Planting for Wildlife

Plant a yard that feeds the birds.

Native trees, shrubs, and flowers bring birds, butterflies, and bees to a yard or a commercial property. Here’s what to plant in each part of our service area, what each plant offers wildlife, and a printable list to take to the nursery.

Find your area Tree planting
Illustration: a layered native yard with an oak, a flowering redbud, berry shrubs, and a flower bed, with a cardinal, a bluebird, and butterflies

Why native plants

Birds need more than a feeder.

Wildlife is adapted to native plants: they eat their leaves, seeds, berries, and nectar through the seasons, and shelter in their branches.

  • Food for the next generation

    Chickadees feed their young insects, and yards with more non-native plants had fewer insects to find. In a study of suburban yards around Washington, D.C., Carolina chickadees raised enough young to sustain their numbers only where native plants made up at least about 70% of the woody plants.

  • Layers, from canopy to ground

    Trees, shrubs, and native grasses give wildlife cover for nesting, raising young, escaping predators, and getting through winter. Plant in layers: shade trees, small trees, shrubs, and flowers.

  • Something every season

    Spring flowers for bees, summer nectar for butterflies and hummingbirds, fall and winter berries, seeds, and acorns for birds and mammals.

By region

What to plant where you are.

Every plant here is native to Arkansas and Tennessee. The picks for each area suit its soils and terrain. Choose by your site: sun or shade, wet or dry.

Northeast Arkansas (NEA)

Jonesboro and the surrounding region

Most of the region is the Delta: nearly flat land with clayey, often poorly drained soils. Crowley’s Ridge, a line of loess-capped hills with oak–hickory forest, rises out of it. In Arkansas, the tulip tree grows wild only on Crowley’s Ridge.

Plant for the ground you have: wet-tolerant trees and shrubs for low, heavy clay; upland oaks on better-drained ridge soils.

Printable plant list Northeast Arkansas (NEA) · PDF, 441 KB

Shade and canopy trees

  • Willow oak Quercus phellos

    Moist soils, bottomlands, stream banks

    Squirrels and other wildlife eat and spread its acorns; birds nest and forage in it.

  • Overcup oak Quercus lyrata

    Poorly drained lowlands; tolerates flooding

    A lowland oak that attracts migratory waterfowl.

  • Bald cypress Taxodium distichum

    Wet, poorly drained soils; sun

    Cover and nest sites for birds; seed-eating birds and small mammals eat the seeds.

  • Tulip tree (tulip poplar) Liriodendron tulipifera

    Moist, rich soils

    A favorite nesting tree; the flowers attract hummingbirds. Host for the eastern tiger swallowtail.

  • Blackgum (tupelo) Nyssa sylvatica

    Wet woods to drier sites; sun to shade

    Its juicy fruit is eaten by many birds and mammals, and its flowers are a honey plant.

  • River birch Betula nigra

    Floodplains, stream banks, wet spots

    Birds and small mammals eat the seeds.

Small flowering and fruiting trees

  • Persimmon Diospyros virginiana

    Sun to part shade; dry or moist soil

    Foxes, opossums, raccoons, deer, and birds eat the fruit. Host for the luna moth.

  • Possumhaw Ilex decidua

    Low, wet woods and river bottoms; sun to part shade

    Its winter berries feed songbirds, gamebirds, and mammals.

  • Flowering dogwood Cornus florida

    Part shade; well-drained soil

    Its fruit feeds birds, mammals, and deer. Host for the spring azure butterfly.

Shrubs

  • Buttonbush Cephalanthus occidentalis

    Wet spots and pond or ditch edges

    Ducks and shorebirds eat the seeds; flowers are prized by bees and butterflies.

  • Elderberry Sambucus canadensis

    Moist to wet soil; sun or part shade

    Its berries are relished by many birds and mammals; flowers offer nectar.

  • American beautyberry Callicarpa americana

    Sun or part shade; drought tolerant

    Seeds and berries are important food for many birds, especially bobwhite quail.

Flowers, grasses, and vines

  • Cardinal flower Lobelia cardinalis

    Sun or part shade; moist soil

    Pollinated mainly by hummingbirds, which feed on its nectar.

  • Joe-Pye weed Eutrochium fistulosum

    Sun; moist to wet soil

    A magnet for pollinators; swamp sparrows eat the seeds.

  • Butterfly milkweed Asclepias tuberosa

    Full sun; dry soil

    Host plant for monarch caterpillars; nectar for butterflies and bees.

Memphis & West Tennessee

Memphis and nearby communities

Around Memphis, most of the land is loess plains: irregular plains with soils built from wind-blown silt. Along the river lies the flat Mississippi River floodplain. The tulip poplar is Tennessee’s state tree.

