Gardening Sweet Spots
By Donna Hessel
I really enjoy sitting near my living room windows, looking out onto the deck in the winter with the southern sun streaming in to provide a little warmth, while watching the birds come to my deck to eat the seeds I put out for them daily.
I especially like watching the chickadees that perch on the lilac branches and announce their presence with “chic-a-dee-dee-dee,” before they proceed to the feeder, and the nuthatches that traverse headfirst down the post that holds the feeder.
We have bright red cardinals that visit in family groups and raucous blue jays that announce they are taking ownership of the deck with sharp cries when they arrive. The juncos scrape the snow cover backward with their feet to expose seeds underneath. Did they teach the other birds? I’ve seen some of the regulars try that.
Where do birds live in the winter? How do they stay warm? Don’t their feet get cold or freeze in the snow? I learned more about how our birds survive from an article published last year in the newsletter Horticulture by Jennifer Smith.
Birds employ a variety of methods to stay warm in the winter.
Some birds will grow additional feathers in the winter to stay warm. By fluffing their feathers, birds create air pockets that increase the feathers’ insulating value. Some birds conserve energy by slowing their metabolism/heart rate. More social birds, such as chickadees, gather together at night. By roosting together in tree hollows, nests and other pockets, the birds use the heat generated by the group to stay warm. Birds are cold-blooded, so their feet do not get cold or freeze.
What You Can Do: Keep bird houses clean. Don’t cut down trees with cavities that birds can use as nesting spots. If possible, leave a brush pile in your yard to provide shelter.
During the winter, fresh water is crucial to survival.
Birds can eat snow, but the energy used to turn snow into water can be straining on the bird. Birds prefer to drink from fresh water sources, such as heated birdbaths. Extra feathers are of little use to a bird if they cannot be kept clean. Unkempt feathers have a reduced insulation value, leaving the bird vulnerable to the cold.
What You Can Do: Keep at least one birdbath in the garden, clean and consistently filled with fresh water. Heated birdbaths are great if you have a nearby electrical outlet to power the heater. Make sure the area around the water source is open to prevent cats and other predators from attacking the birds.
Birds need to burn more calories to stay warm in the winter.
Some birds make caches of food: nuts, seeds, etc. for winter consumption. They also seek out hibernating/dormant insects and bugs in tree bark or rotting trees.
What You Can Do: Don’t remove dead or dying trees unless necessary. The dead trees are where birds can find insects and bugs, as well as cavities for resting. Provide a variety of food sources via live vegetation and feeders. Suet, thistle, sunflower, dried berries and fruit, and other seed assortments replenished daily will provide sustenance for a variety of birds. If you start feeding and providing fresh water for the birds now, they will get used to coming to your yard and/or deck for a reliable source of food and water throughout the winter months.
Make a bird feeder wreath or trellis.
You can make a bird feeder wreath easily by starting with a ready-made pine wreath. Spray it with a nontoxic, anti-transpirant, such as Wilt Stop®, to keep the greenery from losing moisture. Spray to the point of runoff, then let it dry for 24 hours before you start to decorate. Decorate your wreath with things birds like, such as dried sunflower heads, millet sprays and coneflower seedheads. Birds love fresh fruit and will enjoy oranges, cranberries, apples, blueberries and grapes attached to your wreath. You can use florist wire to attach most things, but be sure the ends are tucked into the wreath so birds don’t get poked. Lotus pods are great holders for cranberries. They can be found at craft stores in the dried materials aisle. Attach them with hot glue, but be sure to remove any “webs” or glue strings so birds won’t get tangled in them or ingest the glue. Use a wood floral pick to skewer fruit and make it easy to replace. Plastic cable ties make attaching oranges to your wreath quick and easy.
A garden obelisk makes a great base for a trellis feeder. You can put it in a container if you want to make it taller. Jam a block of floral foam (for dried arrangements – available in craft stores) inside the top of the obelisk. Add a terra cotta saucer near the bottom to catch fallen seed and to fill with birdseed for ground feeders. Slip a pre-made birdseed wreath over the top of the obelisk for a steady supply of seeds. These can be found at bird-feeding supply stores around the holidays. Keep it in the mesh bag to help hold the seed to the form. Poke seedheads such as broomcom, foxtail millet and ornamental millet into all sides of the floral foam. Find these at feed stores or farmers’ markets in the fall, or plan ahead and grow them in your garden in the summer for fall harvest. Birds will welcome the addition of fresh fruit. Wire it to the posts with floral wire. For a high-energy offering, smear peanut butter or lard around natural pinecones and roll them in birdseed. Wrap a wire around the base before you add the coating/seeds, and keep the wire ends free to attach them to the trellis.
Find places for your feeders that are visible from windows in your home so you can enjoy watching the birds you’re helping to survive the winter take advantage of your offerings.
Sources: Wreath: Garden Gate 2018/2021 Newsletter: “DIY Bird Feeder Wreath” by Garden Gate Staff . Trellis Feeder: Garden Gate Newsletter, December 15, 2020. “Winter Bird Facts” – by Jennifer Smith, Horticulture newsletter. February 2020.
Photos courtesy pexels.com
