Help your garden birds

Wondering how to help your garden birds during the colder months? As the weather changes and many trees become bare, gardens get tidied up, and berries start to disappear. It is more important than ever to make sure your outside space is home to wildlife. Birds will need to store fat to get through the winter, and there are many things you can do to help your feathered garden friends. Here are some tips for a bird-friendly garden. 

Make a birdhouse to help your garden birds 

Get creative and have some fun making a birdhouse. Reuse old teapots, books, or wood to build a place of shelter and for nesting in the seasons to come. If you haven’t got materials to recycle, why not try a DIY bird box kit or find one ready-made. Either way, your birds will thank you for it, and you will enjoy watching them check out their potential new home in the garden. Make sure it is placed away from where predators such as cats can get to it. 

Help your garden birds with supplementary bird food

While the key to a thriving garden is plenty of diversity, planting for year-round interest and thinking about natural food sources for birds is the most important thing to do, supplementary feeding is still essential, and it is advised to try and help out. If you are in an urban or rural setting, feeding the birds is much needed and will help to keep their energy levels up. There are many types of food available from seed to fat balls and various size and style feeders as well. Keep them away from predators and enjoy watching the birds come in for a feed. 

Provide natural shelter to help your garden birds 

One of the best ways to help birds through the winter, along with food, is to provide plenty of shelters.

• Plant evergreen shrubs and native evergreen trees so they have plenty of warmth and protection as the weather gets colder.
• Deciduous trees and shrubs are still important, so a mix if ideal.
• Even leave an area in your garden untouched.
• Allow the grass to grow, and leaves to pile up. 

Help your garden birds with diversity in the garden 

For all garden wildlife, it is imperative to create a garden full of life to create a biodiverse space. This means different plants for all year interest, homes for hedgehogs and birds, ponds for amphibians and water for drinking and bathing as well—the more diverse the garden, the more insects and the more wildlife. Creating a thriving space will also give you so much interest to enjoy in the garden.