Birdbath Care Made Easy

Okay, so you've found the perfect birdbath, right? It's shallow enough for wading (not deeper than 3 inches), check. Not tooooo smooth to be slippery, check. If it has a bubbler or fountain drip in the middle, it will be more attractive for bathing and "misting" our little friends (maybe check). Now we need to consider placement.

Obviously we want to place our birdbath where we can see the action, but also where we attract the most birds. Birds like to sun themselves, but they also prefer security. A wet bird is a heavy bird, so a wet bird prefers to be close to shrubbery, a fence or trees where it can escape from harm's way easily.

Most birdbaths are on pedestals, but you may also find one that hangs from a tree, offering more security from low-lying creatures.

Placing your birdbath near your garden hose will help you rinse, clean and refill it every day in the hot weather. After dumping the water, a quick wipe with a cloth will help keep the refill water fresh. If it's awkward dump, a strong hosing out may work as well. If you plan to be away for a couple of days or so, you may want to add a drop of laundry blueing, which will help keep the water fresh without harming our feathered friends.

How to Attract Birds

One of the most enjoyable experiences in the backyard is watching the birds flittering around, pecking at the soil in the morning, hopping here and there, or just listening to their song. If you are looking for ways to bring more of our feathered friends into your backyard or garden area, here are some great tips.

• FOOD remains one of the easiest methods of attracting birds. Hanging a seed birdfeeder or hummingbird feeder in the yard on a garden stake made with a hanging hook works well if you don't have good tree branches or an eave that will work. You may try multiple feeders, as various varieties of birds have varying appetites. For example, goldfinches prefer thistleseed, while starlings and nuthatches enjoy raw peanuts. Sparrows like millet, while bluejays prefer raw sunflower seeds. Fresh or dried fruit attract orioles and western tanagers.
• All birds need to rest, so a NESTBOX or birdhouse will encourage birds to have "sleepovers" at your place.
• Planting FLOWERS adds beauty as well as another easy attraction for birds. Hummingbirds prefer red trumpet-like flowers and plenty of nectar. You might add hibiscus, honeysuckle, hollyhock, salvia, red hot poker, or foxglove. Your nursery should be able to point you in the right direction for your area and climate.
  
• Unless you have a pond or lake, a bird bath will become a beautiful piece in your garden while attracting thirsty birds seeking WATER. If you are able to provide even a small water fountain, birds are very attracted to running or bubbling water. As the water recycles, just be sure if you add preservative to the water that it's bird friendly (like a drop of laundry blueing).

How to Clean a Birdhouse

Calendar time! Somewhere on your fall calendar, be sure to schedule time for the birdhouse cleaning (spring for your house, fall for the birdhouse).

Taking down the birdhouse, cleaning and storing it for the winter, will ensure the rodents don't take over in the winter. Your birdhouse will last longer and provide a clean, disease-free home for our friends next spring.

1. Open the house or remove a roof or wall if you are able.

2. Removing nesting materials and any other unwanted items.

3. Use a 10% bleach formula (9 parts water, 1 part bleach), along with a brush, and scrub the birdhouse. Some of the fancier houses that are made of polyresins and such can be soaked in the bleach solution before scrubbing.

4. Allow to dry in the sun before putting parts back together. Woods may take 2-3 days to dry completely.

5. Wrap in used plastic grocery or shopping bags to prevent pests from getting inside if you plan to store the house in an outdoor building. Sealed with plastic packing tape will help keep it closed up.

Now that was easy, and you are ready to re-hang a clean house for our friends in the spring.

Make Your Own Hummingbird Food

Hummingbird lovers have an easy solution to save money and provide a healthy energy treat for their friends. Most people already have the ingredients at home:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup water

Just multiply those if you need larger quantities, for instance, 1 cup sugar with 4 cups of water.

How do you process it and why?

1. A clean feeder

Hummingbirds deserve and require a mold-free container, just like people. Soap and water work for general cleaning. What I have found to work even better is to have extra bottles that I can rotate in, soak with a mild bleach solution, rinse well and refill. The bleach solution kills any molds, which usually wash right out after a day or two of soaking. Friends also tell me that a vinegar solution does the same thing.

2. Clean sugar

If your sugar has been stored in the sugar bowl for coffee, it may have become contaminated, which will increase the likelyhood of molds in the water.

3. Boiled tap or bottled water (not distilled)

Some will argue this one, but unless you really know your tap water, it may contain chlorine or other harmful additives. Afterall, what does chlorine do but kill living organisms? Also, boiling dissolves the sugar more quickly and helps create a light "syrup" effect.

4. Room temperature

Please allow the solution to cool before offering it to our friends. We don't want any burned beaks or tongues, now.

How do you attract hummingbirds to the feeder? No red dye necessary!

Some argue they have more birds with red dye, some argue no difference whatsoever. I won't intentionally feed red dye to my children, nor to my bird friends. Placing flowers, especially trumpet shaped flowers like fuchsia, trumpet vines, morning glories, and honey suckle nearby will do more to attract hummingbirds. Tie red ribbons to or wrap ribbons around your feeder for more red attractant.

A nearby banana peel left open will attract fruit flies, a favorite treat for hummingbirds. Of course, you may not want this near an unscreened window.

A mister which allows dripping off other leaves, bushes or plants will encourage many types of birds, as well as the hummer.

Ideally, providing a perch on your birdfeeder will also give these beauties a chance to rest from their intense flittering.