Carrie, I am new to this Forum also, and I find that i learn a lot just from reading as many posts on this Forum as possible. You will get links to good sites like the Cornell Ornithology Lab site, which is my favorite, and you will get good tips from some of the members on here. Just start reading and looking at the pictures and you will be on your way. Your feeders look wonderful -- I'm still trying to figure out which are favored. I think most people feed black oiled sunflower seeds exclusively, since Cornell says that food is desired by the largest variety of birds, but others feed a mix. I feed both in 5 separate feeders (2 BOSS and 3 mixed feed). I throw mixed birdfood on the ground to keep the squirrels happy.

Just read some posts here and find other sources for answers also. And welcome!

Pat in SouthEastern Michigan

Thanks, Pat. I'll peruse the forum. Incidentally, that feeder on he left with the black baffle? Squirrel knocked it down today & the glass broke... that's a $40 feeder that lasted all of a week. Oh well.

http://feederwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/BirdNote01-Winter-Bird-Feeding-_for-PDF_2012-10-22-RGB.pdf?__hstc=75100365.d1b7df193ceb3412dae86edc6f98ce48.1448328546840.1449973868733.1450150808429.8&__hssc=75100365.155.1450150755561&__hsfp=3353290697#_ga=1.234291229.2004473029.1448667583

Carrie, above is a great read on feeders, feeding, etc. It is from the Cornell Ornithology Lab website.

Thank you, Pat. I'd visited Cornell's site, but somehow missed this article, and it was really helpful!

I'm excited about feeding the birds, and very much hope that I (and my birds) don't become a nuisance to neighbors (unwanted wildlife, bird poop) in such a way that I'm asked to cease & desist...

Hi Carrie! Congrats on
your new journey to feeding the birds. And, I'm sorry to hear about your glass
feeder that broke. Some of my favorite feeders that I see the birds on all the
time are my cheap plastic gazebo style ones (bought at Walmart or Lowes for
about $10). They have broke over the years but I continue to buy them and use
them. I recently bought a bunch of Droll Yankees feeders. I found some amazing
deals on them at my local Walmart. Plus I love that they are made in America
and come with a great warranty. I've been using them for months and haven't had
any issues.

The best way to
attract a variety of birds is to offer 3 things: a variety of food options
(including different styles of feeders), water, and a safe habitat.

Black sunflower seed
is the most popular and easiest to offer in my opinion. Plus it’s affordable
& attracts a variety of birds. Next up I would offer suet. It’s cheap and
easy to offer as well. I see several woodpeckers on a daily basis hanging on to
my suet feeders. Next I would offer Thistle. This stuff is a little pricey but
the birds love it. I feed mine in a thistle feeder made by Droll Yankees. I
also feed peanuts (in the shell and out). I just recently added safflower to my
mix and the birds are already eating it up. I like to buy my seed in bulk and
make my own mixes. For example, I buy 50 pound bag of the BOSS (just got a bag
on sale for $18.95) and bags of safflower, cracked corn, and nuts. Then I mix
it all, using about 80% BOSS, 10% safflower, and a couple peanuts and cracked
corn – that’s my most recent mix.

Stay away from the
cheap store mixes. These often have milo – which the birds will pass up and go
for the good stuff (usually creating a mess too).

Tube feeders that have perches are too small for birds like cardinals to
land on so make sure you offer more than one variety of feeders. I did add
trays to my tube feeders and the bigger birds land on the trays so that’s a
plus.

Attracting a wide variety of birds comes with time and patience in my
opinion. I have set out fruit but didn’t see any birds touching it. Only
certain birds eat certain foods, and some are harder to attract so it does take
some time. It’s good to know what types of birds are in your area during
different times of the year, that way you know what to put out. I have several
books on this so I would suggest getting a book that specializes in your area.

As long as you’re providing a safe environment for the birds, keeping
your feeders clean and filled (especially in winter) and offering water sources
then you’re doing it right.

I started with one bag of birdseed a couple years ago, feeding the birds on my porch rail. Today I have a bird station for prep work hahahaha. I love feeding them! :)

My bird area:

mrsshayne, your info above is very helpful. Thank you. I am having second thought about feeding only BOSS and going to post a new question in a separate thread right now. Hope you answer.

