Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Types of bird feeders
Yesterday we were all about the food, today it’s about the feeder…
There are numerous feeders out there. Which ones work? Well, they all do but which ones keep the squirrels at bay? Ha! None of them forever, unless you have them rigged for an electric shock when they touch it.
Someone I know actually did that! He had fashioned a shocker that he could operate by remote control when the blackbirds would flock to the feeders.
Pretty soon, they’d get a jolt, fly away and then hover and try it again! By the 3rd shock, they decided to go somewhere else… I admit, it was entertaining!
The dome feeder is a good choice to keep the snow and rain off your seeds as it’s typically covered with a clear plastic dome.
The cardinals and blue jays like this one. Of course, they love the peanut feeders too.
Hopper feeders hold lots of seed. We had ours attached to a dead tree and have put flashing on the sides to make it harder for squirrels.
We also set the tension on the bar light so that squirrels and heavier birds essentially close the shoot when they land on it giving the little guys a better shot at the food.
Thistle feeders have narrow openings for finches while tube feeders work well for sunflower seeds. The chickadees love these.
If you want to keep the bigger birds from your tube feeders then shorten the perches.
Suet feeders are wire or mesh baskets for holding suet cakes. Woodpeckers favorite.
Another option is the window feeder that attaches to the outside of your window with suction cups, the birds eat just inches away from you.
I would suggest this one for people who do NOT have cats! Unless you like to tease them. I’m not sure how dirty your window would get either. There’s also the question of how many birds may try to fly INTO the window.