Bird feeder food

[Hicky]

As we’re well into winter, what do you put in your bird feeders and does anyone makeup their own fatballs?

We have the standard fare of wild see mix(wheat/sunflower/niger/heartseed). I have one feeder of very small black seeds(I forget the name) and it’s hardly been touched.

 

[cougie uk]

Sunflower hearts - I get loooadds of Goldfinches for that.

 

[potsy]

I tend to only put out suet balls/fat balls and sunflower hearts these days.
I find those cater for pretty much all the birds that visit.
The little black seeds will be Niger seeds, supposed to attract goldfinch but I found the hearts did a better job of that.

 

[biggs682]

Whatever home bargains have on offer for sead .
Then mealworms that the magpies seem to enjoy.

 

[Hicky]

After a week of none use I’m going to pour all the black seeds into the mixed. I’d rather have to used than one not at all.
We have caged feeders to deter Covids and pigeons.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

Another one using sunflower hearts and fat balls. Loads of goldfinches.
Remember it's especially important to have food topped up at all times. Birds don't want to waste energy searching round for food, so if you're consistently stocked, then you'll get more birds.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

I find the problem with some of the seed mixes is that there's a lot of waste which ends upon the ground and either attracts mice or wrecks the grass. Sunflower hearts are better value imo.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

I make my own, using suet, oats and whatever seeds I have handy.

I take an old yogurt pot or plastic cup, and make a small in the centre of the base to pass through a length of string. To the end that will be at the top opening of the cup/pot, I attach a small stick, slightly longer than the diameter of the pot. This will act as both a retainer for the fat ball to stop it sliding off and provide two pegs for a small bird to stand on.

Make the mixture in a pot until it’s the right consistency and then spoon it into the plastic container right up to the top. I find it useful to put a bit of tape over the hole where the string comes out, to lessen any seepage. The string does get in the way a bit but it still works.

Then they sit upright in my freezing porch until set, at which point I can slide the pots off the fat balls and hang them in the garden.

 

[figbat]

We stopped filling the feeder when we saw rats scavenging the litter. We’re rural too, not urban.

 

[simongt]

We feed squirrels, collared doves, wood pigeons, starlings, jays, magpies, sparrows & tits on monkey nuts, bird seed mix, squirrel & chipmunk mix, half coconuts filled with fat & seed mix, mealworms.
The squirrels, jays & magpies are very good at hoovering up the ground spill, but as we have eight cats and several visiting cats, rats aren't an issue - !

 

[Sharky]

We stopped filling the feeder when we saw rats scavenging the litter. We’re rural too, not urban.

exactly the same situation with us.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

I get so much pleasure from watching the birds and their antics that if I had a rodent problem (I don't) I'd think of ways round it. Try sunflower hearts only, I find that whatever the finches and tits drop gets hoovered up by the robins and blackbirds. Some of the seed mixes contain things like oats or other bulking agents which birds don't particularly like, so they leave them and this attracts rodents. Failing that I'd consider a table underneath to catch fallings or blocking off the area with mesh so that rodents can't get to the dropped food. And get a cat.

 

[SuffolkBlue]

We stopped filling the feeder when we saw rats scavenging the litter. We’re rural too, not urban.

In my case the rats were also climbing the tree to eat directly from the feeder!!

 

[Emanresu]

exactly the same situation with us.

And us. Our local council have an in-house pest control operation who were reasonable priced in getting rid of them (if you actually can). They also did the wasps nests. The joy of being rural.

 

[Buck]

I tried making my own fatballs but the cost ended up being more than you can buy in bulk.

ive now reverted to just putting out a mixed seed blend and also sunflower hearts. I buy in bulk from www.lovegardenbirds.co.uk when they have offers on.

As well as robins, goldfinch, blue tit, great tit, sparrows we also get crows, rooks amd wood pigeons.

We do also see an occasional rat as they come off the farm fields. Unavoidable and just about learning to live with them and tolerate their presence. Even if you dont see them, they are there!