Ground feeder trays

Hi Pepa

Welcome to the Community from me. :-)

You will find lots of previous threads on the topic of what products or food members use to feed garden birds, in the Feeding Garden visitors forum (click Forums top right) or you can do a search for birds+feeders in the Search box.

I have removed my mesh tray and my water dish from my feeding station because the pigeons used to be able to feed from the hanging feeders by standing on the trays. Now only smaller birds feed on the hanging feeders.

You can buy lots of different ground feeding trays, small or large, metal or wooden, or even wooden lookalikes which look good and last well.

Most of the online bird food sellers sell a selection of ground feeding trays: CJ Bird food, Street End feeds, Jacobi Jayne, RSPB and there are others.

In order to make one you would need some fine wire mesh and pieces of timber. It's probably as cheap to by a purpose built tray.

One word of warning, only put as much food in a ground feeder as the visiting birds can eat during one day, as any remains will attract rats overnight.

They still need to be cleaned out fairly regularly.

i have one  which i bought iniially to try & catch the fallout from the other feeders, with limited success. i found it did get clogged up with mess & poop. i've sinced moved it onto a paved area to use as a feeder tray by itself & use it now for peanuts, apples & kitchen leftovers like pastry & it is pretty well used by Jays, Blackbirds & even Tits & Sparrows.

i did consider making one as they are very expensive for what they are but i fell lucky & found one being sold off cheap in B&Q

I've got 2 small ground feeding mesh trays. At this time of year they do get visited quite regularly when feeding suet / seed mix but then things tail off and in the breeding season I use them for live mealworms & get lots of parent birds taking & flying off with them. Do have some pictures somewhere but failing to find them at mo.

Welcome to the forum Pepa!

Welcome to the forum from me, Pepa.

I can't put a ground feeding tray down in my back garden as the dogs think it's for them, and they clear up all the bird food and then run off with the tray!! I do, however, have one down on my front lawn - a mesh tray. I don't have a problem with it getting messy unless I put suet or fat in - then this gets greasy and messy.

Welcome Pepa

I have just changed my ground feeder trays  from the wire mesh type to the Chapelwood Ground Feeder.

I find it much easier to clean (usually just a rinse under the tap) as it is flat with holes rather than mesh.

I also have 2 so I can give one a good clean but still have one out.

Rachel

Hi Pepa and welcome to the fourm. Enjoy yourself here,

There is loads of information about feeding your birds on this Forum - be it recommended by the RSPB website for one, moderators on here, or from peoples own personal experiences on here.

With ground feeders,  Dave and I have a plate of food and we place a circular wire with a plastic roof (the base of a plant pot). so it acts like a roof to keep the food dry and it works well.

We use the bird table we have as the roof keep the food dry too

The only time the food suffers is when there is a frost and it causes the food to be less fresh to the birds.

Sadly there is no cure for frosts, and foodstuffs unless anyone has a invention of sorts on here to prevent food from going off in the frost.

Regards

Kathy and Dave

Hi Pepa and a warm welcome to the forum!

I only recently started using a ground tray as I have always been worried about the drawbacks, such as vermin. But my garden where I'm living now seems very bird friendly, so...! I have to admit to using an old oven tray (without mesh) the assortment I put in it gets devoured during the day and then it comes in for a wash and brush up overnight! I have to say it is very popular with my feathered visitors and attracts all sorts - and amazingly very few squabbles LOL!

Enjoy your time here, Willow  :)

I use one of these little chappies... big enough to have a days feed/scraps in, hardwearing and easy to clean :)

Hi,

I use a small tray the same as the one pictured in Guys post above and I also use a larger wooden tray. The small one i put in a secluded area far from the house and it is used by Robins dunnocks, Blackbirds as well as the pigeons, doves and starlings.

The wooden tray I place in the open on the lawn and this is used by the crow, magpies, prigeons, doves and starlings etc.  I fill both trays every morning with a scoop of mixed seed, sultanas, suet pellets and mealworms and whole peanuts in winter and granules in spring/summer.which i make up myself.  Both trays are emptied every day

They are easily cleaned by spraying with a hose on strong flow.

Sarah