how to atract birds in to my garden

[Shaun]

hello,

how can i get birds in my garden i have a bird box and a water bath for them
but never seem to get any dont know if its those pesky cats scareing them off! the closest i got to a bird in the garden was a chafinch on my fence this morning.

[Newtothis]

Originally Posted by Shaun

hello,

how can i get birds in my garden i have a bird box and a water bath for them
but never seem to get any dont know if its those pesky cats scareing them off! the closest i got to a bird in the garden was a chafinch on my fence this morning.

Bird seed on the path, it's working for me. But then again if you have a few cats around you might be an accessory to cold blooded murder .

[Gevalia]

and what birds are you tring to attract?

[Newtothis]

I have an 18 month old that loves birds, and her excitement on seeing them fairly close is something that brings joy to my heart So for me anyway, any bird is welcome in my garden! That reminds me I should put some more seed out tomorrow.

[jeny]

Depends what type of birds you want to attract.

Hanging feeders, ground feeders.



Plant some insect attracting plants

http://www.birdfood.co.uk/pages.php?...d=1&nav_id=143

CJ WildBird Foods [UK]. Wild Bird food, seed, feeders, nest boxes, bird houses, water baths and more. Online Shop

BBC - Breathing Places - Feed birds

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/breathing...abirdguide.pdf

[Shaun]

any birds really probably be blackbirds pigeons and sparrows but would be happy any.

[EdisonCheug]

just leave some food for them. not only water.

[clodhopper]

I have a town garden with a decent pond, some border planting for the insects, and a veg patch and some wild flowers mixed together. I leave fallen debris to linger for as long as possible to attract ground feeders and foreign guests who are curious enough to step inside.
My new(ish) neighbours last year arrived with a yapping terrier, and a cat sufficiently armed to remove over half of my goldfish within the first three months. Not deterred, I pressed on with a planting regime that included a Mountain Ash complete with seasonal berries that kept the airborne fraternity happy enough to warrant a return visit this year, and joy of joys, a wren to annoy the now upstaged winter robin who inspects my 'patch' with his expert eye.
Something for everyone would appear to be the answer.

[lisa4star]

If you leave plenty of bird food out birds will eventually start to feed there.

I also through out any left overs from dinner like potatoes, chips, veg, pasta, rice, fruit and old bread etc and the birds devour it in no time. I find the blackbirds love the fruit and the pheasants love soft summer fruit and potatoes. In particular a lovely hen pheasants visits on a regular basis and I can get quite close to her now if I whistle (this is how game keepers round their birds up for feeding) and feed her at the same time.

If you feed them near trees or a hedge or some other place where there is plenty of cover for them to fly to if they get scared - this will encourage birds like great tits, coal tits, blue tits, robins, woodpeckers, gold finch and green finch and nuthatch (these are the birds I see fly into the trees anyway).

Also I would like to point out that I have a cat that sits not far from the bird table (around 4 meters away) and this doesn't seem to deter them from feeding.

[johnseverin]

A hanging bird feeder should do the trick. Just be sure to place the bird feeder where skunks, squirrels, and cats won't reach it.

[londongardenlover]

bird feeders are the best way to go, or anything which encourages natural prey to be in your garden. what you're going to get does depend on where you live, and I wouldn't worry about the cats getting them while they're eating.

[golden14]

I find that using a wide variety of feeders and bird food helps. Fat balls are essential, as even in my little garden the birds get through 5 fatballs a week. Consistency is also the key, do not run out of bird food!

[dripworld]

I agree with jeny and also we had one bird nest on our tree but this is very old and though most of the birds come and see that nest.I thought they would rebuild but never did and the nest is still their.

[tomterm8]

Bird feeders are good, as are making sure there is available water and nesting locations. I think encouraging insects in your garden is another way to get more birds... so for example having a pile of rotting wood in a discrete corner.