By Daniel Griffiths

Published: Friday, 28 January 2022 at 12:00 am

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How to attract birds into your garden

As winter moves to spring, it’s a crucial time for garden birds and with changes to our routines and movements over the past couple of years, they may have become particularly dependent on receiving a little extra care.

If you’re looking to attract more birds into your garden – especially around RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch time (28-30 January 2022) – there are some simple things you can do to play your part and win those birds around.

Feeders Vs Tables

By providing food for birds in your garden, you can help ensure local species continue to thrive. When it comes to bird food, right now try filling one feeder with sunflower hearts and another with peanuts.

We do this because diets vary greatly across different species. For example, sparrows and goldfinches enjoy seeds whereas woodpeckers aren’t seed eaters at all – they prefer peanuts, fat, and even mealworms.

While many birds will visit a seed feeder, they all have their preferences. Blue tits will seek out fat and suet, while great tits and robins opt for mealworms. Then again song birds such as blackbirds and thrushes prefer fruit.

For our guide to the best bird feeders and their many types go here.

And for a wealth of ideas for all kinds of feed to serve try here.

Bird tables

A bird table attracts different types of bird to feeders. It’s therefore essential to have both feeders (with a range of tasty treats) and tables in place in your garden so as to attract the greatest diversity of birds.

Blackbirds, robins and wrens prefer food that doesn’t require them to hang from anything, preferring to stand on a flat surface, up high or at ground level.

Offer a wider range of quality bird food set up at varying heights, such as ground, table and hanging feeders – known as ‘tiered bird feeding’ – will attract a higher diversity of species.

Worth noting that you should always break up peanuts if you’re placing them on a table. Serving them ‘neat’ means they’re not being broken up through the pecking action required by a feeder and so will be difficult for the smaller birds to consume.

For lots of bird table designs and options go here.

Bird houses and bird boxes

If you’d like the birds to stick around a little longer, offering up a bird box is a great option for all, as no garden is too small for one.

Blue tits and house sparrows will flock to a bird box attached to the wall of a house. Simply make sure that you place it somewhere where there is low traffic from humans and pets and it’s unlikely to be disturbed.

So while it might be tempting to place your bird box immediately outside your living room window or back door where you’ll get maximum visibility, do be aware that the birds are smart enough to seek somewhere a little quieter.

For more on birdboxes take a look here.

How to get birds to come back to your garden each year

The trick to obtaining an annual repeat avian performance is consistency.

• Always ensure you have food and water in your garden. While it’s not necessary to feed birds through summer, if you keep a little food out they’ll be reminded that – when winter comes – there’s a ready supply waiting for them right there.

• Always ensure it’s in the same safe place. Don’t move feeders and baths around or you’re effectively ‘resetting’ that location as a new potential feeding spot.

• And always ensure your feeders and water supply are clean (and cleaned weekly). Feeders can spread infection and can cause harm to visiting birds. Keeping a clean feeder means you’re doing your bit to protect them.

Caught the birdwatching bug? If you’re looking for wonderful places to go birdwatching other than your back gardnen try here.

And if you’d like to attract an even wider (and wilder) rang of wildlife to your garden, take a look here.

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