bird-friendly.” We’ll talk about turning yards of any size into truly bird-friendly habitats.
John Barber, a resident of Cleveland Heights in Ohio, brings home his experience of the importance of bird habitat to all forms of life on earth. For example, as co-chair of Friends of Lower Lake park he has worked with volunteers weekly on Sunday mornings since 2018 to remove invasive species and replace them with native ones. A licensed bird bander, he has had the excitement of banding 65 bird species in his own biodiverse back yard.
John has been a citizen scientist for over fifty years, active in green space preservation; the recovery of Peregrine Falcon populations; the continuing recovery of Eastern Bluebirds; and monitoring wildlife populations in suburban parklands. Now retired after 35 years in the business world, he is passionately engaged in restoring and maintaining biodiversity.
