Neither had I Fran. I think the crab apple tree is lovely too but don't the birds eat the fruit Papi Jo?
My concern is the plastic netted fat ball for the blue tit - plastic is very risky and dangerous and frowned upon here, the birds swallow tiny pieces with the fat. However the metal holder is brilliant, the sparrows are obviously enjoying their food.
Each year I get lots of birds in early spring right through to early summer but for some reason they don't tend to come the rest of the year. There is food out and I throw out raisins which I know the blackbirds love but during winter I hardly see any birds in my garden. My parents live not far from my house and they get a constant stream of birds all day every day! My garden is bigger than theirs so perhaps it's too open for them? I have planted some small trees in the hope it'll make it more enclosed and give them places to hide. I hope they start to come again when spring starts.
I'd have thought fat balls would be wolfed down over winter but they're just very slowly getting taken. I've just topped the feeder up with 4 for the first time in about 3 weeks or so. Sunflower hearts seem to remain a constant favourite although still nothing like as busy in spring.
Last spring the sparrows were absolutely flying through the fat balls though so I expect the same again this year.
Yes, I would have thought the fat balls would be wolfed down too Dirty Harry. Are you putting them in a place where the birds feel safe, not exposed and where there is shelter with trees or hedges close by. Do you have a cat - that would deter the birds from the feeders too. Perhaps you could take some pictures of your feeder area to post here. I have some popular feeders and others not so, birds can be fussy eaters can't they.
They sure can @Guernsey Donkey2 As my feeders are near bushes so they can fly back and forth and have choice of foods, it does supprise me what they prefer. Mine have been ignoring the fat balls, will eat peanuts and sunflower hearts( but only from the table or floor, not from a feeder) and will eat a whole seed feeder full in a day. The Niger seed is only just being taken by Goldfinches who turned up this week. The other feeders in the Magnolia tree are being ignored too, that is usually the tits area but not at the moment. Funny things birds.
I am host to a multitude of chaffinches this year, very attractive dusky pink chests. I find it strange here how there are no sparrows ever in the back garden, backing onto an arable field but at the front there are quite a few in the hedges. Never come round the back to my feeding station. Strange.
I'd have thought fat balls would be wolfed down over winter but they're just very slowly getting taken. I've just topped the feeder up with 4 for the first time in about 3 weeks or so.
Lucky you! Currently I have to put no less than 5 fat balls in my crab apple tree every 2 days. Actually, that should be every day, but I've almost run out of the 10 kilos carton I bought back in autumn.
In my garden the long-tailed tits will only eat fat cake (home made using beef dripping and ground-up peanuts). There are usually half a dozen or so inside the feeder at the same time, at some point during the day.
Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
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Last spring the sparrows were absolutely flying through the fat balls though so I expect the same again this year.
A female downy woodpecker yesterday morning.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/139842551@N08/46140895524/in/dateposted-public/