Always lovely to see a lot of our “locals” hanging up all sorts of feeders for our local birds – it’s the thing you do from autumn onwards. To be honest, it’s a thing to watch from the window – it also shows the little fights that pinpoint who’s the boss around the gardens.  

From now on food is becoming scarce and certain species require different types of tucker. Some species of Eucalypts are flowering in my garden right now; elsewhere so do Tagasaste, some puriri, and Banksia. Mexican Orange blossom does its best too, judging from the silvereyes that descend on those flowers.  

Nectivores are often attracted by sugar water, delivered in all sorts of ways: bottle feeders are available in garden centres and can be filled with dilutions of that sugar water. Do NOT use honey water, as that may spread bee diseases from hive to hive. Be aware that we have heaps of Native Nectivores in Aotearoa: tui, bellbird, and silvereyes to name a few. 

A lot of people feed birds dodgy supplements such as stale bread and food scraps; yes sparrows and starlings (as well as mynas and the odd blackbird) might initially seem to appreciate your gestures, but so do rats and mice (who are also looking for fodder). A bread meal is often quite detrimental to birds – if they drink water afterwards, the swelling of the bread can rupture their stomachs.  

A number of bird species enjoy some seeds: sparrows, greenfinches, gold finches, and such introduced creatures – blackbirds don’t mind some seeds covered in fruity stuff. Julie has a different view on the matter: “blackbirds are there to rip the mulch off the garden”, whether or not they want to catch worms or any other invertebrates…  

But this is how I attract them to my garden from June onwards: lard blocks made from MAD BUTCHER meat and dripping and contained in an old onion bag or in a small, metal “cage” where the birds can hang from. This last contraption feeds a wide range of birds that over-winter in my garden.  

Replenish frequently and remember to place the feeders in a spot out of reach from neighbourhood cats. A source of water might also be handy as —even in winter— birds need water.  

My goal is to get the largest flocks of silvereyes on the lard blocks and sugar-water stations throughout winter and right into spring, when the silvereyes start to disperse to go breeding.  

Why is that my goal? I’ll tell you next week – it’s all about Natural Pest Control. 

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