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Feeding Wild Birds - Sweet Songs & Stunning Colors by Bonnie P Carrier
With each new home purchased, aside from the usual requirements there has also been one other important question “ Is there a place to hang the bird feeders”? Now this may sound a bit strange but feeding the birds has always  been something our family has enjoyed.
Having bird feeders in your yard gives you the opportunity to watch these marvelous creatures up close. Their beautiful colors and lively movements can brighten any day.
This is especially true during the winter months, even more so if you happen to live in the Northeast – as I do – where the winters can sometimes be long and cold.
This is also a terrific activity to get the whole family involved in, from purchasing feeders to buying a bird guide book to help identify and keep track of the types of birds that are attracted to your feeders.
Below are a few tips on getting started.
What Type Of Feeder First you’ll want a feeder that can hold up to the elements, something that’s large enough to not have to refill it constantly, also something that’s fairly easy to take apart to clean.
Feeders typically fall into three categories:
- Tray/Platform Feeders A flat, raised surface onto which bird food is spread, these can be mounted on a pole or set directly on the ground. Trays attract most species of feeder birds, but without some type of baffle, they offer no protection against squirrels or chipmunks. Seed can be kept dry by placing a roof over the top.
- Hopper Feeders Hoppers are the most common seen in stores. They have base, sides that are typically made of plastic and a roof. They can be either mounted on a pole or hung from a branch. This type of feeder is typically made of either wood – cedar is my favorite – or metal, some can also come with suet holders on the side.
- Tube Feeders A tube feeder is a hollow cylinder, often made of plastic, with multiple feeding ports and perches. To keep the squirrels away you’ll want to look for one with a metal cage around the outside.
Where To Place The Feeders Of course the whole point to having bird feeders is to be able to watch the birds eat, so you’ll want to hang them where they are visible from either a deck, patio or viewing from windows inside your home.
Birds get nervous being out in the open for too long, therefore the feeder should be close to some type of natural shelter such as trees or shrubs. This will offer them a safe refuge as they wait their turn to eat. Just be careful not to place the feeders to close to trees, otherwise you’ll have squirrels taking over.
Let’s talk for a bit about squirrels, because they love seed they can become a real nuisance. Over the years watching us try and outsmart these little devils could have made a video worth sending into Americans Funniest Home Videos. We’ve tried everything from adding plastic snow saucers – not very attractive- under the pole feeders to watching the trees – looked really silly – to see where they were jumping from then cutting the branches. All this gave us were snow saucers filled with holes and very odd-looking trees.
I finally found a feeder with a wire cage around the outside, which has tension springs on two sides. When the squirrels jump on the feeder the outside cage comes down preventing them from getting to the seeds. We had a lot of fun watching them try and figure out how to get some of the free food. After several tries – they are very persistent - they gave up and now are content with eating what falls to the ground.
We really do like the little guys, so to be fair we’ve mounted a wooden box with a lid on the side of a tree, filled it with goodies ranging from peanuts to corn. It’s really cute watching them climb the tree, sit on the lip of the box raise the top pull out a treat then sit back and enjoy their treasure.
What Type Of Seed Choosing the food may be harder than picking out the feeder. There are an abundant variety of foods available and can be found at your local supermarket and home centers. Most of these are a mixture however; you can buy individual bags of seeds and mix them together.
One thing to keep in mind, those large 25 – 50lb bags of mixed wild bird seed may seem like a good bargain compared to mixing several bags of individual seeds. The problem is that birds are particular about what they like and will sift through seed to get at their favorites, what you end up with is a mess on the ground of unwanted seeds that no one will eat.
If you’re just starting your bird feeding adventure, the best advice is to start with a small bag of mixed seed. Once the birds begin coming you can then determine what type of birds you have and then purchase food that appeals to them.
Here at my home – in the Northeast – the most common types of birds are Chickadees, Tufted Titmouse, Finches, Cardinals, Doves and Woodpeckers. Most are above ground feeding birds; the Cardinals and Doves prefer feeding on the ground.
Black-oil sunflower seeds and suet are a favorite for most – suet should not be used in hot weather as it turns rancid and can harm the birds – some of our birds prefer safflower, cracked corn and millet. Finches love thistle seed, however if your going to use it you’ll need a special feeder as this seed is very thin and will fall out of normal feeders holes.
If you have a separate suet feeder – wire cage shaped like a square – in the summer you can purchase square blocks of pressed seeds to replace the fatty suet used during the winter. This will make any woodpeckers you have very happy.
Maintenance of Your Feeders Keeping the birds that visit you healthy is an important element; therefore proper maintenance of any feeders is important.
Because decomposing or molding seeds and hulls can make birds sick, it’s important to clean your feeds on a regular basis. About every two weeks or so wash the feeders thoroughly in hot soapy water, rinse in a solution of one part bleach to nine parts water. Let the feeder’s dry completely then refill and hang them back up. You’ll also want to occasionally rake up any uneaten food or hulls that have fallen on the ground under the feeders as it can also become spoiled and moldy.
With a little planning and proper care, feeding the birds can become a wonderful relaxing pastime for you and your entire family.
About the author: Bonnie P. Carrier is the creator of Savvy Home Decorating. She is the mother to two grown daughters and a very spoiled Blue Merle Sheltie named Toby. www.savvy-home-decorating.com
This is a share ware article. Give this article away for free on your site, or include it as part of any paid package as long as the entire article is left intact including this notice. Copyright © 2007 Bonnie Carrier.
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