Looking after your garden birds in the colder parts of the winter
As gardeners over the years we have build up a knowledge of the seasonal cycles. Winter normally starts wet and warm and then this leads into a colder period in mid January and its in this period when your garden birds need the most help to survive until spring. The three main areas in which you can help your garden birds in the colder parts of the winter are
Shelter
The main requirement for providing shelter for wild garden birds in the winter is to create a place or area that cuts down the wind chill factor from the cold winter winds by creating a microclimate with such plants as ivy and other dense evergreen plants such as bay and elaeagnus plants. These types of plants provide the best place for birds to shelter overnight or in bad weather conditions away from the wind.
Food
Another key area in helping your birds in cold weather is food because this for a wild bird can be hard to come by when the ground is frozen or covered in snow. Ideally you need to provide a food thats easy to digest at low body temperatures and provides almost instant energy. Whilst a lot of gardeners us suet balls, seed and bread these are not easy for the birds to digest in cold weather conditions. One of the best sources of food for wild birds in the garden especially in cold weather conditions is mealworms either live or dried, easy to digest and provide a welcome energy boost to the birds within minutes helping them to maintain body temperature. Our recommended supplier for mealworms is chubbymealworms.co.uk
Water
In frost conditions water is another key requirement for wild garden birds as often sources of water are frozen. Access to water is important for drinking water and also to help maintain the birds feather in top condition used in cleaning to help maintain body temperature in cold conditions. Filling a bird bath daily will help and removing any ice that forms during the day will help maintain the birds access to water
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