Birdfeeders

As we add bird feeders to our yards to attract birds, unfortunately we also attract predators. Therefore, it is sometimes necessary to take steps to protect the birds who visit our bird feeders. The enemies of birds are many and are quite resourceful. Cats, both domestic and feral, are skilled hunters and account for huge numbers of bird deaths. If you have a domestic cat, keeping it indoors is very helpful. For feral cats, making their lives difficult in your yard is a smart plan. Whenever one comes around, douse it with water or make lots of noise to scare it away. Eventually, it will move on to a more friendly location. Also, putting chicken wire around places they like to hide can be quite effective. A short chicken wire fence can give birds enough time to escape a bouncing cat. You may have an occasional visit from a hawk, but if your bird feeders are located near good cover, such as trees and shrubs, birds will take cover from these natural predators.

Winter bird feeding is quite enjoyable for it is easy to have a yard full of hungry birds when food is scarce. However, keeping your bird feeders full during spring and summer gives you the opportunity to watch birds during their mating and nesting periods. If you provide short pieces of string, lint, small twigs and other nesting materials, you can have a very busy yard. When the young chicks start leaving the nests, it’s great fun to watch the parents bring them to the bird feeders. Don’t worry about discouraging birds from migrating in the fall. When the hours of daylight start to shorten, the migratory birds will depart on schedule. The food you provide just might strengthen them for their long journey.

Feeding birds is definitely a popular hobby. Every year, about one quarter of American households put out some kind of food for the birds. Many only do this during the winter, but feeding birds all year can certainly be rewarding. Winter feeding brings the largest number of birds to your bird feeders because there is a limited supply of natural foods. If you are feeding birds during the winter it isn’t necessary to make sure your bird feeders are always full. If your hanging bird feeders are empty, birds will simply look elsewhere for food. Of course, they may not come back when you again start filling your bird feeders for they may have found someone else’s full feeders. However, food you put out during the coldest months can help the weakest individuals to survive. If you plan to feed birds during the winter, it is a good idea to begin keeping full bird feeders in the fall so the local birds make your yard headquarters before the cold sets in.

To attract the greatest number of birds to your yard, of course you need hanging tube feeders as well as platform feeders, hummingbird feeders, etc. Ideally your yard should also offer shelter from the wind and rain and offer plenty of sites for nesting and raising their young. Many birds prefer a particular height for feeding, perching or nesting. In order to attract the widest variety of birds to your yard, not only offer bird feeders at various heights, but also surround the base of tall trees with shorter trees, shrubs or various groundcovers. Dense growth provides the best nesting sites for many birds, so be sure not to over-prune shrubs and trees. Dead branches and old tree stumps make the yard seem more like a wooded grove to birds so consider leaving these in your yard instead of cleaning them away.

The best garden for attracting birds is not the traditional one with large lawn areas and carefully tended flower beds. Birds like varied foliage as well as hanging bird feeders. This can be accomplished by planting tall trees, groups of shrubs, climbing vines and some small, open grassy areas. If you relax and let it all go a little wild, birds will really enjoy it! Even an apartment balcony can be inviting for birds if it has landscaped flower boxes, small potted trees and shrubs as well as assorted bird feeders. When you are deciding what to plant, it is best to stick with local plants that you know grow well in your area. These are easiest to grow and have the added benefit of being familiar to visiting birds. Whatever you plant, please avoid using pesticides or herbicides.

Suet feeders are a variation on your standard bird feeder, but are just as simple to maintain as a seed feeder.  Suet bird feeders use suet cakes, which can be purchased at most locations that sell standard bird seed.  Depending on how much birds in your backyard enjoy suet, suet cakes might need to be replaced once a week or once every couple days!  Squirrels are particularly fond of suet, and it’s important to make sure they don’t get to it because it will be gone in a matter of hours.  You should either put a squirrel baffle over the top of your suet feeder, or purchase a model that houses the suet cakes inside a series of cages; ensuring the squirrels can’t get in.

With suet feeders, some birds will only eat suet, so if you do own a suet feeder it’s important to either keep it filled during fall and through winter, or stop during the summer so birds don’t depend on it as a food source. 

There’s nothing quite like having wildlife in your garden.  The sights and sounds of unique wildlife give your garden a more natural appeal, and allow you to become immersed in Mother Nature.  To bring wildlife to your outdoor space, there are a number of plants and garden structures that can provide assistance.  For example, if you’re interesting in bringing honeybees to your yard to pollinate your flowers, a bee house is a great option.  If you’d like to draw members of the avian population to your garden, hanging bird feeders, birdhouses, and birdbaths are necessary.  For aquatic animals (if you have a pond), you’ll want to have underwater plants and soft marshy areas with adequate concealment.  Fish of course will have to be introduced by the owner, but frogs and toads can migrate from other areas depending on where you live.

With all these animals in your garden, you’ll be privy to a symphony of sound and aesthetic appeal, and you’re sure to love your garden even more.  Set down a comfortable lounge chair or a bench and the hours will just melt away in your favorite outdoor space. 

It’s possible to attract dozens of species of birds to your yard simply by making them feel welcome. This is accomplished by offering them the same resources they look for in the wild - food, water, shelter and nesting sites. All of these needs can be met with bird feeders, birdbaths, birdhouses and an assortment of trees, shrubs and flowers in your yard. Whether they are frequenting bird feeders, splashing around in the birdbaths, carrying nesting materials to nearby trees or just foraging around under bushes and bird feeders, birds will provide you with wonderful viewing opportunities throughout the year. All of this wonderful activity can be observed from the comfort of your own home.

The quickest way to attract hummingbirds to your yard is with bright red hummingbird feeders, but if you want them to stay around so you can watch their behavior, plant a garden designed for them. Flowering plants will keep hummers exploring your yard for natural nectar as well as insects. As they stake out a claim to their favorite flowering plants, you will observe them driving away butterflies, bees, wasps and sometimes other birds. The best flowers for hummers have tubular shaped blossoms. Consider planting honeysuckle, salvias, impatiens, pineapple sage and other similar plants. Instead of just making a quick stop at our hummingbird feeders, they will now stay to explore the yard for other foods. You may even see them stealing insects from a spider web.

 With their beauty and their high-energy activities, it’s obvious why backyard birdwatchers love hummingbirds. They are constantly competing for time at the hummingbird feeders.Therefore it often makes sense to have more than one feeder and keep adding more until the hummingbirds aren’t always competing, but there seems to be enough ports to satisfy the number of hummingbirds in the area. I have found that they also visit the oriole feeders in the yard.

Males are the most beautiful of the species. Females are mostly green above and whitish below. The gorgeous color at the male throat is a patch of tiny feathers called gorgets. Most of us can easily attact these tiny birds by just  putting up bright red hummingbird feeders for most species are found all over the United States except for some areas of the Plains states. Theyare also found in Central and South America. In winter, hummers migrate southward, returning in spring in a migration that follows the spring flowers. Birdwatchers at migration points have noted hummingbirds along the same route as hawks and monarch butterflies.