Nest/Roosting Boxes

To buy nest boxes these days is not cheap, however, birds don't need a fancy box with a pretty roof and matching wallpaper, all they need is a safe place to either raise young or to be able to roost with their pals, particularly in winter...I have been using a cheap simple alternative for years that works well for both occasions....It is easy to make and virtually maintenance free....."Plastic Flower Pots"...When you buy potted plants from garden centres these days, the contents are normally transferred to the garden shortly after..The array of vacated pots then build up and are either scrapped or stored for ages in a corner of your garden... Here's what to do.....Take two of them, preferably with one slightly larger than the other and join them together...the smaller one will usually fit snugly into the rim of the larger...seal them in with a silicone caulking gun or just tape around the outside, so long as they are firmly placed together it is good enough....seal the bottom of one of them by taping over the normally exposed water drain holes, this then becomes the back of your box to keep out the lovely UK rain...cut an appropriate hole in the bottom of the other box to allow entry and line the aperture with a little tape since the edges are sharp....Find a suitable spot and place securely...that's it......Normally, I just jam my boxes into the hedge as winter roosters but sometimes more carefully place them to encourage breeding......So far I have a flock of Long-Tailed Tits in one, Blue Tits, Great Tits and Robins in others, even a Spotted Flycatcher breeding in summer two years ago...the Robins and Great Tits have been using them for nesting for years now and cleaning is easy, just split the two halves, clean and reseal......they love them, black or brown and what have you spent, not much, a roll of tape, a sealant and masses of unwanted flower pots already paid for....get moving, they need them in place now for the cold weather...Look around your garden, you probably have other materials that you could use to help the birds..I made an owl box with an old corrugated fibreglass roof sheet and bits of odd wood, if you looked at the price of Owl boxes in a garden centre you would probably faint and most of them are totally unsuitable anyway, too many companies are now cashing in on the good nature of the caring public, take a good look at the junk and ask yourself how long you think it would last in the British weather before committing to buy, it's so easy to help them without spending a fortune........Since I recently had a request for some pics on this, I will post them tomorrow