Where should I site my birdfeeding?

Birds need to feel as safe as possible when feeding. They like to have cover nearby and good visibility to keep an eye out for predators. One of the easiest ways to provide both of these is to use the trees and shrubs in your garden to hang your birdfeeders in. Tree hooks are best for this and make moving your feeders around easier (which is best for reducing any risk of disease).

If you use a birdfeeding station you will want to be able to see it from your window, of course, but, again, site it reasonably near to trees and shrubs so that your birds gain the confidence to visit and feel safe enough to stay.

Which feeders should I use?

Different birds like to feed in different ways, and different foods need different feeders. Here are our top tips for birdfeeders.

1: Easy to Clean

Choose feeders that are easy to fill and easy to clean. The One Feeder Range is the best, in our view, as the bottom comes off to click and clean. For beginners, try the Get Set Go Feeders. They are durable, easy to fill and inexpensive (and ours are still going strong 10 years on!).

2: Feeders for Cold Weather

The easiest option to give your birds plenty of energy and to insulate them against the cold is to feed suet in one form or another. Our suet mixes can go into a seed feeder, but the easiest of all is to pop a couple of suet balls in a spiral feeder.

3: Feeding Peanuts

Whole peanuts can cause choking problems for birds, so always feed your whole peanuts in a purpose-made (mesh) feeder. The One Feeder for Peanuts are the ones I tend to use.

4: Ground feeding

Some birds like thrushes and blackbirds prefer to eat on the ground or on a table rather than from a feeder. This means that if a few seeds fall off your table they will be pecked up by these floor sweepers.

5: Mealworm feeding

Mealworms have to be fed in shallow steep smooth-sided containers as otherwise they wiggle away! The best, in my view, is the I Love Robins Feeder or the Window Feeder Close Up.