Birds and Blooms Extra

Even more of what you love from North America's #1 bird and garden magazine, celebrating the beauty in your own backyard.  Published on the months in between the Birds and Blooms magazine, Extra features vivid photographs, useful tips and expert advice to inform, inspire, and connect enthusiasts who share a passion for backyard birds and gardening.

Backyard Nursery

CAN’T GET ENOUGH BIRDS?

ASK THE EXPERTS

FAMILY SIGHTINGS

Cute as a Button • This charming wildlife-friendly shrub is a must-try.

Westward Ho! • Blue jays are fixtures in the East, but these adaptive birds are on the move.

Ready for the Heat • Fill your summer garden with water-wise picks.

Grow Backyard Lavender • This fragrant perennial can thrive in many areas of the country.

GROWING INDOORS

BEST PICKS FOR YOUR REGION • Find the perfect type of lavender for your yard.

Imperfect Plumage • Four rare genetic traits that affect feather colors.

Water Well • From classic to quirky, these cans make refreshing your plants less of a chore.

Fun in the Sun • Take in the dazzling sights of summer captured by readers.

THE young AND THE nestless • It’s a big world out there—learn how baby birds hatch and grow before gaining their independence and taking flight.

BABY BIRD TIMELINE

CAREFREE AND COOL • CONEFLOWERS promise the novice grower low-maintenance care while enticing the experienced gardener with exciting cultivars that bloom from summer until frost.

5 MUST-TRY CONEFLOWER CULTIVARS

raising monarchs • These orange-and-black insects are a joy to observe as they hatch from eggs, grow into caterpillars and transform into butterflies. Here’s a collection of reader photos and stories about watching the next generation take flight.

HOW TO HELP MONARCHS

Ask the Experts • How to treat sick plants, keep birds safe in the backyard and more.

MEET THE EXPERTS

What birds nest in your yard? • Readers share their sightings of bird parents raising their backyard broods.

Caption This! • What was this squirrel thinking as it took a dip in the basin?

Black Beauty • Host black swallowtails with as little as a pot of herbs.

Black swallowtail

Sunny Blooms • How many of these cheery yellow flowers can you identify?

FOR THE READER

Birds and Blooms Extra US

Flying Punctuation • Meet intriguing comma and question mark butterflies.