Mrsshayne - thank you!

A few questions for you (or anyone!) I know that the BOSS, if purchased shelled, is more expensive - I'm considering buying that to reduce mess. Other than expense, are there other reasons to stick with the BOSS with shells? Will shelled last just as long and be just as appealing to birds?

I've had a suet feeder up for 2 or 3 weeks and I don't think it's been touched. Should I just be patient?

Oh, I put out a bird bath about a week ago - a very large plant saucer, up on a pedestal, with a few rocks at different height as perches. I've seen the squirrels drink out of it, but no bird action yet.

I have the Audubon Society's Easter Region Field Guide right on the table with me. I get mostly house sparrows & house finches. I did see this other sparrow (pictured below,) but not sure which one it is. And cardinals once or twice a day.

I love the pics! Thanks for sharing. And look at you, with your water source - great job :) hehehe

I've been getting a ton of house sparrows and house finches too. So I get excited when I see almost any other bird now (except hawks!).

Hulled sunflower seed (meaning the shell is removed) and also called "Waste-free" "chips" or "hearts" cost more. But I've never done the math, seed with shells weigh more, so it could be a toss up. But typically speaking, BOSS with the shell is way cheaper. All the hulled sunflower seed I see is pretty expensive so I pass it up usually and buy seed with the shell still on it.

Now, the BOSS with the shell, BIG MESS - so I totally understand people want to feed seed without the shells, but for me, I'm too cheap. Birds do waste more energy breaking the shell, so in bad winter times, hulled sunflower seed can be a real blessing. I'll put some out then :)

As for your suet, I would agree and give it more time. If a couple more weeks go by with no action then you might want to take it down or put out a new one. I'm not sure how long they stay good.

Good Luck! Keep us posted.

I'm from St. Louis and it's been unusually warm so my feeders have been a little slow. And I've got bags of seed waiting for winter weather when the birds arrive in full force!!

i'm in Southeastern Michigan and also getting very little action at my feeders because of the warm weather. Very disappointing, because I have very little excuse for sitting so long watching empty feeders. Like mrsshayne above, I will consider sunflower hearts/chips if the weather gets extremely cold. Our grass is still green and I THOUGHT I saw a bug flying yesterday. Good heavens!

Do keep the water changed every other day, regardless.

mrsshaynes - I hear you about getting excited for other birds! Thanks for the good information about hulled/with shell. I'm in such an urban area - though only a few blocks from the Delaware River & park - that I think birds appreciate me giving them a food option.

Given my space limitations, I'd love to find... maybe 3 feeder/food combos to maximize my feeding success. On your suggestion in Pat's post, I ordered the Cardinal feeder (from Target, the cheapest I found it.) I may also want to get a nyjer feeder. I have the nyjer "sock" up now, but it's almost empty.

Pat - yikes. That's a lot of cleaning the water! It'll be easy in summer when the hose is out there, but it's too big to even fit in my sink... maybe I should go wit a smaller bird bath.

I don't mind feeding the squirrels on the ground. And it keeps the cats out of trouble.

Hi Pat. It's okay to watch the feeders all day, even if the action is slow hahaha. It only takes that one bird to show up to make the wait worth while :)

This morning I saw a Northern Flicker woodpecker eating suet!

We've been getting rain off and on so I haven't been changing the water daily. I just bought a heated bird bath off eBay so I'll get that out when it really gets cold (if that ever happens!) and then add fresh water daily/as needed.

Carrie - I'm so excited you ordered the feeder. I think you'll love it! Just be sure to tighten (really tight) the screw/bolt that holds the bottom in place. I had the bottom fall twice so I had my husband tighten it and haven't had any issues since. I may order another one soon since I love it so much and Target does have the best price right now. Put the nyjer feeder on Christmas list hehehehe.

Mrsshayne - I'm looking for a mesh nyjer feeder right now! I'm afraid I'm going to get all crazy & spend all this money only to have rats & pigeons show up... and/or have my neighbors complain about bird poop all over their patio furniture (not to mention complaints about the wildlife...)

