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Native trees for birds

A friend of mine recently mentioned his unsuccessful effort to attract birds to his feeder. While it takes a little time for the birds to find your feeder, they need shelter in the form of vegetation or brush even if you provide water and food . Some of my birds love to come to the feeder, grab a seed and run off to a nearby bush or tree. It turned out that he didn’t have nearby suitable vegetation. My first recommendation for a fast growing , deer proof, sun loving tree was a Palo Verde. If you are not familiar with this short tree, you can view them on the corner of RR 12 and River Road, in front of the Ozona Bank.

Palo Verde ((Parkinsonia aculeata) is a native, fast growing, thorny, middle sized tree. The magic word “native” tells you many things about the Palo Verde that are true for all native plants. A native doesn’t have to be watered once it is established (think of our recurrent droughts), it can survive our extreme temperatures (think 50+ days of over 100 degrees) and no pesticides or fertilizers are needed.

The slender “leaves” are about eight inches long. The leaves drop in a drought or freezing temperatures, but soon return with favorable conditions. The slender leaves produce a gentle dappled shade that provides protection from the fierce Texas summer sun, yet allows plants needing bright light to flourish beneath it. Palo Verde should be planted in full sun with plenty of space for its many green trunks to expand into.

A recent Native Plant Society speaker reminded us of how important it is to establish a variety of plants so that each season has flowers for the pollinators to visit. The pretty yellow flowers of Palo Verde appear throughout the summer when favorable conditions allow. My Palo Verde currently has some flowers.

Written by Jackie Mattice, Hays County Master Naturalist

Wimberley View

P.O. Box 49
Wimberley, TX 78676
Phone: 512-847-2202
Fax: 512-847-9054