Bird/Garden tips for October

Hello All,

I cannot in all honesty say that I follow all that I read about the care of birds and the like but try to do what I can, as many others do. Alot of information is available on many sites that can help more than I can or there is so much information, its best kept simple and in bite size chunks.

As September is all but through, its probably best to look forward to October and what is likely to be seen and jobs that need thinking about(I suspect many of you do this already)

Nature starts to close down for the Winter. The Robin is active and is one of the few birds that you'll hopefully hear around this time. Though getting cooler Butterflies and Bees are still active( I have seen a few Cabbage Whites)but only two Red Admirals this year.

Its a month usually given to cleaning out any bird box that's been used(if not still being used)remove and discard any old nesting material and wash out with warm soapy water.

Avian diseases can be easily spread if feeder hygene isn't maintained so try and keep any bird table or feeders clean.

Collecting of fallen leaves and compost down into a leaf mulch is a good idea.

If you have a pond you can add straw which will help deter blanket weed and algae. You can remove excess blanket weed but some creatures may be taken out when its removed so if you leave it by the pond any creatures caught up can return to the pond.

When you start to think about it helping animals and birds may seem an easy option to owning a pet but everything needs some time and care

Gildy x

Interesting & helpful information

Spring here so Nature is bursting out all over rather than closing down. Grass growing, trees in blossom and/or new leaf, lambs fattening in the paddocks, chickens laying, weeds proliferating, everything is busy, busy

Thanks Gildersleve!!
We only have a small garden but I'l hoping to get a bird table and other bits to help the birds over the Winter.....must admit though...I really don't like Winter at all!

I feel so bad now - we cut down our elderberry tree when we renovated the garden, and birds used to sit in it and eat the berries.

Fair is fair, we will need to get a replacement tree - I'm thinking Cherry Blossom perhaps - in the hope they'll like it.

Thanks so much for the info on the birds - helps us do our part for the environment too

I have a huge redcurrant bush that is only for the birds & I leave all the fallen apples from the trees & plums from the Victoria tree. I always leave some fruit on the other bushes & have berried holly trees & other berry bearing shrubs.

I buy my bird seed by the sack & either buy or made fat balls all year around

I love watching all the birds(& squirrels)coming for their feeds all year round

Gildersleeve, how are you on squireels??
I feed the birds through the winter and will be sorting out their feeders in a couple of weeks. However we have had some Red Squirrels appearing in the stand of trees behind us in the last few weeks. I plan to put a feeder up, but is now a good time to start feeding or should I wait a while. There are Oaks , Beeches and Hazels in the wood so food is fairly plentiful and I don't want to discourage them from feeding naturally.


BTW ShadowBoxer - so jealous that your spring is just starting

Het, don't want to start anything here, but the RSPB recommends that we feed the birds all year round now because of the dwindling natural resources and change in crop harvesting etc.
The most important times are winter and spring/ early summer. Winter reasoning is fairly obvious, but in the breeding season alot of grubs and insects etc. that the parents feed to their young are also becoming less proficient, soooooo, if you can help out the parents by providing food for them, they have more time and energy to find the little ones something to eat.

Also once you have started feeding, it is really important to continue (especially in colder months) as they will get used to there being something available for them if needsbe, and the smallest of birds spend a huge percentage of their time trying to find enough food to survive the night and therefore a wasted trip made especially to your garden to eat before nightfall is sometimes the difference between waking up the next morning or not!!

As for the squirrels, I feed 'mine' shelled hazlenuts, they are put in an adapted bird feeder, low down, so the birds can't get them as they are left whole. When I get home I will take a piccie if you like (that;s if you're still speaking to me after this little speech! )

As you might of guessed, this is a mini-passion for me - sorry to go on so and jumping in before Gildy has taken his jacket off!!

Hello Ruthlynn, Maplecottage, Het, Ashlady, JodeeUK and Shadow Boxer,

Jump in, I'm just someone who has suddenly taken to this interest. As Ashlady says there are some really good sites for both information and for ordering food.

I think I could probably do with some advice about feeding Squirrels myslef but as the most I have seen at one time was three and one usually visits regularly.

