Winter feeding of birds in the garden

Do you also think it's nice to have a visit to the garden from our flying friends?
In the summer period, birds can easily fend for themselves, even if you don't have a feeder house or bird feeder , but over the autumn and winter the birds become dependent on your feeding if you want to be sure of keeping their present company in the garden. It is therefore also extremely important that you continue to feed them if you have already started feeding them regularly during the cold months.

If you create a good foundation for bird nests in your garden, winter feeding the birds can give you more breeding birds in your garden the following year. One of the advantages of having birds in the garden in the summer is that it can help to slow down pest attacks, as the birds eat both lice, larvae and other small insects. In addition, it is of course extremely pleasant to enjoy the morning coffee and the sunrise while listening to the chirping of the birds.

In this article, you can read about the different bird species' preferences in relation to feed, as well as good tips and tricks for winter feeding of birds.

Important to have a good bird feeder or feed house

It is important to acquire a bird feeder , feeding house or automatic feeder for when you have to feed birds in autumn or winter. The weather is not always on our side in Denmark, and therefore the feed can quickly be wasted, as it can get lost in rain, snow and sleet. Furthermore, the birds should preferably not sit among the feed when they are consuming it, as diseases can easily spread among them if they peck at the feed.
Also remember to clean the feed house or the board frequently, as diseases can also occur there.
In addition to being super practical, a bird feeder also gives your garden an extremely charming and cozy look. In addition, you can more easily observe the birds from inside your house if the feeding place is located in heights compared to if the feed was among the grass.

There is a sea of different bird feeders and feeder houses, so it is important that you make sure you choose one that suits the birds you want in the garden. See our entire selection of beautiful bird feeders here .

Safe placement of feed

Make sure to place your feeding place at heights of e.g. a post, and preferably out in the open, so you avoid the neighbor's cat getting hold of your dear friends. If the feeding place is out in the open, the birds can also more easily keep an eye out for cats or other predators approaching.

Different bird food according to species

The species of birds that are attracted to the garden depend on the composition of the feed that you put out. You can read more about the different types of feed below

Sunflower seeds and fat balls

The blue tit and blue tit are typically the birds that come to visit when you put sunflower seeds and fat balls out on the bird feeder . These birds are therefore not particularly social, i.e. that they usually do not share about the food. If you would like to see more of the buzzard and blue tit, it may therefore be a good idea to distribute the food to several different feeding stations in the garden.

In addition to the blue tit, there are also other types of tit, including gray tit, crested tit, black tit and tail tit. The tits are also fond of fat, and actually also eat meat in the winter months if they have to. You can actually make your own milk balls relatively easily, you just need to mix the lard with the sunflower seeds.

Sunflower seeds are also popular with birds such as grebes, grebes and grebes – these birds prefer to be fed in the open areas as they are very aware of cats and other alarming threats.

Ordinary grain

Grain attracts both wood sparrows and house sparrows, which, unlike titmice, are far more social. It is not uncommon to see sparrows occupying the space around a bird feeder in flocks.
If you live further out in the country among fields, you may be lucky to have a visit from the yellow sparrow, which also accepts grain with its beak.

Apples and other small berries

The sun blackbird and the woodpecker are happy with apples in the cold periods, as the ground may be frozen or covered with snow, sleet and rain. In addition, they are also fond of raisins, but this is a very expensive type of feed.
The silktail, on the other hand, does not eat apples, but sticks to other small berries from trees and bushes.

Mealworms for the rednecks

If you want rednecks to visit the garden, then you must serve mealworms, as it is among their favorite food. The robins can, however, eat leftovers and crumbs from the fat balls that the titmice pounce on.

Even birds need water

If possible, you should ensure that your birds have access to fresh drinking water, as they, like us humans, need water. If you feed the birds frequently and also give them access to water, this helps to increase their visits to your garden.

Good books about birds in Denmark

Would you like to know more about the bird species in Denmark? Then stop by our section with garden books about birds .