Not all plants are reliable at producing berries. A number of plants are either male or female and you need both nearby to ensure berries on the female plant.

Also, birds often ignore the 'wrong' colour, so choose red berries to be sure.

Those that make attractive garden plants and yield well for the birds include:

Climbers:

• Honeysuckle (Lonicera)
• Vine (Vitis) - produces grapes.
• Ivy (Hedera) - produces black berries.

Shrubs:

• Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster) - reliable crop on evergreen and deciduous varieties, which can be grown against a wall.
• Firethorn (Pyracantha) - can be trained to grow flat against a wall, fruits in October - red berried varieties best for birds.
• Japonica (Chaenomeles)
• Crab apple (Malus)
• Rose (Rosa) - choose ones that reliabley produce rose hips, which are popular with greenfinches.
• Berberis (Berberis)
• Aucuba (Aucuba)
• Butchers broom (Ruscus)
• Hypericum (Hypericum)
• Spindle (Euonymus europaeus)
• Pernettya (Pernettya) - 'Bell's Seedling' has male and female flowers on same plant so you only need one for berries.
• Mahonia (Mahonia)
• Chokeberry (Cotoneaster)
• Elder (Sambucus) - there are ornamental versions - only choose the wild one if you can keep it in check!
• Skimmia (Skimmia reevesiana) - this species has male and female flowers on the same plant.
• Holly (Ilex) - such as 'Wilsonii' or Brilliant' (beware holly names - kings are female, queens are male)
• Viburnum davidii (Viburnum davidii) - forms a low-growing mound that fruits more profusely if there are several plants.

Trees:

• Mountain ash or rowan (Sorbus aucuparia)
• Guelder rose (Viburnum opulus) - not 'Roseum' or 'Sterile' which do not produce berries.
• Hawthorn (Crataegus)
• Holly (Ilex)