I thought of Hazlenuts but they seem expensive and well, all tha I have seen are in shells. I have a feeling I probably should be searching the net.

He's been very busy in the garden this morning but once he had buried the peanuts, he was off.

If allowed I could put links to some feed suppliers but as always treat with caution but I will always tell you whether I have been happy with their service. But I have no connection any such company.

I would think Squirrels will be happy to have nuts available all year around and am sure just as the birds do throughout the year as Ashlady says you'll see the amount that visit ebb and flow. But its handy that they know that should they return, there is some food available.

Of late many of my birds have disappeared during the day but returned at night to feed before going to bed. As October arrives and we put the clocks back, the hours we are fortunate to see the birds and wildlife may be less because by the time we get home from work its dark so we'll have to be sure to have the feeders stocked.

Het, you are so fortunate if you have Red Squirrels visiting, I hope you manage to get some photo's. We cannot blame the Grey Squirrel for the demise of the Red. After all, it was introduced to these shores. Many carry a virus that can and does often kill Red Squirrels within 10-14 days, its not their fault that they carry it. Should there be a cull of greys, well its argued that there are far too many and they can and do damage some trees. Its reckoned that a cull would not work.

Being a friendly board you can mention things and if someone has a different view that's expressed the important thing is to differ but never fall out. I do not know enough to give a definate view either way.

Maplecottage, do not feel bad, there could be very good reasons why a tree had to come out. Besides, you may, like the rest of us starting to get interested and want to help, its better than going the other way

Besides look at me...I've lived here 45 years plus and now I'm putting in shrubs and bushes that have berries. I hope I am around long enough to get the pleasure out of what I am doing. And if not, anyone coming in here doesn't just rip it all out.

JoedeeUK you seem to be doing all that I do and hope to.

And Shadow Boxer, well, of course the net does reach out further than these shores. Sounds great and I look forward to when it comes around here again, trouble is we spend best part of our time looking ahead and unfortunately, we're wishing our time away. We're all here for too short a time so if possible try and live for the day.

I'm sure many of the tips will work anywhere(and yes, I have some for Spring so perhaps they should be posted)

Cheers

Gildy x

Hi Ashlady, thanks for the reply, I'd love to see a pic of your squirrel, why don't you post it on this thread, I'm sure Gildersleeve won't mind. I will try and get some pictures of 'ours' once they start using the feeder.

I tend to feed the birds from October through til the end of May, mid June, the main reason I stop is that they seem to stop feeding as much. I still put bits and bobs out for them but they all seem to disappear ?! We are surrounded by woodland and fields.

I have a feeder for the squirrels which the birds will not be able to get anything from and have put it on the lovely big Oak tree out the back that seems to be their favourite place, hopefully they will get the hang of it quickly.

Gildersleeve, fortunately we seem to have more reds in the area than greys although a couple have been spotted. Also there have been a couple of cases of pox. One of our local vets is actually treating any cases with a drug previously used on dogs and cats, and it seems to be very successful. The drug company has even donated a large supply of the drug for the Vet practice to treat squirrels as we do have a few colonies in the Eden Valley.

Before I disappear...again...

I'm still trying to understand how to add photo's though I managed a short test a few days ago. I don't want to use up my allowed space and if I do I need to know how to remove the images to create space again.

I'm looking into Fluffy Bunny's idea of having a free account at Photobucket and linking back to here but not sure which instructions and boxes to tick and what information to give and if I succeed how to link back to here.

I've still much to learn

BTW you are correct in what you say about birds, we have to try and decide whether its a busy day and guage how much food is put out. Even Bill Oddie's Springwatch programme as far as I know has never mentioned that birds will leave and find food elsewhere. They've tended to say just put food out. In doing so some people have wasted their feed or found as its not been eaten you could get rats or whatever.

A few weeks ago I had 12 or more doves in the garden at one time, I lost a few later to a hawk and thought perhaps the numbers would dwindle, I have only had an odd couple lately and yet just as I close this below my bedroom window I saw 7 and the lack of birds has meant that I have reduced what I put out so now I'll increase the ration again.

Its decidedly cooler and windy here so maybe they'll start to show more.

Gildy