Whether you’re a young hobbyist trialing new binoculars or veteran birder hibernating over winter months, birdwatching in your garden provides a snapshot of nature from the comfort of home.
Your yard has the potential to be a rich biome for local birdlife to flourish and thrive. From common sparrows nesting in your trees to solitary woodpeckers banging their bills against the bark, given the right steps, you can turn your garden into a birdwatching haven, without taking away from your personal outdoor oasis.
In this article, we explore how to attract birds into your garden and advise on getting the best view from your armchair in five simple, yet effective steps. Read on.
Wow birds with natural feeding spots and juicy mealworms
Providing food and nourishment is a great way to attract birds into your garden.
Some birds forage for seeds, berries, and nuts; others are insectivores who hunt for worms, bugs, and larvae. Different birds eat different things, making it important your garden caters to all dietary requirements if you want to see a healthy range of species.
There are many ways to promote feeding in your garden. Here’s our advice:
Firstly, encourage a natural lunch with organic feeding spots. Promoting natural foraging and feeding is one of the best ways to get local birdlife to call your garden their home. Planting berry bushes and fruit trees are great for providing seasonal nutrition, and ivy is a breeding ground for insects, which also sprouts late winter fruit for year-round sustenance. Moreover, planting an array of nectar-rich flowers attracts a range of insects, ideal for insectivores and grub-hungry chicks in the spring.
Secondly, supplement feeding spots with a bugtastic buffet. As the months grow cold, natural feeding spots become hard to find. For natural insectivores, this is a problem as they require access to bugs and the essential protein they provide, especially during winter. Using a mealworms bird food feeder is a way to give birds mealworms to eat while establishing a clear view to observe foraging and feeding from your window. Mealworms tend to be the supplementary bug of choice. Why? Because they are easy to store at home and are packed with nutrients to keep your feathered friends healthy and strong in the cold.
Encourage bathing and hydration with a DIY birdbath
Providing a reliable and clean water source is a great way to sustain the local bird population. Not only that but turning your garden into the area’s watering hole also grants birdwatchers a unique opportunity to observe the birds bathing and pruning their feathers.
Artificial water sources like birdbaths don’t have to be expensive, but you can invest in a fancy option like a specialized pond to fit the aesthetics of your garden if you need. But as far as the birds are concerned, an inexpensive DIY birdbath will do just fine.
For example, securing an upside-down trash can lid close to the ground using nearby rocks and foliage will prove a sufficient basin. That said, maintaining the cleanliness of the water is essential to continue attracting birds into your garden. This is because you need to ward off and prevent the spread of disease.
When cleaning your birdbath, pond, or water basin, ensure you don’t use any harsh chemicals. Keep things simple by regularly adding fresh clean water, as well as scrubbing the basin free of grime and algae.
The early bird catches the worm (morning is best for birds)
When it comes to birdwatching, the old saying rings true: the early bird catches the worm.
This is particularly relevant when observing the world of birds from your garden window. After all, birds sleep heavy in the dead of night and wake hungry at the break of dawn. They are most vocal in the morning and least active at noon, which means no laying on if you’re serious about spotting the full range of native birdlife, even if it’s from the comfort of home.
Turning your garden into a birdwatching haven is easy. Plus, you can achieve it without sacrificing plans for your own personal outdoor oasis. Simply by providing sufficient food, water, and shelter you can observe the secret world of birds from your back door.