One home gardener was pleasantly surprised to find a beautiful American Goldfinch perched atop the native plants in their garden.
Sharing a moment of encouragement to fellow gardeners in the r/NativePlantGardening subreddit, the original poster said, “If you plant it, they will come.”
The OP attached a picture of the vividly yellow songbird hanging out on a purple coneflower.
Photo Credit: Reddit
The OP explained that this was the “first time seeing one in the area,” and it was likely due to the native plants in their garden.
Native plants and pollinators, such as birds and insects, have a symbiotic relationship, which is a mutually beneficial relationship.
Native plants have evolved to attract pollinators, whose pollination services help native plants — and human food crops — to reproduce, providing food to the local ecosystem. This helps maintain wildlife and plant biodiversity, ensuring a healthy and balanced ecosystem.
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Native plants can also beautify lawns and contribute to lawn maintenance by suppressing weed growth and naturally growing at a slower rate than most invasive plant species do.
Native plants have deep root systems that help stabilize the soil and allow them to access water and nutrients from deeper below the soil surface. This is particularly beneficial in water-scarce areas, as it saves a vital resource and reduces water bills.
Alternative lawn replacement options that are slow-growing and less water-dependent than most traditional American lawns are buffalo grass and clover.
Even upgrading your yard with a small patch of garden growing native flora — or the above alternative lawn replacement options — can provide the same benefits, while also attracting happy pollinators to your yard.
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“If you leave your dried seed heads up in fall/winter, you’ll likely continue to see them,” one commenter suggested. “American Goldfinches are exclusively seed eaters.”
“If you plant it, they will come — and yank all the petals off the flowers to get to the seeds easier,” another user shared, alluding to the bald flowers in their garden.
“My girlfriend was conflicted about it at first because she wants them to reseed as much as possible,” said a third commenter, who shared a similar experience with the finches in their backyard. “But then after watching them feast we realized: finches are very messy eaters.”
Each seed that the finches successfully eat causes a few more to fall to the ground, naturally reseeding the plant.
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