Canadian Wildlife Federation: Build a Brush Pile for Wildlife

Canadian Wildlife Federation: Build a Brush Pile for Wildlife:

Some additional planning will make your brush pile the hottest hangout in the neighbourhood:

• Ensure a section of your brush pile gets direct sunlight and you will attract animals that like to bask.
• Add stone piles along the edges of the brush pile to act as basking sites. 
• Encourage fruiting vines and flowering plants to sprawl through your brush pile to add density and stability and attract pollinators and songbirds.
• Keep it away from snags (standing dead trees), where raptors often scan for ground prey and launch their attacks. 
• Cover the top with evergreen branches from your Christmas tree to provide a snow and ice barrier. 
• Add new brush to the top every few years to replace settled and decayed material.
• Place it well away from your house to discourage wild tenants from moving in.