When Is the Best Time to Put Out Your Bird Feeders for Fall and Winter?

Feeding birds during fall and winter adds color and activity to any backyard, while providing fuel for migrating birds on their long journey northward.

Keep your feeders tidy to prevent spreading diseases like house finch eye disease and avian pox. A nontoxic disinfectant or 5% bleach solution are both good solutions.

Temperature Trends

Bird feeders add joy and nourishment for wild birds in your yard, providing food sources they’re hungry for. But if placed too early or left standing long into winter, they could also serve as a trap for potential visitors such as predators like free-roaming cats.

All summer, birds have been carefully considering their options for fall and winter. As each season changes, they begin looking for places to roost as well as food sources in preparation for cooler temperatures. A well-placed bird feeder as well as native and bird-friendly plants may give these creatures what they need to survive and flourish throughout their winter journeys.

Birds need high-energy foods such as black oil sunflower, mixed seed, peanuts or safflower seed to fuel their migrations and stay active during cold weather. Placing out a bird feeder filled with top quality seeds such as black oil sunflower, mixed seed, peanuts or safflower can attract chickadees, jays and other small birds as well as goldfinches, siskins finches and house finches which might need an energy boost before continuing north again.

If you plan to keep your feeders up for spring, make sure they’re regularly cleaned and placed far from any climbing critters like squirrels, raccoons, chipmunks or opossums who might try their luck at sneaking some delicious birdseed into their bellies. Furthermore, keeping them 12 feet from brush piles and evergreen trees may help minimize window strikes by giving birds safe cover while they fly toward them.

Natural Food Cycles

Food grown and harvested at its natural season offers maximum freshness, and contains nutrients that may not otherwise be available at other times of year. From tender asparagus spears in your garden, fresh strawberries from the farm, or winter squash soup made into hearty winter stew, seasonal eating connects us directly to nature’s cycles and rhythms.

While most birds can get enough food during summer, finding insects for nesting and raising young can sometimes be more challenging than expected. By offering extra bird seed as food during these leaner periods, we can give the birds what energy they require to get through it all successfully.

Winter birds can be drawn to various kinds of feeders, including tubes, platforms, hoppers and suet cages. Black oil sunflower seeds are an affordable option that attracts multiple species; alternatively try nyjer seed for goldfinches or seed mixes with peanuts to attract woodpeckers.

Squirrels and other animals may be attracted to food offered at feeders, but you can discourage their visits by placing baffles below or above your feeders. Another strategy for making your feeders less appealing to wildlife includes placing them within 12 feet of natural cover such as brush piles, evergreen trees or bushes to provide shelter from predators while simultaneously protecting birds from diseases that spread between wild birds. Finally, don’t forget to regularly clean out and maintain your feeders to ensure optimum results!

Regional Timing

As seasons shift and temperatures change, now is an excellent time to put up bird feeders. A few tips:

Keep your feeders stocked with high energy seed blends such as black oil sunflower seeds, peanut hearts and safflower. Thistle seed is also popular with finches and other species who visit bird feeders. Consistency is key, particularly late afternoon when birds need to replenish their reserves for the night ahead – take a few minutes each afternoon to refill your feeders and feel good knowing you are helping these feathered friends survive winter!

Migrating birds like Rufous Hummingbirds at Big Bear Lake need a source of sustenance as they travel south towards Mexico, and you could provide one by hanging a feeder from one or more native fruiting trees in your yard.

As spring and summer progress, birds begin nestling their young. Therefore, providing safe, nutritious options such as hard bread or fat balls that could damage nestlings is imperative.

Set Your Yard Up Early

After spending much of their summer raising young, breeding birds are currently considering their options for the fall and winter seasons, searching for places they can nest or rest. Hanging bird feeders as well as providing wildlife-friendly features such as bird baths, ponds or native shrubs encourage them to remain.

Keeping feeders out until spring can be beneficial, provided that a gradual tapering off occurs during late winter. This ensures your feeders continue providing sustenance when natural foods such as grass are covered by snow or scarce. Furthermore, this strategy helps avoid overcrowding at your feeders which could spread disease and draw unwanted visitors like squirrels and bears to them.

Early to mid fall is an ideal time for planting perennials, trees, shrubs and grasses – particularly native species – due to the cooler temperatures allowing these plants to establish quickly before winter sets in. Plus, planting them now gives them a headstart come spring!

Avoid Late-Season Pitfalls

As winter progresses, birds begin settling down for the season – permanent residents and local migrants that fill your feeders from December through March are guaranteed to keep your feeders busy!

To attract winter visitors, offer a mix of black oil sunflower seeds, peanut hearts and safflower seed in order to attract all species. Also consider providing suet, which consists of rendered lard mixed with other bird-friendly ingredients and hardened into cake-like wedges that many birds love picking apart; its high fat content helps birds build up fat reserves for winter survival. A suet cage or block may hold this delicious treat until feeding time arrives – or you could hang a suet block directly from a pole or branch!

As well as food, birds need water. Make sure there is always fresh, clean water available for them to drink from a shallow bowl or feeder; keep hummingbird feeders active through winter if possible by replacing syrup as necessary and maintaining pump functionality.

Be mindful that wild birds view feeders as supplements to their natural diet, becoming less dependent on them in summer and spring months. If you feed birds year-round, make an effort to move the feeders indoors by April 1 to avoid bears, raccoons, and other predators who become used to visiting feeders; alternatively move them near shrubbery, trees or brush piles where there will be protection from hawks or predatory birds.

Keep Birds Well-Fed Through the Cold

Setting out bird feeders in fall can be one of the best ways to attract both temporary visitors and long-term winter residents. Many will stop by on their migration south; others may remain once they’ve found an idyllic winter home. By providing them a place to rest before continuing southward, hanging your feeder will give them something familiar and help prepare them for what lies ahead.

Winter birds will appreciate having access to reliable food sources like birdfeed. Many natural sources will likely have been consumed or frozen over, leaving little available for consumption by wild food sources or water supplies; birds relying on high-calorie and high-fat foods in order to conserve energy as they seek warmth or fuel their migration journeys.

Keep your feeders tidy in the winter too; regular activity at their base could create a breeding ground for disease and you should clean them often to stay safe from infection.

Keep an eye out for any animals that might use your feeders, including raccoons, deer and bears. Positioning them high on a metal pole or tree to prevent these animals from climbing can help. If unwanted wildlife foraging at your feeders suddenly stops coming back abruptly stopping feeding can cause starvation reactions in certain species which could break their habit of visiting certain feeders altogether – adding a heated bird bath to your yard can ensure water remains available for birds and wildlife at all times!