Upland oaks and tulip trees for well-drained yards; willow oak and blackgum where water sits after rain.

Printable plant list Memphis & West Tennessee · PDF, 430 KB

Shade and canopy trees

  • Tulip tree (tulip poplar) Liriodendron tulipifera

    Moist, rich soils

    A favorite nesting tree; the flowers attract hummingbirds. Host for the eastern tiger swallowtail.

  • White oak Quercus alba

    Sun to part shade; dry to moist, well-drained soil

    Acorns are a favorite food of birds, squirrels, and deer. Host plant for hairstreak butterflies.

  • Southern red oak Quercus falcata

    Dry upland sites; sandy or clay loam

    Acorns for birds, rodents, and deer; nest sites and cover. Host for banded and White M hairstreaks.

  • Willow oak Quercus phellos

    Moist soils, bottomlands, stream banks

    Squirrels and other wildlife eat and spread its acorns; birds nest and forage in it.

  • Blackgum (tupelo) Nyssa sylvatica

    Wet woods to drier sites; sun to shade

    Its juicy fruit is eaten by many birds and mammals, and its flowers are a honey plant.

Small flowering and fruiting trees

  • Flowering dogwood Cornus florida

    Part shade; well-drained soil

    Its fruit feeds birds, mammals, and deer. Host for the spring azure butterfly.

  • Eastern redbud Cercis canadensis

    Part shade; moist soil; fine on limestone

    Early spring flowers of special value to native bees and bumble bees.

  • American holly Ilex opaca

    Sun to shade; dry or moist soil

    Berries feed many birds and small mammals; evergreen cover and nest sites.

Shrubs

  • Spicebush Lindera benzoin

    Moist woods and stream banks; shade tolerant

    Host plant for spicebush and eastern tiger swallowtail caterpillars.

  • American beautyberry Callicarpa americana

    Sun or part shade; drought tolerant

    Seeds and berries are important food for many birds, especially bobwhite quail.

  • Possumhaw Ilex decidua

    Low, wet woods and river bottoms; sun to part shade

    Its winter berries feed songbirds, gamebirds, and mammals.

Flowers, grasses, and vines

  • Purple coneflower Echinacea purpurea

    Sun to part shade; well-drained soil

    Nectar for butterflies and native bees.

  • Beebalm (wild bergamot) Monarda fistulosa

    Sun; dry to moist soil

    Attracts hummingbirds, butterflies, and bumble bees.

  • Coral honeysuckle (vine) Lonicera sempervirens

    Sun or part shade; on a fence or trellis

    Hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies visit the flowers; quail, finches, and robins eat the fruit.

Little Rock & Central Arkansas

Little Rock and the central region

Central Arkansas is a meeting place: the Ouachita foothills, with oak–hickory–pine forest, give way to the Arkansas River valley’s floodplains and terraces. Expect everything from dry, rocky ridges to deep bottomland soil.

Shortleaf pine and dry-site oaks on ridges and slopes; Shumard oak and holly where the soil holds more moisture.

Printable plant list Little Rock & Central Arkansas · PDF, 436 KB

Shade and canopy trees

  • Shortleaf pine Pinus echinata

    Dry, sandy, acidic soils; ridges and slopes

    Cover and nest sites; its seeds feed small mammals and seed-eating birds.

  • White oak Quercus alba

    Sun to part shade; dry to moist, well-drained soil

    Acorns are a favorite food of birds, squirrels, and deer. Host plant for hairstreak butterflies.

  • Southern red oak Quercus falcata

    Dry upland sites; sandy or clay loam

    Acorns for birds, rodents, and deer; nest sites and cover. Host for banded and White M hairstreaks.

  • Shumard oak Quercus shumardii

    Moist uplands and stream banks

    Acorns for birds and mammals, plus nest sites and cover. Host for Horace’s duskywing.

Small flowering and fruiting trees

  • Flowering dogwood Cornus florida

    Part shade; well-drained soil

    Its fruit feeds birds, mammals, and deer. Host for the spring azure butterfly.

  • Fringetree Chionanthus virginicus

    Part shade; moist soil

    Its dark blue fruit is attractive to birds and other wildlife.

  • American holly Ilex opaca

    Sun to shade; dry or moist soil

    Berries feed many birds and small mammals; evergreen cover and nest sites.

Shrubs

  • American beautyberry Callicarpa americana

    Sun or part shade; drought tolerant

    Seeds and berries are important food for many birds, especially bobwhite quail.

  • Rusty blackhaw Viburnum rufidulum

    Dry, rocky woods; part shade

    Fruit for birds and mammals; nectar for bees and butterflies.

