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JennGM
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| Posted: March 08 2007 at 12:16pm | IP Logged
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I'm a newbie when it comes to birds. Everything. I'll be learning along with my son.
I want to set up some bird feeders, but I'm clueless as to what kind will attract what kind of bird.
And when I posed this my dh is concerned that we'll have no more grass if I have a feeder. So I REALLY need suggestions in that area to keep our lawn still looking pretty.
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Jennifer G. Miller
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guitarnan
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| Posted: March 08 2007 at 12:27pm | IP Logged
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You'd have no more grass because..???
One thing that does happen is that seed falls from the feeder and can sprout, thus creating plants that don't match your lawn. Most of the time, though, ground feeding birds and/or squirrels take care of the seed that falls down. You might want to make a little decorative gravel area at the base of the feeder pole if this concerns you.
The main worry we have in MD is squirrels. They get at most feeders that aren't squirrel-proofed in some way. We have used the Absolute Squirrel Proof feeder (see it on this page) with great success. It's expensive, but it is very durable. If you fill it with a wild bird seed mix, heavy on sunflower seeds, you'll get lots of birds.
I'd suggest putting a feeder out very soon, before birds find springtime food sources. It takes birds a while to know a new feeder is in the neighborhood anyway, and if they find food sources before they find your feeder, they might not visit regularly until late fall. (This advice comes from the Environmental Officer at the base we lived on in WV.)
Even little children love birds. When I had a daycare business in my home, I taught the children how to recognize several types of birds (and help me shoo away squirrels). We had a great time.
If you don't have a field guide of your own, consider checking a couple out from your library to see what works for you. Barnes & Noble has a good selection (including a great one that is specific to MD, DE and VA...we just acquired that one!).
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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MacBeth
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| Posted: March 08 2007 at 12:36pm | IP Logged
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There are some who say that sunflower seed shells will inhibit the growth of grass. I am not sure of this, but I hang the feeders over small shrubs so no one sees the mess  .
Jenn, to start, just put out a general songbird mix in an inexpensive tube or window feeder. See what shows up. I like suet as it is easy, not messy, and it attracts woodpeckers. More info on Cornell's website will tell you which seeds attract which birds.
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Rachel May
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| Posted: March 08 2007 at 2:46pm | IP Logged
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A bird feeder, what a great idea Jenn! We saw a bald eagle out the window yesterday during breakfast. I guess I can't really have a bird feeder for them can I? I'm picturing that would be something like a bucket of rats... 
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mary
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| Posted: March 08 2007 at 2:53pm | IP Logged
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black oiled sunflowers bring lots of pretty songbirds. something with peanuts or a suet feeder will bring woodpeckers. i have liliac bushes below my feeder to hide the shells on the ground.
you might get a baffle if you have racoons. best thing we ever did - the racoon was dumping out our feeder every night.
adding a bird feeder is prob the one of the best things we have done. you are going to love it!
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Dawn
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| Posted: March 08 2007 at 3:07pm | IP Logged
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Jenn, this is indeed a fabulous idea! I tell you, my boys and I get more enjoyment from our birdfeeders than any other aspect of our homeschooling, I think!
Everyone's given you great advice already. I have found black oil seed appeals to everyone, and a suet cake is wonderful for bringing in woodpeckers and nuthatches. (We had a mockingbird clinging to one this morning!) I tried a citrus kind and no one liked that  so we stick with the peanut variety ... though come to think of it, is Ambrose allergic? In which case you can just go with a plain suet. (A fun activity would be to make suet balls together!)
We also set out a thistle seed feeder - this is a smaller tube feeder and it attracts goldfinches and purple finches. Beautiful.
One thing I have found very helpful in bringing in birds is keeping our feeders within easy access of branches and shrubs (ie shelter). If a feeder is way out in the open, birds feel more vulnerable approaching.
Not to get complicated, but if you were considering a tray feeder, that attracts ground feeding birds like cardinals, jays and juncos.
How fun for you and your son! It will be so much fun, especially at this time of year! You might collect dryer lint and scraps of yarn, etc. and set it out in a milk container (washed and cut open). See who takes stuff for nests.
How about a little birding basket? A simple field guide and pair of binoculars ... Bird coloring books are wonderful. Even just drawing birds you see (or birds you make up!) and stapling together your own little field guide ...
