Feeding wild birds can be a great way of attracting birds to your backyard or garden. In addition to entertaining you with their beauty and antics at the feeders, wild birds may visit your yard throughout the year. They can help keep your lawn and gardens pest-free by eating insect pests and weed seeds.
From the Ground Up: Setting Up Your Bird Feeders
Depending on species, birds may feed from the ground or from elevated feeders. Birds that prefer ground feeding include doves, sparrows, juncos, quail, pheasants, and more. These birds typically enjoy wild bird mix, but larger birds may also eat cracked corn or scratch feed. Setting up a ground feeder can help keep feed from spoiling on wet ground.
Backyard Bird Feeding: Attracting Seed Eating Birds to Your Yard
Traditional hopper feeders can be great for attracting seed eating birds including finches,sparrows, juncos, chickadees, cardinals, and more. Seed hoppers also may attract larger birds such as grackles and jays that may bully smaller birds. Providing both hopper and tube feeders can accommodate all birds, while tube feeders are designed for small birds. Fill hoppers with wild bird mix, and fill tube feeders with ground sunflower seed or thistle seed.
Backyard Bird Feeding: Attracting Insect Eaters with Suet
Suet is beef fat, and it provides nutrition for birds that eat insects, larvae and grubs. Woodpeckers, flickers, nuthatches, jays and others typically eat suet. Attach mesh bags filled with suet to tree trunks, or use suet feeders.
While the type of feed can determine what species of birds visit your yard, the placement of bird feeders should also not be overlooked. The placement of bird feeders is usually important for discouraging pests and predators. By positioning your feeders in open areas clear of trees and shrubbery, you can discourage squirrels and allows birds to watch for predators while feeding.
Karen Lawson is a freelance writer with an avid interest in gardening and horticulture. She earned BA and MA degrees in English from the University of Nevada, Reno.
