a bird-lover's garden 



Photo by Joseph H. Doason 



The garden of Mr. Dodson, at Evanston, 111., showing the various devices used by him 

 in attracting birds : bath, weathercock food-house, houses for great-crested flycatchers, blue- 

 birds, tree-swallows, and martins, from left to right in the order named. 



breed nearly every year, while in the sec- 

 ond area only from three to five different 

 species build their nests. 



Almost every one who lives in the 

 country can do something in the way of 

 attractive planting about his house and 

 grounds, and even in the more closely 

 settled suburbs almost every place, no 

 matter how small, can by judicious plant- 

 ing be made attractive to birds. Even a 

 back yard may in its limited way, with 

 proper treatment, be made a regular ren- 

 dezvous for birds in the vicinity. 



THE IMPORTANCE OE EVERGREENS 



On suburban places and in the country 

 the use of evergreens, large plantations 

 when possible, is of prime importance as 

 a protection from the elements, as a 

 source of natural food supply, and on 

 account also of the nesting sites they in- 

 variably offer. Nothing is finer than a 

 plantation of white pine or hemlock. 



Spruce and balsam are beautiful and 

 offer tempting nesting sites, while the 

 native red cedar seems a favorite tree for 

 the nest-builders and also contributes its 

 berries toward the winter supply of food. 



There is a huge hill at the edge of the 

 sand dunes at Ipswich, Mass., swept by 

 all the storms that come in from over the 

 ocean, that years ago was as bare as a 

 billiard ball, but upon one side of which 

 the enterprising owner set out a large 

 plantation of evergreens. Today that 

 hillside is a Mecca for the birds from 

 miles around, and noted among the bird 

 lovers of the region for its varying bird 

 life both winter and summer. 



From an artistic standpoint, also, the 

 use of evergreens is to be recommended. 

 In these days, when there seems to be 

 such an exodus from city to country, why 

 shouldn't our country homes be made to 

 look as attractive in winter as in sum- 

 mer 0 While we of the North may not in 



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