Carrie, just wanted to say this about the water, I fill gallon-size jugs inside and take them out to the water dishes when It has not rained. I don't bring the water dishes inside to fill or clean.

In the summer when they get slimey, I wash them with Dawn outside on the lawn or patio and I either use a hose to fill them or the jugs again. One of my jugs is a big cleaned out liquid laundry detergent container and another is a cleaned out gallon milk container.

Thanks, Pat. So, how do you clean them in the winter? Or do you just replace the water?

P.S. I have five water dishes outside, some on the ground, for anything that needs a drink -- birds, squirrels, whatever -- if they can get a drink from a dish maybe they'll leave my hostas and other plants alone.

Carrie, I don't clean them in the winter except to maybe rinse them out. Hope you are seeing some birds. It has gotten colder here so business is picking up.

Oh, yes, lots of birds... I wish I could find a way to get the pigeons to go away, though!

Carrie: I keep a dedicated brush to clean the bird baths outside. In warm weather I mostly hose them out to clean and fill them. When it gets too cold for the hose I keep a couple of watering cans in the house and carry them outside to fill the baths. I use the brush much more in the winter since I don't have the high pressure hose to clean them. I also cut down on the number of birdbaths in the winter so I only have to carry out water once (two cans).

In the winter I have one heated birdbath and three rubber pans that I can turn upside down and stomp on to get the ice out.

Claire

Carrie B - Hello! How's the Droll Yankee Dorothys Cardinal Feeder doing for you? Hopefully you're enjoying it as much as I have. Any other new feeders? heheheh hope all well!

Thanks for checking in mrsshayne! Things are going fine. I do have a bunch of feeders, including suet. So far, I'm only getting house sparrows & house finches, with an occasional cardinal on the ground. Unfortunately, pigeons, too!

Glad to hear things are going well and you sound like you're addicted too with "a bunch of feeders" hehehehe. I'm getting a ton of house finches and sparrows too. I don't mind the doves but the black starlings are obnoxious lately. I snapped these pics earlier today. They aren't the greatest because I took them behind our glass door. My husband screwed down this little feeder on our deck rail and the birds visit it all day long.

Great photos. I wish I'd get doves - I've not gotten one yet, only pigeons. I'm actually pretty nervous that the neighbors will complain about the poop mess!

Some doves, well, the Eurasian collard doves specifically, are really no better than pigeons in my opinion. The come swooping in on my feeders in groups of a dozen or more, gobbling down everything they can get their beaks on. The sound they make is atrocious, their large size scares away the smaller songbirds, and to top if off, they are an introduced bird. To be honest, I can't really find any redeeming qualities about them.

Well, there is one. They happen to be the prime target of my sharp-shinned friend, much to my delight.

The mourning doves on the other hand are a welcome, if much less abundant, visitor.

Carrie, I always find the knowledge of those at my local audobon and bird store to be very valuable. My local audobon carries a wide range of feeders and food, and can help you target in on what is in your area. As far as stores, there are a bunch of Wild Bird Unlimited stores in PA, not sure what's close to you though. You can check it out on their site. They have a wide variety of feeders and some are even guaranteed to last for life. Yup. The birds destroy and you bring it in for a full replacement. They can help you select baffles to keep the pesky squerrel soft your feeders. Give this all a try.

Thanks, dbobul. Unfortunately, here in the city, we don't have an Audubon, and I emailed the state organization & left a voice message on the phone number & never heard back. We don't have the Wild Bird Unlimited in the city, either.

I'm worried that I'm going to have to quit. The pigeons really are becoming a major nuisance.

Access to a car? There's a WBU in Cherry Hill NJ.

The fact you have pigeons makes me feel you need to change your seed options. What they are eating is what the other birds are tossing to the ground because they're trying to get to something else in the feeder. All that seed on the ground is not desirable to the birds feeding at the tubes. Try a small bag of the black sunflower seeds. Theyll be eaten with more discretion.

I feed niger and black oil sunflowers. The pigeons seem to love the sunflowers.