Gardening For The Birds

Encouraging our feathered friends to the garden is popular these days.

- Gerald Schofield

Bird watching is a popular hobby and can be extended from the wilds right into the heart of suburbia. People are planning and grooming their gardens to accommodate our feathered friends in no small way, and this has become a seriously big business both in terms of selling supplementary feeds and suitable feeders to growing plants with bird-attracting properties that range from providing food to nests and shelter.

Birds spend their time engrossed in four basic activities – feeding, drinking, nesting and resting. In order to make them feel comfortable and safe in your garden, these elements need to be taken care of and offered to the birds in a practical and meaningful manner.

Feeding

Many gardeners put out food for birds. This may include various types of seeds and grains, fruit, table scraps, and in some instances even mince meat or suet for insect eaters. Today there are special feeders for nectar-eating birds that dispense sweet substances. Compressed suet balls are also popular at the moment, with an array of dispensers for accommodating them in the garden. There are just so many ‘bird gardening’ products on the market these days, drawn from across the globe.