Best Fruiting Shrubs for Attracting Birds

Q: We have a low-water garden and want to plant some fruit bushes to feed both us and birds. My wife loves birds and spends a lot on bird food. What can we plant that doesn’t need a lot of water and will attract the birds?

A: A lot of the native shrubs provide fruit that many birds like to eat. Try Utah Serviceberry, buffaloberry, black currant, gooseberry, sand cherry, husk cherry, chokecherry, pincherry, and American plum. Low-water, non-native fruit bearing shrubs include: bush cherry and various fruit-bearing Junipers. Many perennials in the sunflower family aren’t bushes but they produce seeds that are greatly enjoyed by hungry birds in the fall: Santa Fe sunflower, Echinacea and Rudbeckia.