Bird Gardening

Suggestions for attracting birds to a garden: Are heated birdbaths a good idea? Is it Ok to put out thistle seeds or Niger seeds for birds in areas where it is not native?

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  • Topic: Bird Gardening
  • Author: Janet Newton
  • Keywords: birds, seeds, thistle, birdbaths, gardens
  • Date: June 2002

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We had quite a response from our readers regarding the article about bird gardening in the last newsletter.

Thank you to all who wrote in with comments and questions.

For the benefit of all, here are answers to some questions stimulated by the article:

Heating Birdbaths

One reader said: “I’ve been told that heaters in birdbaths in the winter can be dangerous because the birds take a nice warm bath and then the water can freeze on them when it’s really cold (like it often is where I live in Eastern Washington). I’ve been told that it’s good to heat a birdbath to just a little above freezing so the birds can drink but to put a screen of some kind in so they can’t take a bath. That’s what I thought I’d do but I guess I don’t know which is really best.”

According to our research, it is still important for birds to have access to bathing in the wintertime, as it keeps their warm down feathers clean. What you should use in a birdbath is a “de-icer,” which prevents freezing but does not raise the temperature of the water too much.

Thistle Seed

From another reader: “I was told by several folk that thistle is not a good seed to put out, as it will germinate here in our mountainous area, and as it is not native, will cause problems as an alien species. We have enough problem plants as it is, I did not want to contribute another. Is the thistle sold in general stores sterile? Or will it germinate and create this difficulty?”

Mary Ann Walz, one of our customer service representatives, responds: What is commonly called thistle seed is not actually thistle seed at all. It is seed from the Niger plant, a native of Ethiopia. Niger seed is typically heated for use as birdseed so it will not germinate. I’m not sure why Niger is nearly always called thistle seed.

I have had a tube feeder for many years that I use for Niger seed and have never found an alien plant under it. I have enjoyed many visits from brightly colored finches. If you use a tube feeder made especially for Niger seeds with small holes and small perches, bigger birds can’t use it.

One bit of advice about wild birdseed mixes. Many of the cheaper varieties will contain a lot of millet along with weed and grass seeds. If the birds don’t find these seeds appealing, they will simply toss them to the ground where they will germinate. The more expensive mixes seem to be more economical because there is not so much waste and fewer weeds under the feeder.

Resource:

An excellent site that has lots of information about birds is http://birds.cornell.edu/, administered by Cornell University.