Helping the birds through the cold

Buying up any apples & pears that are being sold off in Tesco's! That's in addition to the regular food I put out, packets of Tesco's value sultanas, sunflower hearts, birdsong mix (see, suet pellets and mealworm), suet (insect I think) blocks, peanuts, and fat balls (out of their nets!), and fresh water too but no doubt that's frozen shortly after I leave for work... I also put out any left over cooked potato / rice / pasta (no cheese alas as I love it too much to have any left over! Lol!)

I am also buying bargain foods to fill out my more expensive food. e.g. cheap fruit. I am buying Somerfield cheap brand sultanas & rolled oats to fill out my table mix. Left over grapes that have gone wrinkly might be going out tomorrow aswell as some old plums. Cooking pasta tonight so will cook extra & keep it soft in water to put out tomorrow. I am just getting through so much suet pellets & dried mealworms(soaked thanks to Blackbirds advice, they are going first). I am bringing water bowls in over night to prevent having to break solid ice in the morning. Got to make another batch of my home made fat filled coconut shells this weekend. I hope this cold spell is over soon, it's so much hard work!

Hi Lloyd

Thank you for the informative post about feeding birds {smile}

The high calorie foods are a must have for birds.

Raisens are a firm favourite to the Starlings, and the Thrushes.

Mealworms are great to use all year round, and good food for birds with chicks too.

Cut up cheese into small bite sizes pieces for the Blackbirds and other birds - like Blue Tits (stops the birds from squabbling like the Starlings)

Red coloured cheese is one of the most liked cheeses I have found from personal experience (name escapes me at the moment)

Green Grapes cut up into small pieces too. 

The birds love the Suet Sprinkles too.

Any other thoughts I will mention here

Regards

Kathy and Dave

I bought some suet and insect and suet and berry pack things as well as the usual seed mix, nuts mealworms etc they were on offer in my local super market.

i also "core" apples and fill the hole with a homemade suet & seed mix these go down a treat and keeps the kids quiet making them on "snowdays"

i also by bacon thats reduced when its near its use by date and cook it and cut into small peices and put that out (usually on sundays as a weekend treat!

My father in law puts out a few veg & potatoes peelings these are a favorite with Wood pigeons and magpies

Yep,  apart from the usual seeds and nuts and fruit pellets, suet from the butcher, 'whoops' cheese from Asda, and lots of mince pies and xmas cake that  we are now really fed up with.  Didn't give them my xmas cake cos there was lots of alcohol in that one, Didn't fancy the idea of them getting drunk and falling asleep in the cold lol.  The gulls swooped down this morning before the sparrows could get a look in  after I had cooked a large chicken and put out the crispy skin,

They must be having a hard time of it though. Bless

I have various seed mixes around the garden, now 2 bird tables 3 of those pole feeders with various feeders hanging and full. (God bless 6 port seed feeders).  I have also put out cheese, but they where not keen, also not keen on the left over fresh pasta.  Also Value Sultanas, porridge oats and RSPB mini suet sprinkles.

I have bought and chopped up apples for who ever wants them, and so far I average 6 blackbirds, 3 Field Fares, and today another 2 new species for my garden, a fleeting Long Tailed Tit, and get this...... Song Thrush...not 1 but 3, most of the day eating together happily on the apples. Unlike the Field Fares who where just trying to kill each other.!

And lots of ice free water.

Working for Somerfield, I am picking bits and bobs up practically every day to keep my bird supplies going.

On top of RSPB No Mess Sunflower Mix and Buggy Nibbles, I'm feeding Simply Value saltanas and Apples.  Then there's my suet creations :o)

Other than my regulars I had a Song Thrush show up the other day to see what was on offer, unfortunately there was a little too much action in the garden for a newbie and after a few sultanas and a look round he/she went.

I am desperately worried for the poor birds at the moment, especially waterbirds and the like - I saw a little egret flying aimlessly overhead on Tuesday. It seemed to land in the vicinity of a housing estate on the other side of town, where there is most definitely not any water.

But back to my garden. I have run out of seed mix and have no way of getting hold of any when I am stranded in my house at the top of a very steep snow covered hill! So I am making do with what I've got in my cupboards for now - apples, porridge oats, mixed dried fruit, crushed up biscuits, and tomorrow I will be giving them a christmas pudding - I had to get clearance from the rest of the household for this one, as even though I don't see it fit for human consumption, other members of my family are rather fond of it!! I have debated whether to give cheese but from experience it largely goes uneaten (unless by my dogs!).

I make sure there is plenty of whatever I give right throughout the day and I defrost and refill the bird bath as and when it is required.

I have had a new visitor to my garden today - a rather beautiful fieldfare, although it did it's level best to chase away every other bird that dared enter the garden, thus it was virtually empty, save for said fieldfare and a rogue goldcrest that was eating what's left of the sunflower hearts, would you believe - never seen that happen before. And obviously as the regulars weren't allowed a look in I have started to worry about them. A lot. There don't seem to be many people feeding the birds round here :(