Helping Birds and Pollinators Overwinter

When frost settles over the Midwest, life in the garden doesn’t disappear. It simply changes form during the winter months! At Powell Gardens, we watch birds, bees, and butterflies take shelter in the landscape we’ve carefully nurtured all year. You can support these vital creatures at home too. By planning ahead and working on sustainable gardening habits, your backyard can become a winter refuge for pollinators and birds.

Winter can be a challenging time for wildlife. As temperatures drop and food sources become scarce, many birds, bees, and other pollinators depend on the shelter and sustenance we leave behind in our gardens. Will you join us in making small, thoughtful choices to create safe havens that help these essential creatures survive until spring? If you’re on board, read our tips for overwintering birds and pollinators below.

What Does “Overwinter” Mean?

To help, we must first know what “overwinter” means. To overwinter simply means to survive the winter season. For some birds that can mean staying in place and adapting to cold weather rather than migrating. For pollinators like native bees, butterflies, and moths, it means finding a safe, insulated space to rest in their eggs, cocoons, or adult forms until warmth returns.

Why It Matters

Birds and pollinators are vital to healthy ecosystems and thriving gardens. They pollinate many of the flowers, fruits, and vegetables we depend on for food. These creatures help in our gardens in so many ways we never see! Birds and pollinators control pests by feeding on insects and disperse seeds that help native plants regenerate.

Supporting them through winter ensures they’ll be there to continue contributing to our landscapes when spring comes.

Tips for Helping Pollinators Overwinter

1. Leave the leaves! Instead of raking every leaf, leave a thin layer under shrubs or in garden corners. Many butterflies and native bees overwinter in leaf litter.
2. Skip the fall cleanup. Hollow stems of plants like coneflower and bee balm provide nesting sites for solitary bees. Cut them back in late spring instead of fall. (Can’t totally skip this maintenance step? Do what you can!)
3. Create cozy shelter. Piles of brush, logs, or rocks offer protection from wind and predators.
4. Plant for next year. Late fall is still a great time to add native plants that feed pollinators come spring. Milkweed, goldenrod, and purple coneflower would all be great additions to your garden.
5. Provide a water source. A shallow birdbath with unfrozen water can be a literal lifesaver in freezing weather.

Tips for Helping Birds Overwinter

1. Offer reliable food sources. Fill feeders with high-fat options like black oil sunflower seeds, suet, or peanuts. Refill regularly through cold snaps.
2. Add shelter. Dense evergreens, brush piles, and birdhouses offer refuge from wind and predators.
3. Don’t forget fresh water. Birds need to drink and bathe even in winter. A source of fresh, unfrozen water can save bird lives.
4. Avoid harmful chemicals. Skip pesticides and herbicides in your garden. Birds and pollinators are sensitive to chemical exposure, especially when resources are already limited.

A Garden That Gives Back

Helping wildlife overwinter doesn’t require a big space or a big budget. You can do a lot with just a little intention! By leaving parts of your garden wild and welcoming, you create a refuge that sustains life through the quiet months and ensures a livelier, more vibrant spring.

Powell Gardens is home to countless species that depend on us (and our community) to care for their habitats. When you visit this winter season, take time to notice the life that’s still active beneath bare branches and frosted stems. Every seed head, every leaf pile, and every evergreen tells a story of resilience.

Learn more about supporting wildlife year-round at powellgardens.org.