Creating A Garden For Birds In Winter

One of the wonderful parts of having a garden is that even in the depths of winter you can look out the window and see nature. 

Even on a freezing cold and windy day like today when, even a a keen gardener, I know I will probably do more harm than good tramping across wet grass and muddy borders, I can look out and see our lovely garden and all the wildlife that visit.

 For me now the garden and the wildlife are intrinsically bound together. What happens with one affects the other so now I always try to keep both in mind with everything I do. 

I love birds and get so much pleasure from seeing all the different ones, hearing them singing away so beautifully, having them nest in our garden and all their lovely antics all year I always want to help them through the often difficult winter months.

So at this time of year I sort out all the bird feeders and go to the shops or the farmer's markets and stock up on the bird feed.

I usually get a variety of bird food so that different birds may enjoy it. We have many different birds visit our garden such as blackbirds, starling, thrushes, sparrows, greenfinch, wood pigeon and many more! So I have just bought some sunflower seed, niger seeds and fat balls. I will be getting more in as the weeks go by.

Then I position the bird feeders especially those for smaller birds, so that they are grouped together but a fair distance from each other to reduce squabbling and high enough so they are hopefully out of reach of ground predators. Then its just a matter of waiting.

After years of careful planting for wildlife with a mix of evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs with lots of cover and food, there is an abundance of berries and autumn bounty in our garden.

So I do wonder if the birds may not need quite so much from me this year but we do not yet know what kind if winter it will be mild or severe or somewhere in between, so I will give the birds the option! 

Many of our songbirds are declining in number so I think they need all the help we can give.

Also, I do love to watch them at the feeders and if possible take some photographs so it is always lovely when they do visit.

It is also important to leave water for the birds and we have a large birdbath that they visit every day. 

We change the water every day as birds from tiny sparrows to large wood pigeons do love to bathe in it a lot! 

During the freezing weather, we always go out and break the ice on it so they always have access to clean fresh water.

You may like to read more about the importance of a Bird Bath in Do You Have A Bird Bath In Your Garden? 

The birds in our garden give me such a lot and are such an integral and important part of our natural world.

 It is lovely to know that by planting the trees and shrubs they love for cover and berries and I love for how they look and make me feel,  that I can help the wildlife out a little as well. 

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Do You Have a Bird Bath In Your Garden?

I wonder how many of us see a birdbath as an essential item in the garden? 

I know many of my neighbours do not have one yet and even though they feed the birds and some put up nest boxes and allow hedges to grow they do not see the need for a birdbath.

However I feel that it is an essential item in any garden, be it a wild one or not. 

When we got ours a few years ago I had no idea how much it would be used! 

It took a few days but it wasn't long before we had a lot of inquisitive visitors and took them no time at all to be drinking and bathing :)  We have ours on our patio close to the house but they do not seem to mind this at all and it gives us a close view of them. 

It is essential for birds to be able to drink and to be able to bathe and preen their feathers, their very lives depend upon it. So a clean safe source of water is of vital importance to them.

All year round they use our birdbath. Just yesterday when I was talking to a friend on Facebook there were twenty birds all jostling for a space in the bath! I am seriously considering getting a second birdbath! 

In Spring it is in constant use from first light. There is much bathing and preening going on. In summer I think they find it a respite from the heat, as many seem to simply sit in the water for quite a long time. I am often replacing the water at this time of year to keep it clean and fresh.

In Autumn and Winter, the baths are certainly shorter but they still visit -usually early morning and just before dusk.  

We have many different bird species visiting depending on the time of year, but the most regular ones are the sparrows who visit in small flocks and flutter about quite prettily in the water, while others seem to be keeping a lookout. 

Then the blackbirds who especially the males seem to like to bathe alone and chase off any others! We have two doves who are residents of the area who come and so sweet they often bathe together... so romantic! 

Then we have the big wood pigeons who always come every day and so huge when they bathe they displace nearly all the water!   

Occasionally we have our migrant birds and more exotic visitors who find our birdbath and partake for a drink and a bathe which is lovely to watch. 

So for very little effort and time and only the cost of a birdbath we can really help these birds with a safe, clean source of water so vital to them. In return, we get an amazing show and insight into their lives and it does attract more birds to your garden regardless of what else you do.

Birdbaths vary enormously in styles and prices so it really is what you want in your garden and how much or little you want to spend. There is a birdbath for pretty much any style of garden and almost any budget. 

From simple birdbaths to stylish,  hanging birdbaths, glazed or solar and even heated. Having a birdbath helps so many birds. Do you have one in your garden?