Encouraging our feathered friends to the garden is popular these days.
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.
Denne historien er fra May 2018-utgaven av The Gardener.
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Denne historien er fra May 2018-utgaven av The Gardener.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
FIRE AND Feathers!
On a dreary winter's day, a screen of fiery and feathery leaves puts up a fight against dullness!
GET THE ladies in!
At this time of year, early-flowering shrubs vie with each other to get the most attention. We say: Trust those with female names for frills and butterflies. They go the extra mile to flower their hearts out.
Vegetable Soups and dumplings
Vegetables make the most delicious soups and classic combinations are always a winner.
Yummy sweet potatoes for your good health
Boiled, baked or braaied, sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) are a delicious and healthy winter comfort food. Just a dollop of butter, a little seasoning and you are good to go.
Pretty and functional
If cooking is your main thing, you would probably be more interested in the culinary value of the three herbs and some of their varieties we are describing.
Dried Seedheads & Pods
Autumn and winter are the best times to see what flowers produce the best seedheads that can be left on the plants to feed the birds and bugs and for harvesting for dried arrangements.
SO MANY FACES and so many choices...
Whoever associated a Cotyledon orbiculata (pig's ear) with the ear of a pig obviously did not know about all the varieties and cultivars this species in the genus Cotyledon has.
COLOURFUL Cold Weather WINNERS!
If it comes to a vote, these dependable shrubs will be the top candidates for prime performance in winter and in other seasons...
What makes a garden sustainable?
It is interesting to note that the United Nations defines sustainable development as: “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
Nurturing NATURE-The Story of Kraal Garden's Transformation
Nestled within Prince Albert's rustic embrace lies a gem that is a testament to the transformative power of human vision and nature's bounty.