Sorry I am getting carried away! I am sure you want to start simply. There are just so many fun things to do with little ones when it comes to birds! Birdfeeding is a perfect beginning nature study!
Enjoy!
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MaryM
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I'll add here that it is important to add a water area. All birds need water for drinking and for bathing. By providing a clean, fresh source, you will attract more species than will visit bird feeders. We don't have a fancy bird bath or anything, just a shallow terra cotta saucer (like those that are used for terra cotta flower pots to drain into).
This is my favorite book on the topic - Attracting Birds to Your Backyard
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Theresa
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| Posted: March 08 2007 at 7:22pm | IP Logged
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We are new bird lovers here. I agree with Dawn about it being the best part of our homeschool. The kids and I are always checking the feeders.
Ortho's All About Attracting Birds was our favorite book.
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JennGM
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| Posted: March 15 2007 at 9:50am | IP Logged
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Thanks for the advice....I probably am too late for this season, but going to try to put something out.
I'm going to ask some other questions.
What do you do if you have no trees?
Is it better to keep away from under trees, to keep squirrels away?
We have a large deck/porch in our backyard. Does that discourage birds being near "man" too much...because I'd like to have the feeders closer to the house to see the birds.
AND...if you're attracting different birds, how far away should the different feeders be? I'm definitely going to put a hummingbird feeder back up, and one other feeder for songbirds. Can they be close to each other?
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Jennifer G. Miller
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guitarnan
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| Posted: March 15 2007 at 10:47am | IP Logged
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Ha ha...the squirrels will find it wherever it is. If money's no object, invest in a squirrel-proof feeder.
We have wimpy tree branches, so I bought a tall wrought iron hook to hang my feeder. It's about 3 feet from the end of my deck and we get lots of birds. (Tufted titmice yesterday!) My neighbor has several different feeders, pretty close together, and he attracts dozens of birds.
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Cay Gibson
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| Posted: March 15 2007 at 12:28pm | IP Logged
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Jenn,
We got this bottle style birdfeeder at the state park on this past Thanksgiving's camping trip.
We just buy the wild bird seed bags cause I'm never sure what birds we'll have.
We hang it from our gardenia bush right outside the French patio doors. It's close to the house and in plain sight. The birds are never in fear of coming on this bush to feast. And we have a cat AND squirrels! We often spend time bird watching this spot. This morning we saw a male and female cardinal AND a blue jay. I tried getting a picture but couldn't zoom in close enough through the glass.
I also have a small clay bowl sitting on the baker's rake on my new gardening patio (my dh's BBQ spot that he so kindly cleared off and let me have ). It's filled with birdseed (the clay pot, I mean). Only I can't see it unless I'm sitting outside. I do hope the birds have found it and are enjoying the treat.
We keep two hummingbird feeders on the front extended porch and can watch them (and the wasps  ) through my kitchen windows.
Last year we made birdfeeders out of milk cartons, spray painted them and filled them with birdseed. We hung them on the fig tree. I just took them down last week. They were pretty ratty looking. 
Easiest birdfeeder to make is a a pincone spread with peanut butter and rolled in birdseed.
My fil made a squirrel feeder years ago. It's on the one pecan tree we didn't loose in the hurricane. We put a cob of corn on that and it keeps the squirrels out of the bird feeders.
And, no, you aren't too late. It's never too late to throw out some birdfeed. 
Enjoy!
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TracyFD
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I go to a farm supply store to buy birdseed - finding that it is less expensive and more fresh. I recently noticed they had bags called "No Grow" - perhaps it doesn't sprout?
We have managed to keep squirrels away by mounting feeders on poles and attaching a cylindrical baffle to the pole. The upside-down bowl-type baffles seem to keep them from jumping down to the feeders from the trees.
We placed a pole-mounted feeder right outside the family room window so we can watch the birds during reading time. It's in the landscaping rocks - close so we can see, but far enough away from the patio that the bird droppings and seed sprouts land in the rocks and not where we hang out!
I love having birds visit our backyard - to give the children's eyes a break during seatwork time I often ask them to go tell me how many/what kind of birds they see. And I am surprised with how quickly they have learned to identify birds and their calls!
Good luck and have fun!
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Topic: Bird Feeder Help
