Basics of Bird Feeding

PLACEMENT.

Birds feel vulnerable when out in the open, so try to place your feeder near a bush or a tree. It can take up to a couple of months for birds to adjust to a new feeder. When possible, put your new feeder near an old one, keeping both full of seed until the birds become familiar with the new one.

FOOD.
Black oil sunflower is the most preferred seed. Striped sunflower is the next best. Thistle (niger or nyjer) is popular with finches and disliked by most others. It provides relief for finches when other birds monopolize the sunflower seed. White millet is the preferred millet and is readily eaten by doves, sparrows and juncos. Cardinals, chickadees, titmice and nuthatches like safflower but starlings, sparrows, blackbirds and squirrels don’t like it! Cracked corn is relished by blue jays and large game birds. Offer it in tray feeders like our Giant Seed Tray and Universal Seed Tray. Hulled seed leaves no mess under the feeder, but if using in hot or wet weather, fill your feeder only with what will be eaten in a day. Otherwise, the seed can rot and make the birds sick. Peanuts are big with woodpeckers, titmice, chickadees, nuthatches and jays. Mealworms attract insect eaters like blue birds, thrushes and warblers, while other seed eating birds enjoy them too. Sugar water that you mix yourself is a mainstay for hummingbirds and is taken by as many as fifty other nectar eaters, including orioles and woodpeckers.

WATER.
Birds need a supply of water year round. In winter a birdbath heater will keep ice from forming in sub freezing temps. Some very enjoyable activity will take place at the birdbath.

WHEN.

Year round feeding of wild birds gives year round pleasure. Although winter has always been the traditional time to feed the birds, there are many reasons to continue through all the seasons. The birds also benefit in the spring when food stores are at their lowest and energy is spent nesting and raising young. In summer you’ll watch the young initiated to feeders by parents. You’ll also see plumage changes, like the dramatic transformation of the goldfinch.

BIRD SEED STORAGE.
Store seed in a cool dry place in a sealed container that rodents can’t enter. Mice can carry and spread some bird diseases without being affected themselves.

CLEANING.
Keeping your feeders clean is a very important part of bird feeding. Bacteria and disease are spread through bird droppings on feeders, seed and on hulls below the feeder. Damp feed and debris can cultivate fungus.

1. Sanitize feeders regularly with a 50/50 solution of white vinegar and hot water, more often in hot and humid weather. Our bird feeder brush (BFB) makes cleaning easy. DO NOT USE HARSH CHEMICALS.
2. Discard wet or moldy food. Disinfect any containers or scoops used to handle it.
3. Rake, shovel or shop-vac seed debris from beneath feeder on a regular basis to prevent the growth of mold and bacteria and to deter rodents.
4. Overcrowding at feeders is a key factor in spreading disease. Provide additional feeders if overcrowding occurs.
5. Nectar feeders should be cleaned every few days. Replace any nectar that turns cloudy immediately.

SQUIRRELS.
These natural acrobats will jump six to eight feet to get on your feeder. Position feeders away from buildings, tree trunks and the ground. The Droll Yankee Squirrel Guard limits access from above. Use the Giant Seed Tray on our Garden Pole to protect pole mounted feeders.

RACCOONS.
Take your feeders in at night to discourage these nocturnal visitors.