# Encouraging birds into the garden



## Donna3939 (Nov 28, 2010)

I was given a bird feeding station for my birthday (a few months now) and have just gotten round to putting it up in the garden.

I've got a feeder with peanuts, one with sunflower seeds, one with a seed mix, a suet ball holder, a niger seed feeder and a mealworm tray, along with a birdbath and seed tray.

We have a small garden with woods across the road and trees outside the garden with quite a few insects, birds and squirrels. The most commonly seen birds are blue tits, coal tits, robins, blackbirds, magpies, sparrows and collared doves. I am interested in attracting goldfinches into the garden too, hence the niger seeds.

My question now comes: how do I attract the birds into the garden to use the feeder? Obviously there hasn't been a bird feeder for them before so how do they become aware of them?!

We do have cats, however I have sited the feeder away from any walls, fences or platforms from which they could jump from.


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## tinamary (Aug 17, 2008)

That sounds a great feeder. I have one in the garden and it didn't take long for the birds to realise it was there. If you keep it topped up the birds will come.

You will probably find that you will see more in the winter when the food is scarce.

I always thought that you only feed them in the winter but i watched a programme with Chris packam and he said that you should feed them all year.

I love watching them and today we had a turf war with robins. One would land on the feeder and then another would come and chase it away. It went on for hours.


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## Donna3939 (Nov 28, 2010)

Well, 4 days later and still no bites 

Earlier a coal tit started to fly down, got to about a foot of the feeder and took off again in the other direction...no cats, dogs, no reason for it to get spooked. 

There's all that lovely food sitting there waiting and I'm gutted there's been no takers.

x.


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## Aurelia (Apr 29, 2010)

Hi Donna 

Click on the picture below and it will take you to it on my Flickr account, there if you move your mouse over the different feeder it will give you some tips.

The best all round food we find attracts all the birds is sunflower hearts! They can be expensive at the minute, but are well worth it. If you buy some, get good quality ones that are plump and not dehydrated. The birds won't be able to resist for long.

Also birds like it if the feeders are close by to somewhere they can dart for cover. So a nice big bushy plant, a hedge or a tree. If it's too exposed they won't use it as much as they will be too nervous of a Sparrow Hawk attack 



It can take a few weeks for birds to start using the feeders if you've never had one out before. Don't give up they will come eventually. Then you will be faced with feeding many birds


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## Donna3939 (Nov 28, 2010)

Yey, had my first bite today!!! 

A solitary collared dove braved the garden and sat on the seed tray tucking away. I think its too big and heavy for the peanut and seed feeders.

I'm over the moon, I just hope the other, smaller birds follow suit...especially the finches since that niger seed is so blummin' expensive!!  x


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## Donna3939 (Nov 28, 2010)

Well that dove the other day is the only bird visitor I've had...the only things eating the dried mealworms are wasps! I was watching them, they were still stinging the worms to try and paralyse them while eating them...yuck, I HATE wasps! x


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## rona (Aug 18, 2011)

There is an abundance of food around at the moment. Don't get disheartened, I'm sure they will come in in the winter.


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## Acrophylla (Apr 16, 2008)

I put an old cereal bowl of cold tap water outside and was amazed at how many birds came to drink from it. The birds seem to need the water more than the food!


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## Rob Adair Pet Care (Sep 3, 2011)

I think just about everything has already been covered by the other posters, but I would just say give it a bit time for the birds to a) find it and b) overcome their natural suspicion of anything new.

As part of a local conservation group, we were given the keys to part of an old cemetery by the local council to establish a feeding station. It took about 3 weeks to see the birds start to feed there, yet now, 2 years on, we are inundated with birds (over 30 species to date) and it's become almost a full time job to keep it all topped up!

Apart from the autumn when natural food is abundant and your feeders are likely to be ignored, I would continue to feed all year round. Just remember not to feed bread, fat or whole peanuts during the spring and summer as this can cause the young birds to choke and remember to always have fresh water available to them, especially in winter when all the natural sources have frozen over.

Otherwise, just sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labour!


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## Valanita (Apr 13, 2010)

It does take birds a while to find & be comfortable feeding from a new feeder or a new place to feed, Donna. You will soon have them in droves once the first few make up their minds to arrive. You have a brilliant selection of food on offer too, just like I have.
My garden is full of birds & I feed all year round.
Here are some of them....


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## Donna3939 (Nov 28, 2010)

Well this past week my feeder has really come into its own, woo hoo!!!

I had been getting visits from robins, collared doves, blue tits and either coal tits or great tits (I can't tell the difference tbh) but last week I've had visits from goldfinches, chaffinches, greenfinches a solitary bullfinch, starlings and blackbirds!!!

I'm really over the moon and have spent the past week just sitting watching them all the time (luckily its coincided with my weeks leave from work!) - the goldfinches are the bravest and I've had about 5 on the feeders at any one time with another dozen or so sitting in the trees overhanging the garden waiting for their turn... My nyjer seeds and sunflower hearts have come in handy for them (they won't touch anything else) and I've had to go out every day to top up.

Just thought I'd give an update. Its taken 5 months but I've eventually got there. xx


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## Valanita (Apr 13, 2010)

Donna3939 said:


> Well this past week my feeder has really come into its own, woo hoo!!!
> 
> I had been getting visits from robins, collared doves, blue tits and either coal tits or great tits (I can't tell the difference tbh) but last week I've had visits from goldfinches, chaffinches, greenfinches a solitary bullfinch, starlings and blackbirds!!!
> 
> ...


They do seem to prefer those here as well, out of all the other types of bird food,Donna.


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## Donna3939 (Nov 28, 2010)

Well, another new visitor has entered the garden for the first time today. After having a look on the RSPB website I've identified it as a long-tailed tit... what a beautiful little bird it is.  x


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## *Amber* (Oct 22, 2010)

Awww Long tailed Tits are so sweet! They usually hang around in groups! I had 16 on my feeders the other day! To tell the difference between a Great Tit and a Coal Tit, the Great Tits are bigger and much more common, the Coal Tits look simillar to the Great Tits, but they are a little smaller than a Blue Tit, and have a little white patch at the back of their neck which the Great Tit goesn't have, also, Great Tits have a black line down the middle of the breast (thicker in males than females) which the Coal Tit lacks.


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