Hahaha! We've been calling it the Lincoln Memorial the whole time John was making it....it is big...about two feet long and 18 inches or so high. I'm going to have to put some other plants or GJ around so it will not look so large where I have it. Thanks for the inspiring words...more projects to come!

You can always try hanging the feeders independent of the trees. A post set into the ground with hooks for the feeders or the shepherd's crooks they sell specifically for this purpose would prevent any damage hanging feeding appliances directly to a tree might incur. As to the pros and cons of feeding birds.......I agree with Dan on this one. Expanding development has restricted/removed many of the natural habitats and food sources and encouraging birds to the garden is overall a very good thing - they are the best natural insect control available! Plus, they are infinitely entertaining. Planting to encourage habitat and to supplement food sources is desirable, but nothing wrong with feeders either. They can bring the birds up close and personal :-)) If you want songbirds, try a "no-waste" mix. Even if it gets scattered on the ground, it gets eaten too fast to hang around to attract rodents. And sapsucker damage to trees is generally more cosmetic than particularly harmful. Since they have a 'preferred' tree menu, you can always avoid attracting them by not planting the trees they like. And as they tend to limit their diet to insects and tree sap, with supplementation from fruits and berries - the seed feeders are unlikely to create additional problems.

Morning count at feeder with wild bird seed mixed with Black Oil Sunflower seeds: Red-bellied woodpecker. Bluejays, Carolina Chicadees, Tufted Titmouse, Hairy Woodpecker, Cardinals and of course, house sparrows. On tree Nuthatch and on the ground a pair of Mourning Doves.

I have had the same issue here with the black colored birds! First, I had a very large group of Starlings. Then, a sizable band of Red-winged Blackbirds showed up. After that,the Cowbirds joined in. Suddenly, from out of the blue, came a ba-zillion Grackles. With their arrival, the other guys sort of moved on! Now, things seemed to have settled down a bit. I still see small numbers of each species, but I am no longer swamped with them!