General Chat

Anyone know if it is alright to use up leftover peanuts for the birds? I have washed and dried them well to remove salt but am still not sure if it is safe to use them. Linda x

yes it's is ok toleave them out for the birds they also like raisens too

Hi Linda - l don't think you should use them, l'm pretty sure you have to use ones specifically bought for birds. Check it out on the RSPB site or simular though:o) Jude sarf wales

Me again - l have just read the RSPB site about peanuts and it says not to use roasted and or salted peanuts. Jude saf wales :0)

Thanks Jude. Linda x

Hi Carol i was just about to say no to the peanuts but Jude has beaten me too it. I love feeding the birds ,along with the wild bird food i put currents and mixed fruit give them a soak for a couple of hours to make them swell Robins and Blackbirds love them ,also suet they love it . Val x

I'm afraid i cheat ,i buy bird and seed food for the containers ,and fat balls,and coconut shells filled with fruit ,and seed ,nut mix. It's worth a few bob a week to watch the antics of the birds.Fred.ptfg.

I get the rspb approved mix in massive bags from the Garden centre Its ony about 3 or 4 pounds for an enourmous bag. Then we put it in an air tight container. If you check the rspb website they have some wonderful info

Another thing l do for the birds is - l put into a food grinder the following:= peanuts,digestive biscuits (cheapist),suet,bread,bird seed and recently l found a pet shop that sells a mixture of insects (bag) which the song birds love - l mix it all together - they love it.l store it in an old sweet jar. The only problem sometimes the Magpies get a sniff of it:o((( Val - l will try soaking the sultana's:o) The RSPB site suggested not buying the bags of bird seed with things like the green flakes - they are dog food:o( jude sarf wales

I also feed the birds ;rspb low waste /mess mix high cal. value or somesuch! The trouble is the I now have a family of field(?)mice living in the hedge near the bird table!They pop out all the time and eat fallen seeds with teir tiny hands, we cannot decide what if anything to do about them Any suggestions? does it actually matter or will they come into the house with the plague or something? Joanxx

Hi Joan - l dont think they will cause a problem, we have mice at the bottom of garden, the cats usually sort them out!!! depends how close to house l suppose - ask the pest control man!!:o) let me know what he says:o)) Jude sarf wales

only about 10-12 feet away! view from kitchen window not for the faint hearted!I have seen 3 at one time but I must say I am loath to harm the wee critters. Have cats too but they arent allowed in yard because its too close to road so they can only watch the action in frustration from the counter top! Joanxx.

Ohhhh quite close then - perhaps you should ask advice via the pest control man - is there a site on Google etc?? good luck:o)

They also like leftover cheese, raw pastry and please have water handy as some birds like to dip their food in it. Sunflower seeds - we cannot keep up with the demand. If you put out bread please make sure it is soaked in water first. Ann

Ann - l always forget the cheese, Robins usually like that.The bread is usually putin the grinder so it becomes crumbs. Water thats something else we have to fix up - we are still sorting our garden and l'm sort of making a nature area,because of the cats we will need the bath on a pedestal of some sort - it'll get done soon l hope:o) Jude sarf wales

The field mice won't do any harm if you keep them out of the house,they will bog off in the spring anyway.I have a family of them under the garden shed which gives Liz a lot of amusement watching their antics.Fred.ptfg.

I keep meaning to ask for advice on my bird table so glad this thread has appeared :-) I had a home made bird table that the starlings, sparrows, blue tits and robins loved and they would fight over the fat balls I put out and they would get through one a day. My parents for Xmas brought me a new bird table with a pitched roof and the nut storage area is in the bits of wood that hold up the roof, and I have a hanging bit for the fat balls in a basket. The only prob is that the birds dont like it - apart from the starlings who hang over the edge to get to the fat balls. I've tried everything to get the birds back - old table by the side of it for them to land on, old table removed, at the mo I've resorted to putting the old table next to the new and covering it in nuts to get the birds to land on the old table and jump over to the new one. They land on the old table eat all the nuts and dont attempt the new one :-( can anyone give me any suggestions, its a lovely table and I want the birds to enjoy it. Karen

It will be fine to use them.............another healthy option for wild birds especially in the winter is left over bacon fat

Karen - l can only suggest you remove the old one completely,put biscuit crumbs, grated cheese,suet.seed,bread crumbs, dried fruit etc on the new one plus (if you can find it) the insect food l found in my local pet shop, its more expensive than seed etc but the birds love it - its mainly for the song birds, so the shop owner said. l have it mixed with the other ingredients but you could put it out seperately. Birds sometimes take awhile to get used to something new. Good luck:o)) Jude sarf wales

Hi Jude Thanks for the suggestions :-) I've got some mixed fruit in the cupboard which looked nicer than it tastes, I'll see if the birds like it :-) My parents keep asking me how the birds are liking their new table and its getting abit depressing telling them that so far the birds arent impressed :-( Karen