Gardening for Birds

  • Bird Feeders and Birdbaths

  • Problems with Windows

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    If you want to attract birds to your landscape, there are more things you can do than just put out feeders for them. 

    Provide natural sources of food also, shrubs and trees that make berries and seeds are helpful. Choose some plants that will provide shelter, too, and grow thickets for them to hide in.

    If putting up bird houses, be sure to size the entry holes to keep out unwanted non-native species, such as starlings.

                   There are many wonderful organizations devoted to the observation and conservation of birds and their habitats.

    Here is a good link to get started with:

    http://www.audubonathome.org

    Bird Feeders and Birdbaths

    As a landscape designer, I commonly use birdbaths and feeders as attractive garden accents, and try to find just the right size and style to go with my client's design. There are a few important things to know about maintaining these for the optimum health of our birds, and they include the following:

    1.) Water level in birdbaths should be no more than 3 inches deep.

    2.)  Keep the water clean, hose out daily if possible.  This will prevent spread of disease among the birds, and the proliferation of mosquitoes which breed in stagnant water.

    3.) In winter, it may be necessary to heat a birdbath to prevent it from icing over.  Many birdbaths will crack if filled with water that freezes, and birds still need water in wintertime.

    4.) Did you know that birds prefer concrete bird baths over metal and ceramic? They find that metal ones can get too hot in the summer and cold in the winter, and the ceramic ones may be too slippery.

    5.) To keep predatory cats from feasting on birds while they're stopping at your feeder, it may be necessary and effective to put a small fence around the base of the feeder.  This could be made of bent twigs for a rustic effect.  Just making the cat have to jump over the small obstacle seems to help the birds get away in time.

    Problems with Windows

    Ways to prevent birds from flying into plate glass windows, or attacking their "mirror image" in the case of male birds in springtime:

        1.)  Don't place bird feeders directly in front of windows or attach feeders to windows.  They may fly into the window if suddenly spooked.

        2.)  Buy hawk silhouettes or owl decoys and put them on or near windows.

        3.)  Have plantings in front of the windows if possible.

        4.)  For a temporary solution to a persistent seasonal problem, such as springtime bird madness, you may need to cover the window with masking tape or Post-it notes, even a sheet, just something that will make the window look more like a wall.

        5.)  You could use fine mesh bird netting like the type used over fruit trees over the window, or hang wind socks in front of it.

        6.) Birds don't always die after striking a window, and may be just temporarily dazed.  You can put the stricken bird in a covered, cloth-lined box for an hour, and then release immediately if it revives.

        7.) For other more serious injuries, contact the Portland Audubon Society Wildlife Care Center at 503-292-0304 for more information.

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