Feeding the Birds

NiteRider

We get a variety of birds in our back garden, mainly blackbirds, the occasional robin and a few doves.

I buy extra apples from the market and cut each apple into quarters for the birds. If one of us has eaten an apple, we throw the core out too.

Tuttifruitty_Theresa

Hi great thread and i found this on the RSPB site (great site btw), i now never use the cheap orange/red peanut bags.

Mesh bags - a warning
Peanuts and fat balls are regularly sold in nylon mesh bags. Never put out any food in mesh bags. These may trap birds' feet and even cause broken or torn off feet and legs. Birds with a barbed tongue, eg woodpeckers, can become trapped by their beaks.

scuzz

*bump*

It's that time of year again. This Saturday 27th October is Feed the Birds Day! More details here

juliejim

The birds in my garden eat the dogs' food. My dogs have Bakers Complete and they have their bowls outside in the run and the birds, especially the magpies, like to eat the meaty bits out of the bowls. All the birds help themselves to the bits out of the bottom of their bowls though which could be anything from little bits of biscuits to leftover food which the dogs have been given.

thriftmonster

My lot of greedy guts go through sunflower hearts at a rate of knots - there is a real handbags at dawn between the goldfinches and the bluetits. Does anyone have a cheap source for these cos I'm paying £2.75 a bag and it only lasts about 2 weeks

paddy's_mum

We have been feeding our garden birds for several years now. We have also undertaken a major replanting of the garden to make it more wildlife friendly and boy, it is paying off. We currently get almost 40 different species within the garden (except for the local heron, as the pond is fenced off!)

Last year, we discovered that rats (which I absolutely loathe!) were coming to the area beneath the main bird table, which sent shivers of horror up my spine! My husband fixed the problem though by drilling a hole in an old plastic barrel top (you could substitute a plastic dustbin lid) and inserting the pole of the bird feeder through it. All spilt seed dropped into the upturned lid from where the sparrows took it, but it made the whole area clean and the rats disappeared as the 'canteen' had closed.

We have a water dish set into a hip high, home made obelisk, made from scrap roof battens. This is set half into the hedge and the birds seem to like the siting as it allows them to approach under cover of the bushes and be safe from attack by sparrowhawks (yes, they visit our garden too!)

We do have a cat but by keeping the area of approach relatively free of hiding places, have not so far had any bird casualties. Thorny perching places (wild rose, hawthorn, pyracantha) helps deter cats, too.

I'd happily put a list of all the bird species that visit our garden, but you'd all think I was boasting! Hope some of our approach to feeding wild birds may give others some new ideas.

full-time-mum

My friend made some apple bird feeders with some school children and said they were very popular (with both children and birds!).

1. Core the apple.
2. Take a small slice off the top of the apple and poke sunflower seeds in all over.
3. find a small twig and tie it to the end of some string.
4. Feed string through the apple.
5. Hang on a tree and wait.

This is an ideal way to use up bruised apples or windfallers from the garden.

charlies_mum

Aldi are selling a tub of 50 fat balls for £5.99, 12.75kg of premium seed mix for £7.49 and a wild bird feeding kit for £3.99.

The are on sale now, and have been since Sunday, so I hope they still have some left tomorrow.

And before you all shout at me for not making my own fat balls, it will take me weeks to collect enough, but I will start to keep the fat from now on .

System

A couple of things which might interest you bird lovers.

After feeling fleeced at the price of wild bird seed, my wife rang numerous places for quotes and found a small independent shop selling sacks of 20 kilo's for £8.50 with free delivery.

and after much waiting for the flock of starlings that descend on us several times a day, they arrived this afternoon with the one I'd been waiting for. An albino starling. It was right in the middle of a group and with my camera/phone, managed to get a pic. Later I will endevour to show you.

pigpen

ooh an albino starling.. sounds amazing..

We have Mr and Mrs Blackbird who come twice a day to feast on our worms and slugs and bugs from the grass.. We have Mr and Mrs Woodpigeon which my cat REALLY likes the look of.. but they're doing well.. they've last 2 years with him living here!! We have a treemouse (squirrel) colony.. one of which moggster got his teeth into the other week but that is the only casualty we've had but I think the others learned from his experience. They LOVE the chocolate bread leftovers.. when I put bready bits out theycome and rifle through looking for the chocolate bits!! Little sod ripped my peanut bags open (before Iknew we had them visiting) and there were nuts EVERYWHERE!! We have a couple of crows and loads of tits and finches. We have a large dead ivy up the side wall which they like to dipple about in for bugs. I am trying to persuade hubby to erect a high up bird feeder on the side wall which the cats cannot leap onto.

I have a couple of seed feeders but they never touch those for some reason. The nuts don't last long though..

DS3 lays on the floor in his room watching the feeder for hours waiting for birds to come feed.