  • Red buckeye Aesculus pavia

    Part shade; moist soil

    Early red flowers attract hummingbirds; squirrels eat the nuts. The seeds are poisonous to people.

Flowers, grasses, and vines

  • Purple coneflower Echinacea purpurea

    Sun to part shade; well-drained soil

    Nectar for butterflies and native bees.

  • Rough blazing star Liatris aspera

    Full sun; dry soil

    Nectar for many butterflies, from swallowtails to fritillaries.

  • Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium

    Sun; dry soil

    Its seeds are of particular value to small birds in winter; host for skipper butterflies.

Bentonville & Northwest Arkansas

Bentonville and Northwest Arkansas

Northwest Arkansas sits in the Ozark Highlands on the Springfield Plateau, largely underlain by limestone and dolomite. Soils are often cherty, and karst features such as sinkholes and springs are common. Post oak is the common oak of Ozark ridges and rocky slopes.

Choose trees and shrubs that handle rocky, well-drained, often limestone soils.

Printable plant list Bentonville & Northwest Arkansas · PDF, 437 KB

Shade and canopy trees

  • Post oak Quercus stellata

    Dry upland ridges; rocky or sandy soils

    Its acorns are an important food for deer, squirrels, and wild turkeys.

  • White oak Quercus alba

    Sun to part shade; dry to moist, well-drained soil

    Acorns are a favorite food of birds, squirrels, and deer. Host plant for hairstreak butterflies.

  • Chinkapin oak Quercus muehlenbergii

    Limestone and other calcareous soils

    An oak for limestone ground that attracts birds and butterflies. Host for the gray hairstreak.

  • Shortleaf pine Pinus echinata

    Dry, sandy, acidic soils; ridges and slopes

    Cover and nest sites; its seeds feed small mammals and seed-eating birds.

Small flowering and fruiting trees

  • Serviceberry Amelanchier arborea

    Rocky woods and slopes; sun to shade

    A preferred serviceberry for birds and other wildlife.

  • Eastern redbud Cercis canadensis

    Part shade; moist soil; fine on limestone

    Early spring flowers of special value to native bees and bumble bees.

  • Flowering dogwood Cornus florida

    Part shade; well-drained soil

    Its fruit feeds birds, mammals, and deer. Host for the spring azure butterfly.

Shrubs

  • Fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica

    Dry, rocky slopes and open woods

    Its berries are winter food for birds and small animals; flowers feed butterflies.

  • New Jersey tea Ceanothus americanus

    Sun or part shade; dry soil; stays small

    Turkeys and quail eat the seeds; the flowers feed butterflies and native bees.

  • Rusty blackhaw Viburnum rufidulum

    Dry, rocky woods; part shade

    Fruit for birds and mammals; nectar for bees and butterflies.

Flowers, grasses, and vines

  • Butterfly milkweed Asclepias tuberosa

    Full sun; dry soil

    Host plant for monarch caterpillars; nectar for butterflies and bees.

  • Purple coneflower Echinacea purpurea

    Sun to part shade; well-drained soil

    Nectar for butterflies and native bees.

  • Beebalm (wild bergamot) Monarda fistulosa

    Sun; dry to moist soil

    Attracts hummingbirds, butterflies, and bumble bees.

  • Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium

    Sun; dry soil

    Its seeds are of particular value to small birds in winter; host for skipper butterflies.

Skip these

Pretty, but invasive.

University of Arkansas Extension lists these common landscape plants among those to avoid planting in Arkansas, because they spread beyond the yard and crowd out native plants.

  • Bradford (Callery) pear. Crosses with other pears to form wild, thorny thickets that crowd out native trees. Try: eastern redbud, flowering dogwood, or serviceberry.
  • Chinese privet. Described by Extension as “widespread and aggressive” in Arkansas. Try: beautyberry, spicebush, or possumhaw.
  • Japanese honeysuckle. On Extension’s list of plants to avoid. Try: native coral honeysuckle.

Before you plant

Right plant, right place.

Check each plant’s size at maturity, keep trees well clear of power lines and the house, and call 811 before you dig. A local native plant nursery can tell you what’s in stock this season.

Tree planting Wildlife habitat trees
Sources for every plant

Native ranges and wildlife notes: the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center plant database (University of Texas at Austin). Regional conditions: Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, Ecoregions of Arkansas; Arkansas Forestry Commission, Trees of Arkansas; Tennessee’s state symbols (tn.gov). Sun and soil: Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, Native Plants for Your Arkansas Garden. Chickadee study: Narango, Tallamy & Marra (2018), PNAS 115(45). Cover and seasons: University of Arkansas Extension, Native Plants for Arkansas Wildlife. Invasive plants: University of Arkansas Extension.

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