The National Allotment Society - National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners Ltd

Feeding birds on your plot

Most of will have experienced our first frost by now and it serves as a timely reminder to think about giving helping hand to small birds to survive the hard days of winter. Now is the time to start putting out food and water daily. In severe weather conditions it will mean topping up twice a day; both morning and afternoon. At this time of the year birds require high energy/high fat food to get them through the winter. It allows them to build up enough of a food reserve to survive freezing nights. Only use good quality food and definitely not old scraps that have been left hanging around. Don’t allow any unused food to accumulate on or around the feeders and aim to establish a routine by always using the same type of food.  The birds will get used to it and it will encourage them to visit your plot/garden on a regular basis. Always try to make sure that the water is fresh and not frozen. Don’t rely on it thawing out.

Always cut the nets off fatballs before hanging them up in an appropriate container. The nets can trap birds’ feet resulting in broken or torn off legs. Some birds could get their beaks trapped as well.

RSPB Turkey Fat Warning

The RSPB is warning that cooked turkey fat is extremely dangerous to birds and are urging people not to put the leftover contents of their Christmas dinner roasting tins outside in their gardens or on their plots. Many people wrongly believe that it is  as beneficial to birds as other fats like lard and suet but cooked turkey fat is dangerous to birds for several reasons.  It remains soft even when cooked, meaning it could smear onto birds’ feathers and ruin their water-proofing and insulating qualities.

Birds need clean, dry feathers to survive the cold and a layer of grease would make this virtually impossible.

For other tips on jobs that you could be doing this month click here