Tips for Supporting Birds in your Winter Garden

A blue jay perches on my main mixed seed feeder with multiple feeding ports.

As we head into Winter, the birds in our backyards need good sources of higher protein foods as well as fresh water to drink. The insects that were so readily available in Spring and Summer have dwindled, and the cold takes a toll on birds who are not migrating to warmer climates.

There are so many birds that flock to my feeders at this time of year: blue jays, tufted titmice, black cap chickadees, doves, woodpeckers, cardinals, finches, Carolina wren, dark eyed junco, sparrows, grackles, and more. Each bird has their own preferred type of food, for example woodpeckers prefer peanuts and suet while the finches like the mixed seed in the main feeder along with the specialized “Niger seed” (thistle) that’s in a special finch feeder.

Two finches and a black capped chickadee share the feeder.

Also, remember that some birds are too big to land on a feeder, or the bird does not have the habit from eating from a feeder up in the air, and those birds (like doves, robins and others) may be hunting around underneath your feeder trying to pick up the crumbs of what other birds have dropped. I have not yet put out a tray feeder or ground feeder, because I am concerned all I will really be doing is feeding squirrels (nothing against the squirrels, but they look like they are doing fine fending for themselves…) so I have not yet figured out how to attract more of the ground feeding birds. If you have experience with ground feeders, please leave a comment!

Two Dark Eyed Juncos picking up peanut and suet crumbs on the ground.

TIP: Birds really need energy in the morning, when the sun is just up, and the birds are waking up and getting warmth from the sun and shaking off their torpor. So that means the best time to refill your feeders is just after the sun goes down the evening before, after all the birds have finished eating for the day – OR – before the sun comes up (I’m not awake then, but for you really early morning folks this is a great time too).

TIP: Fresh water is absolutely critical for birds to maintain their metabolism and fresh water can be in short supply when the temperature drops below freezing. Believe it or not, water is more important to the birds than food.

For those who have an outdoor electric supply, you can buy a bird bath heater to keep your bath water liquid so the birds can get a drink. Alternatively, since the birds are only drinking water during the day (and not bathing when its too cold), you can keep a smaller watering area for them in the Winter than you might in the Summer. I use shallow plant saucers. Empty the ice by pouring a little bit of warm water on it, dump the ice out, then pour the remaining warm water into the container. Don’t make the water too hot, but if it is lukewarm (65-75 degrees F) it will also take longer for the container to refreeze and the birds will not injure themselves with water at that temperature.

For those ambitious people who like projects, here are directions for making a do-it-yourself solar bird bath station: https://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/WaterHeating/BirdBath/SolarBirdBath.htm. I have also heard that putting ping pong balls in a water bath will help prevent the water from freezing as the ping pong balls circulate, but I have never tried that.

What are your experiences with feeding birds in your Winter garden? Please feel free to share photos!