How to welcome the Golden-crowned Kinglet in Washington, District of Columbia, United States

To attract the charming Golden-crowned Kinglet to your Washington, D.C. garden, you can create a natural pantry using beautiful native plants. Kinglets are tiny insectivores, so the goal is to cultivate a habitat rich in the small insects and spiders they prey upon, while also providing essential shelter.

🌳 Trees and large shrubs

• White Oak (Quercus alba): This cornerstone native tree is a caterpillar nursery, hosting hundreds of species that provide a critical food source for kinglets.
• Virginia Pine (Pinus virginiana): As a dense evergreen, this tree offers year-round shelter and crucial foraging grounds, as kinglets search for insects hiding in the bark and needles.
• Red Maple (Acer rubrum): Its flowers attract tiny insects in early spring, and the tree itself serves as a foraging site for various insect-larvae sought by kinglets.

🌿 Shrubs and hedges

• Arrowwood Viburnum (Viburnum dentatum): This shrub's dense branching structure provides excellent shelter, and its flowers attract a wide array of small insects for kinglets to eat.
• Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum): In addition to attracting pollinators and other small insects, its twiggy growth offers safe cover for tiny birds like kinglets.
• Winterberry (Ilex verticillata): This holly provides fantastic dense cover for protection, and its flowers support the small insects that kinglets hunt.

🌾 Low plants, perennials and grasses

• Showy Goldenrod (Solidago speciosa): A powerhouse for biodiversity, this plant attracts a huge number of aphids, caterpillars, and other small insects, creating a perfect foraging buffet.
• New England Aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae): This vibrant perennial is a late-season magnet for pollinators and other insects, offering a vital food source for kinglets.
• Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium): This native bunch grass provides essential winter cover and hosts various insects and spiders through all seasons.

💡 Planting tips

• Group your plantings: Create dense thickets and layered plantings that mimic a natural woodland edge, providing security and varied foraging opportunities.
• Include conifers: Evergreens like the Virginia Pine are vital for providing kinglets with shelter from harsh weather and predators during the winter.
• Plant in fall or spring: This gives native plants the best start to establish strong roots and thrive in your local ecosystem.
• Avoid pesticides: To build a healthy insect population for kinglets to feed on, it is crucial to eliminate the use of pesticides in your garden.