While the season of spring is generally the time that most of us think about birds (after all of the mostly silent winter, it is pleasant to wake up to bird call) I generally get ready for the birds in the fall. Here is why.
One of the charming bits of the house we live in is the build in bird feeder that sits attached to our home outside of the dining room window. It is a large flat platform that spoils the efforts of all critters other than birds.
Across from the window and feeder is a large pine tree, a favorite resting spot for birds who have eaten their fill from the feeder. Smaller, scrappy birds, such as chickadees, dart back and forth, snatching a seed and then retreating to the safety of the tree, while larger birds, such as morning doves settle in on the feeder themselves.
During the summer, the birds might come by for an easy meal, but it is really in the fall and winter when we see the most colorful birds in the greatest variety. The red cardinals are back and showing off their beauty against the green of the pine or the white of the snow in winter. And so, we have to be prepared.
The bird feeder will get a good scrub, and we’ll clear out the cranberries left over from last winter that we rejected by most of the birds. We we running a bit low on bird seed.
Next, we’ll take a trip to the feed and seed store, yes there are a few of those around here in Pennsylvania. These stores go hand in hand with the event of walking into the local post office and being greeted by the the raucous of flats of baby chicks peeping away and waiting for pick up to their new homes.
We buy our seed in bulk, the expensive black oil sunflower seeds that the birds around here seem to prefer. On a good week, we can refill the large feeder every other day. Yes, there is a line item in our budget for this. It is called, “For the Birds.”
10 Fall Plants that Attract the Birds
10 Fall Plants that Attract the Birds: Part 2