Pruning

• Most birds build nests and raise their young from early April to mid-August. Plan to complete any major pruning of trees and shrubs before or after that time, to avoid disturbing their nesting.
• When doing routine pruning, don't remove every bit of deadwood in trees and shrubs. Many birds use this for their nest-building, and will snap off small dead twigs, which saves you the trouble. This will also enable you to see the hummingbirds who visit your garden, since they strongly prefer to perch only on deadwood.
• When cutting back ornamental grasses, leave some long pieces scattered in an out-of-the-way place for robins and wrens to weave into their nests.
• Don't over-thin the inner canopy of your trees and shrubs. Large open spaces between branches and leaves make birds feel more vulnerable to predators.

Mulching

• Use organic materials with a coarse texture to mulch your landscape beds to allow ground beetles and other beneficial soil-dwelling insects to be protected from predators while moving through your garden. Wood chips, fallen leaves, and large bark mulch also help conserve water, add valuable nutrients, and prevent compaction of your garden soil. Fine mulches such as beauty bark do not have any of these benefits, and will actually discourage beneficial insects from making a home in your garden.

Garden Cleanup

• To give beneficial insects the ability to survive our rainy winters, wait until spring to do your big garden cleanup on perennials, groundcovers, and grasses. Don't be too tidy with fall garden cleanup. It will pay off in two ways: having a new generation of beneficials ready and waiting when pest insects come to call in spring, and better protection for the crowns of your shrubs and perennials during the cold (and snowy) winter months gives them a head start on healthy spring growth.

• Let seedpods form on your shrubs and perennial plants, especially in late summer, so that they can provide food for ground-feeding birds during the fall and winter months. Deadheading can improve flowering on some perennials if done right after blooming, but is not necessary to do on all plants.

• Hummingbirds use the fluff from some seedpods to line their nests in the spring, which is another good reason not to deadhead all your plants.

Lawn Care

• Almost all birds use moss in their nests, and will appreciate any small piles you leave out for them after raking it from your lawn.
• Using the high setting on your lawn mower does more than conserve water in your lawn; the additional shade and coolness on the soil surface also allows earthworms to remain plentiful in the upper layer of soil.

Pest Control

• Use least-toxic pesticides, or better yet, refrain from using any pesticides in your garden. Even organic pesticides interrupt the natural pest control cycles of a wildlife-friendly garden.
• When making the transition away from traditional or least-toxic pesticides, it will take a little time for the predators to catch up with the pests, but it will soon become a self-sustaining natural cycle that is well worth the wait.
• Before squishing or washing aphids off your plants with a hose sprayer, make sure to check the undersides of the leaves for clusters of beneficial insect eggs from Ladybugs or Lacewings. Each of their eggs will hatch into a larvae capable of eating hundreds of Aphids before becoming an adult! Many beneficial insect larvae look creepy, so it's always best to look them up in an insect guide or web search before taking any action.

Nest Boxes, Birdbaths, and Feeders

• Nest boxes should be cleaned out each year after the young birds fledge, to prevent parasite buildup.
• Birdbaths and other water features need to be cleaned regularly all year round. Algae and bacteria build up much quicker in summer, at the same time water is needed most. Clean and refill once a week in winter, and at least twice a week in summer.
• Providing most of the food for birds through your trees, shrubs, and perennials saves you a lot of the work that is needed if you use seed, suet, or sugar water feeders. Seed and suet feeders should be cleaned at least once a month all year round, to prevent buildup of bacteria, fungi, and other pests. Hummingbird feeders are especially prone to bacterial buildup in the warmer months, and should be cleaned twice a week in spring and summer, and once a week in the fall and winter. Soak empty feeders in a solution of 10 parts water to one part household bleach, then rinse very thoroughly and let dry before refilling.