There is no surefire way to keep birdseed from sprouting. Some people sterilize bird seed by heating it on a cookie sheet in a 300 degree oven for 30 minutes, but that is a lot of work to do on a consistent basis. Some people rake up the spilled seed once or twice a week with a Shop Vac. You can buy the sunflower chips (shelled, broken sunflower seeds) and they won't sprout because they have been "damaged" by being broken. They are more expensive than mixed birdseed, but there is no waste. You can rake the area under the feeder once or twice a week to break up the sprouts before they are well rooted. Sometimes ground-feeding birds eat the seed spilled onto the ground before it sprouts--it just depends on how many ground-feeding birds you have hanging around your yard. At our house, birdseed and hen scratch don't get a chance to sprout because the doves (and cottontail rabbits) eat it all. There are many plants you can incorporate into your plantings to attract birds. Many of them will attract butterflies and hummingbirds as well. TREES: Trees like oaks, cedars, elms and hackberrie provide food, cover and nesting sites for birds. NATIVE PLANTS are the ones that most attract birds since these are plants they already use as a food source. These include trees, shrubs and vines like junipers, yaupon hollies, possumhaw hollies, viburnums, Mexican plums, rough-leaf dogwood, elderberries, sumac, Virginia creeper vine and red mulberry. Pretty much any tree or shrub that produces berries or other small fruit (like crabapples or persimmons) will attract birds. Blackberry and dewberry brambles attract birds, as do fruit-bearing trees like cherries, peaches and plums. To Attract Hummingbirds: You can attract hummingbirds using hummingbird feeders, but you have to change the nectar about once every three days to keep it from fermenting and harming the birds. They also are attracted to plants. Here's some you can plant that they like: Red-flowered yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) American Cross-vine (Bignonia capreolata) Trumpet Creeper (Campsis radicans) Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis) Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis) Coral Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens) Red-flowered Morning Glory (Ipomoea sp.)(annual) Cypress Vube (Ipomoea quamoclit) (annual) Purple Horsemint (Monarda citriodora) Wild Bergamont (Monarda fistulosa) Spotted Beebalm (Mondarda punctuata) Tropical Sage (Salvia coccinia) (usually annual, may reseed)(aka Texas Hummingbird Sage) Autumn Sage (Salvia greggii) False Indigo (Amorpha fruticosa) Heart-leaf Hibiscus (Hibiscus cardiophyllus) Scarlet Hibiscus (Hibiscus coccineus) Standing Cypress (Ipomopsis rubra) Drummmon's Phlox (Phlox drummondii) Indian Paintbrush (Castilleja indivisa) (spring wildflower) Lantana (Lantana horrida) Many birds are attracted to composite flowers that provide seeds, including sunflowers, zinnias, Mexican sunflower, purple coneflowers, safflowers, etc. After they bloom, you don't deadhead them if they were planted for the birds. You leave the flowers on the plants so the birds can "harvest" the seeds as they dry. Don't forget to provide some kind of water source for the birds--a birdbath, a mister, a dripper, etc. Different kinds of birdseed attract different birds. To attract goldfinches in the winter months, put out a goldfinch feeder filled with thistle seed. Sometimes you can attract orioles by putting out oranges, orange-flavored nectar or grape jelly. Dawn

Hi, Good idea! (Poison ivy is a native plant, though.) Try the National Wildlife Federation's Backyard Habitat Program. I raised $800 out of my classroom in just 5 months by selling snacks I bought at Costco. I got seeds from good people online, planted them in a portable greenhouse, in addition to buying native plants and planting them. (We created a native butterfly garden in addition to adding native flowers throughout the school grounds. A student's father donated his wood and work and made 4 bluebird houses. I just had to but the posts and make baffles. I recommend they do fund raising as well as seek donations. Bake sales, tag sales, etc. Good luck. (Here is the garden we created: http://community.webshots.com/album/348247343IHURcbhref> Here is a link that might be useful: Backyard Habitats

People do what they do. Sometimes there is no good reason. I think many people do silly or stupid things. I have learned to pick a couple of areas and only expend energy trying to do something in those areas. For instance, I always try to get dogs/cats that were either destined for shelters or in shelters. I am at the legal limit of two dogs---and have been for years. But, I have made sure two dogs do not get euthanized and have not become a part of the pet problem areas. I am also part of a group responsible for reporting property code violations(to include pet violations. And I live in a city where the local police department(who run the shelter and have patrolmen as animal enforcement personnel) has developed a no kill shelter in conjunction with the local Humane Society. That is making a difference.

I can't say I totally agree with the above. Sure, I have many hawks at my house, but there are a few ways you can deter them slightly. First, keep your feeders right by a shelter (an evergreen bush, shrub, etc. is fine) or put large nesting boxes out to hide from predators when needed. Another thing I would do is keep feeders that give hawks a hard time at reaching- ie, caged feeders, or in your case, covered ground feeders. One idea is to feed the birds on/off every week or two so that the hawk doesn't see the yard as a steady feeding area. Also, keep in mind, hawks and owls don't generally eat birds that often, it is falcons and kites you should really worry about... But then again, winter really pushes the boundaries a bit. Of course there are things you can do, but none are foolproof. Embothrium, of you're reading, as long as the areas are cleaned and sanitized each season, bird feeding is great for the birds as it is a healthy source of food. Winter is especially hard, and there will be less disease in winter.... Lazy_Gardens, as I mentioned, agreed, but it doesn't have to be predictable. Rockybird, if the hawk nests very close to you, you may have a bigger problem, but if it's farther away you should be okay if you take into consideration the above (with hopefully less casualties:), and do you know what type of hawk you are dealing with? I only have experience with red tailed hawks. Good luck :).