Being close to nature is proven to be beneficial to our health and happiness, and it’s not hard to see why! Attracting birds to your garden through the correct feed, a good water supply and the right habitat can bring a lot of joy into your home.
But lots of people ask these two questions: just how many times should I feed birds and when?
Here, we give our top advice and best practices to turn your garden into a wildlife haven for both you and your feathered friends!
Get into a routine
Despite what some sources say, garden birds need your care and attention all year round. This means putting food out every day and maintaining feeders on a regular basis. Seed mixes and sunflower hearts are delicious and nutritious and by putting these out in the morning, with extra at noon in the winter months, birds will quickly come to see a pattern in their mealtimes and frequent your garden during these hours. If you’re going on holiday or leaving the house for a period of time, it’s advisable to reduce the amount of food you leave out for a few days beforehand so that birds can get used to this and find another source. This way, birds will stay well-fed and happy even while you’re away.
Harsh times
It’s not always easy being a bird and natural food sources can sometimes run low during difficult seasons. If you think it’s a particularly harsh winter, or a wetter summer than usual, it’s time to put out some extra feed. Birds are under stress from many environmental pressures such as invaded territories, new chicks and unprecedented weather conditions: by leaving food out regularly you are helping to take one less worry out of a bird’s day.
Just the right amount
Once you know how many birds are coming regularly to your garden, you can easily judge how much food to put out. A surplus of feed could attract unpleasant visitors to your garden, such as rats and mice. By keeping your feeders and bird stations clean and sweeping away any unwanted old nibbles, you garden will be seen as a safe place to make a daily pit stop.
Quality not quantity
It’s also important to remember that birds value good quality feed which allows them to get all the nutrition they need. Seed mixes and peanut butter feed from Love Garden Birds offer excellent, high quality sources of fat and protein to keep birds robust and healthy all year round. By providing all their nutrients from one place, wildlife can save energy by not having to search for food in different places and make your garden into a bustling breakfast spot for birds.
