Make A Winter Home For Wildlife

eGARDENa Make A Winter Home For Wildlife (NAPS)—Helping wildlife feel at home in your garden can make a real difference, especially during the colder months. The National Wildlife Federation’s Backyard Wildlife Habitat™ program teaches people how to make that home a welcome one. Providing food, water and cover can encourage birds, rab- bits, and turtles to spend the colder monthsin your yard. The best way to offer winter food for wildlife is by planting vegetation that producesberries, nuts or seeds. Leave heads on flowers rather than deadheading them. Bird feeders see the most activity during colder months when natural foods are scarce. High- calorie foods like black-oil sunflower seed and suet can provide enough energy to help birds throughcold winternights. Provide places where wildlife can find cover from cold weather and predators, especially where the land has been cleared of vege- tation. Install roosting boxes. Create a brush pile which can provide coverfor birds and rabbits and offer a hibernation place for turtles andfrogs. Keep your bird bath clean and free from ice. To find out howto certify your yard as an official Backyard Wildlife Habitat, visit NWF’s Web site at www.nwf.org/habitats.