Birds in your garden. Good or bad?

There are gardeners who do not like to see birds in their gardens and to a certain extend they are right because birds can damage crops. But birds can be very useful too – especially if they eat pests that harm your garden. Anyway, here are few tips how to attract birds to your garden. Especially, if you have an ornamental garden you should make it bird-friendly.

Birdhouses

The most common and helpful thing we do for birds is providing them with food in winter. Birdhouses are the best approach. But you can mix various seeds and treats in a birdhouse all year round, not just in winter. This will allow you to observe different species of birds, their behaviour and learn new things. Bird watching is interesting not only for adults, but also for children. Just remember that birds need enough space so you should not hang several birdhouses on one tree. The minimum height where a birdhouse should be hung is 3 meters. This is a sufficient height to protect them from predators, mainly from cats.

Photo: Pixabay

Breeding birdhouses

This is a special group of birdhouses where birds are willing to nest and raise their young. They differ from classic birdhouses – they are not open so much. Birds that nest in tree cavities love these birdhouses. Before purchasing or making this type of a birdhouse, you need know what kind of birds visit your garden because you need to get the right size – depending on the bird species. For example, the entrance hole should be about 3 cm in diameter for Eurasian blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus), as well as for crested tit (Lophophanes cristatus). A diameter of 3.5 cm is suitable for great tit (Parus major) or sparrows. A diameter of up to 5 cm is suitable for common starling (Sturnus vulgaris), white wagtail (Motacilla) or thrush (Turdus).

Clean birdhouses regularly

The inside of the birdhouse should not be smooth. Smooth surface makes it hard for chicks to get out when the time comes. You can line it with various sticks to help chicks to get out. When chicks leave the birdhouse for good, you should clean the inside. Dirty birdhouse may be a source of parasites and infections.

Bird food

If you want to supply food you can grow elderberries, viburnums, mulberries and some other plants in your garden so “your” birds do not have to search for food. Since the vast majority of berries ripen in summer, when there is plenty of food, you may want to grow plants with fruit that lasts until winter. These include, for example, (Berberis vulgaris), (Ilex), (Crataegus laevigata), (Sorbus) or (Fraxinus).

Source: https://muratordom.pl/ogrod/aranzacja-ogrodu/jak-stworzyc-ogrod-przyjazny-ptakom-aa-LPbn-83P3-7G6o.html

Preview photo: Pixabay