Not every bird is after your fruit. Little insect-eaters — willie wagtails, fairy-wrens, robins and pardalotes — spend their days working over your plants and lawn for caterpillars, aphids and grubs. It's free, tireless pest control, and a joy to watch.
What do they do?
They hunt caterpillars, aphids, grubs, beetles and flying insects all day long.
How do I welcome them to my garden?
- Plant dense, prickly and native shrubs for shelter and nesting.
- Keep a birdbath topped up with fresh water, and grow a variety of plants.
- Lay off the insecticides, which poison the insects they rely on.
A word on netting: if you net fruit, use wildlife-safe netting — fine mesh you can't poke a finger through. The loose, wide-hole stuff traps and kills birds, bats and lizards, so it's worth doing right (see our notes on netting). A net held taut on a frame is much safer than one thrown loose over a plant, which is why our Grow Frame beds have the frame built in (also as a kit, shipped Australia wide).
A garden that welcomes small birds has a standing army of pest controllers on call. For the full approach, see our guide to managing pests the safe way.
Image: JJ Harrison (https://www.jjharrison.com.au/), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.