Bird Feeders Add A Special Touch To A GardenBird feeders can add so much to a garden area. There are a variety of feeders available today. There is also a variety of food to purchase for the different feeders. I put my first feeder out two years ago as I had a great natural experience with a Cardinal family. In a back issue of Landscape Solutions For You, Growing Together Newsletter, is a short story about the tale of the Cardinal Ligustrum Family. This was fascinating to see the birth and early development of a Cardinal family. If you would like to read about the Cardinal Family feel free to sign up for the newsletter. This is a free monthly e-zine. There are other back issues as well as a new article coming out at the end of each month, along with the tip of the month and a food for thought.
Feeders can go anywhere in a landscape area. Many birds are attracted to scent and colors. Having a variety of trees, shrubs and flowers will attract different species to your gardens. I like to incorporate any where from three to five feeders in a large garden, and one to three in a small garden. One of the first things you can do if you are interested in putting a feeder or two in your garden, is to know what birds are in your area year around. Many species will migrate to different regions throughout the changes of the seasons. There are thousands of different species of birds around the globe. They are warm blooded animals and can have a body temperature of 99.9 degrees F (37 degrees C) to 112.3 degrees F. (44.6 degrees C) Their temperature will depend on the specie. Many of the species will survive on nature to eat. Insects, small animals, berries and other parts of a plant specimen.
Once you have an idea of what species live in your area or will come for a brief stay, you can look into the different food and feeders. You can match the color of the feeders with other outdoor features. Some feeders can be hung directly onto trees, while others look decorative with a variety of styles of poles. In the examples of landscape designs section, there are two hand drawn designs I did for clients of small gardens with feeders being one of the focal points. One is paradise and the other shrubs. I wanted to share with you a few different styles of feeders that are available today. Below are twelve photos of feeders.
Woodpeckers, Blue Jays and other small birds love the Suet food. You can purchase a suet cage and the suet food comes in a block form. We have a variety of woodpeckers living in the the upstate of South Carolina. They can be seen three to four times daily eating away at the suet food.
The two feeders above are open feeders and are hung off of poles. You can use a variety of different food. I will put a seed mixture in the feeders and this will attract different specimens. Using a blend of different seeds is a great way of Attracting Birds. I called the first photo above the protected feeder. This style is great in a variety of climates that receive a lot of snow or rain. The top protects the food and I usually fill this feeder with black sunflower seeds. The black sunflower is a favorite to a lot of different species, and the Cardinals, American Goldfinch and House Finch are just a few that visit these two feeders. The next photo is a few of the feeders in one area. The great thing about doing something like this is you will get a wide variety of species and they will all feast at different times of the day. In the early morning and before dust, these feeders can have up to forty species eating away. I refer to this area as fast food delight. The first photo is what I consider a perch feeder. A variety of different birds will eat here. Putting Thistle food in this feeder attracts different Finch species. The other is a great feeder to hang off a large tree and use Thistle food in it. The Hummingbird is one of my favorite birds. This specie loves the color red, and putting a few feeders near an ornamental red flowering shrub or red flowers will help attract this specimen. In late March the feeders are put out in the my area, and by April the male makes its springtime journey from Florida, Mexico and Central America. The female will follow a few days later. In April and May the Hummingbird will migrate to the northern part of the United States. They are fascinating to watch as they are the only specie to fly backwards. These two feeders above can go in any
any garden style.
Hummingbird food consists of sweet nectar. You can also use colored sugar water. They do prefer the nectar. One of the problems that can arise with hummingbirds feeders are ants. You can put Vaseline on the pole or I am experimenting with an ant trap this year. You can see the ant trap in both of these pictures. The last two feeds can have a variety of food and look nice around a a deck or patio area. These two will look nice on a decorative pole and make a great accent. As you can see, some of the feeders have been used daily and are nothing fancy. The birds are here year around and by placing some colorful shrubs, flowers, and bird baths in a small area, you can get hours of enjoyment watching our fine feathered friends. Here are some other types of feeders for birds and nature.
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