Feed The Birds Day – Looking After Our Feathered Friends
Wow, autumn has definitely arrived hasn’t it? This week in my beloved Dorset, I have really noticed the drop in temperature, so our feathered friends may also need a little help in finding good food to help keep their energy and health in tip top condition to get through the winter.
Saturday 29th October (yes it is already near the end of October), is the national ‘Feed the birds day.’
If you would like to help attract birds to your garden and feed them, here are some points to consider in choosing which foods are best.
Choosing the right food for our bird friends?
A visit to your local garden centre will see shelves packed with every kind of nutritious food you can think of, from live food, seed, peanuts, fruit, right through to essential fat balls, but you can also make up a fine dining experience for your feathered friends, from your kitchen.
Our birds have been really enjoying our coconut suet feeders, and throughout the day, I have delighted in watching blue tits, great tits and robins feast on them.
- The RSPB have provided some helpful recipes to get you started.
Here is a suggestion from their blog – This weekend be a bird food master chef
- The RSPB youth shows how to make a speedy seed cake
- The Gardener’s world website gives a photographic instruction list on how to make fat cakes for birds
This year has been excellent for our gorgeous Oak trees, so there is a rich supply of acorns. The RSPB are encouraging people to plant an acorn in their gardens, as acorns (and the oak trees they grow on) are a great food source for a variety of animals and birds, such as Jays. A surprising fact I found out recently, was that apparently Jays can hoard up to 5000 acorns!
Foods to avoid
- Uncooked rice
- Desiccated coconut
- Unsoaked bread
- Large pieces of bacon rind
- Spoiled or spicy food
- Anything with large amounts of salt e.g salty fats, cured foods, and salted nuts.
- Unsaturated fats e.g. margarine and vegetable oil
Don’t forget
To always have a supply of fresh water and check any foods left out for mould as these can cause respiratory and digestion problems in many birds, such as sparrows and green finches. Keep your bird table, feeders and bird bath clean, to minimise bacterial disease.
Be aware of where you place your feeders, table and bird bath, considering areas in your garden that may make birds vulnerable to attack from predators.
As we feed our birds, not only will you be helping them get through what is predicted to be a hard winter, but you can also be able to enjoy watching them in your garden – one of my favourite things to do – so I encourage you to give it a go.
Have you made your own bird food?
What birds have you managed to encourage into your garden?
About Anita HuntAnita Hunt specialises in botanical photography, and is the creator of beautiful, luxury greeting cards and gifts, inspired by the beauty of nature. You can join her on Twitter @NitaJoyDesigns and facebook. She is also a children's author and anti-bullying campaigner Are You Being Bullied?
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7 Responses to Feed The Birds Day – Looking After Our Feathered Friends
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Thanks for sharing this Anita, I will get some fat balls for the garden, am crap at making that sort of thing!
Sarah Arrow I lovingly typed…Dedicated Couriers: the different types of delivery
Hi Sarah,
Many thanks for your comment.
I am sure the birds will enjoy their feast
Anita Hunt I lovingly typed…A magical evening out – appreciating plants in a new light
Twitter: NitaJoyDesigns
In my head I now have the Mary Poppins song on auto-repeat! “tuppence a bag…”
Time for us to step up the bird feeding – we have plenty of seed and need to add peanuts. There is such a wealth for them to eat here – we really are lucky. Loads of berries and nuts that I’m not sure they want our offerings just yet, but we shall see…
Thank you for the reminder, Anita
Babs Saul I lovingly typed…“I need a blog”, you say…
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Hi Babs,
Many thanks for your comment.
Sorry about the Mary Poppins song on auto repeat. I too have it going around and around. I almost added it to the title.
The array of berries and nuts are amazing this year! I saw some amazing pink ones today, which I am going to investigate.
Hope you continue to enjoy your birds feasting in your garden
Anita Hunt I lovingly typed…A magical evening out – appreciating plants in a new light
Twitter: NitaJoyDesigns
Sadly our cat died earlier this year and although I miss her a lot, I have to say that the garden birds do not. We have feeders on different trees in the garden and a spiked one opposite my office window and I love seeing the different birds enjoying their treats. Blackbirds especially like the birdbath.
Lynn Tulip I lovingly typed…Getting the job application right
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I love watching the birds in my garden, Anita. I spend quite a bit on bird food every week so I think I really should look into making my own birdy treats!
I have five feeders, and a big bird bath, that I can see from the window where I work – it’s a hive of activity all year round and there’s always something interesting to look at
Angela Boothroyd I lovingly typed…35 phrasal verbs, idioms and sayings for Halloween
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Sadly our cat died beforehand this year and although I absence her a lot, I accept to say that the garden birds do not. We accept feeders on altered copse in the garden and a acicular one adverse my appointment window and I adulation seeing the altered birds adequate their treats. Blackbirds abnormally like the birdbath.